So, this is my first time posting on Two Plus Two in a long while. As a frequent player at Borgata, I was curious to see what it would be like, and thought I would share some thoughts:
The Setup:
(1) The Signup. You need to go the desk and then they either send a notification by text or email. They used email for me, because they said it was easier. On my first visit it took a while, but subsequent times they literally just swiped my card.
That said, it takes way too long. This should get better as more regulars/semi-regulars are in the system, but last night I was maybe 6th in line to check in and waited 15+ minutes, in part because of an idiotic drunk guy at the front. That said, it really moves too slow. Also, as a result, the line backs up and very few people obey the 6 feet markers on the floor. On Friday night, people were lined up and right on top of one another. From a COVID perspective, this was totally unacceptable and must be enforced better (or the sign-up needs to be quicker).
(2) Cleanliness. Everything seemed about as clean as possible. Every time someone got up the rail was wiped down, and the seat too. The only failure in this system was when a woman got up to move seats within the table, and they did not clean her seat. But, overall everybody was diligent. (As an aside, they claim the chips are cleaned but they look the same as always.)
(3) Masks. For the most part, players were good with their masks, even if some players like to "cheat" with their noses out.
(4) 7-Handed. 7 handed tables were roomy, and I didn't mind the plastic partitions that much, at all. I always hated having guys breathing down your neck, or who choose to take up 1.5 seats' worth of space, so this was welcomed. For whatever reason, the barriers (even though they are clear) make some people feel more protected, and flash their cards when looking at them. I saw this multiple times. Kind of a weird phenomena.
(5) Cashier. On Thursday night, the poker cashier closed at 10:00 pm, but was open on the weekend 24/7. I am not sure if this is a new thing or not, but I had to walk across the casino to cash out Thursday. Also, you need to quickly take your mask off when you are at the cashier, so security can see you.
(6) Table Placement. For those who haven't been, all the tables are toward the back. The area across the cashier is entirely empty, presumably to facilitate people going into/out of the room.
(7) High-Limit Area. The high-limit room is being used even for 1-3 NL, so I am not sure how high-limit it is anymore, other than the bigger games being in there. I am sure this is for spacing reasons.
(8) Cocktails. Waitress service was pretty much normal. No complaints.
(9) Table changes. You cannot change tables, and this seemed to be enforced. Yet, poker players were complaining about this anyway. Listen, if you are going to play poker during a pandemic, and this is what you're going to complain about, I really don't know what to say. For me, it just felt great to play again, chips and physical cards in hand. That said, you can sort of get around this by changing games (1-3 to 2-5, or vice versa, for example), or using the dinner list.
The Sessions:
(1) I arrived on Thursday, and things were not too crazy. I decided to play late, around midnight, put myself on the 1-3, 2-5, and 5-10 lists. I relatively quickly got a 5-10 seat. The game was run pretty well, dealers were good, and I made some profit, so who can complain? My 5-10 game was one of only two games in the high limit area, so that was nice and felt really safe since it was a big area with not many people. The game was also stable. Nobody left the table for breaks, etc. when I was there.
(2) For non-gaming reasons, I was unable to play on Friday until late. I went by the room around 9 pm, and aside from the waitlists being crazy, people were queueing up in line, not following social distancing, and the line looked really long. It did not feel safe, and I was tired, so I passed.
(3) Given the experience from Friday night, I woke up and went to the poker room around 11:45 am to sign up. By 12:15 pm, I had my 2-5 seat, and again, the game went well. It was actually a pretty good game, decent action, and pretty stable lineup, though a few players got up and were quickly replaced.
(4) I played 2-5 NL again Saturday night. My table was in the high-limit area, and at first used the crappy cards they use in the main room but then switched to the KEM cards. My table didn't have much action, but since a steam pipe burst causing evacuation of my floor of the hotel, I stayed a while, and squeaked out a small profit. In this game, a few players did constantly keep getting up, causing many 5-6 handed hands. But that was fine with me.
