Here's a link to the video meeting where it is mentioned the Encore is resuming live Poker.

The 11:15 minute mark of the video.

https://youtu.be/Y-yIwvvT29c?t=666

Exactly. We definitely need to keep peppering the Gaming Commission with our dissatisfaction. They were surprised to hear it was "only" 12 tables and I am sure the hours are alarming. Pretty ridiculous.

First I agree if what is posted here is accurate then it is going to be a joke of a room. I think a local room here which closes 1AM seven days a week is too limited a schedule.

But does the license agreement they have with Mass specify they must have a poker room?

If so, I bet that this room meets whatever was codified to be required.

Either way, those calling this a slap in the face, get over it. You are not entitled to a poker room. If you don’t like what Encore is doing then do something about it. Convince CET, MGM, whoever to buy it from Encore. Convince the state to allow another Boston casino. Work to get card rooms approved. Decriminalize underground rooms and go play there. Sure none of this would be easy and not overnight but that is how things get changed. Remember just a few years ago, you did not have poker in Boston so going back to that is not like going back to the dark ages.

That's it, I'm calling the CET main number right now to convince CET myself to buy Encore! That'll show them

To be fair, the spokeswoman said it would start that way. She didn't say that was the end goal. The next step is to make sure those there is a crowd of people who are telling the floors and managers that they are leaving Encore to go to NH and Foxwoods/Mohegan if the wait times exceed an hour. That's the only message management will listen to.

At the same, she also said the casino was "surgically clean" so she clearly doesn't now what she is talking about in some areas at a minimum.

One potential excuse is the difficulty of launching poker compared to other games. Unlike slots, which can be opened up with limited staff, poker needs a critical mass of staff in order to run smoothly. MGM has been having issues opening all of their 13 tables so far. Floors were forced to deal, dealers needed more downs between breaks and that was with just 9 tables the other night and long lists.
To open even 13 tables 24/7, you probably need a commitment from I'm guessing 100 or so qualified people all able to start at the same date. That's no easy task these days. By limiting the hours at first, they can start bringing on people incrementally and have the opportunity to train potential new hires, while gradually expanding the hours and maybe even room size.
Of course that might not be the line Encore is taking, but from talking to staff at MGM about their staffing struggles, it is a plausible explanation and could lead to hope of somewhat of a return to pre-covid poker, albeit almost certainly with fewer tables.

So it will take them 3 months to open a dozen tables at reduced times and weekdays only.

Whatta joke.

So,how difficult would it be for a Boston area poker room to open ? MGC have to approve ? The demand is there. Job creation, tax revenue and....

Oh, this make too much sense. Nevermind..

I'm interested to see what limits/games they spread with only 12 tables

Wages. Qualified people won’t move to the Boston area to make 30-35$ an hour. That’s barely liveable in a city like Boston after taxes.

It’s the new trend, it’s not a shortage of jobs, it’s a shortage of pay!

This, everything about that video is tilting and that person being in charge of the process in any capacity explains a lot about how it has gone (presuming they're not just a spokesperson).

Closing at 8 is a pure joke, let alone no weekend hours, the table count, and it taking 3 months to "dust off and reinstall" an app that is literally only designed to manage poker room traffic and is almost certainly optimized for small card rooms to set up let alone billion dollar corporations with dedicated IT departments. Anyone who thinks this is intended to succeed is doing mental gymnastics IMO.

Encore, gfy.

12 9 handed tables will probably be preoccupied by OMCs. Nobody else will be able to even sit. If they do a HH promo it will literally be impossible to sit.

You won’t have to worry about any high hand promotions for a very long time, if ever again.

Yeah lol promotions are gone. The only benefits of all this that I can see are table selecting will be borderline impossible and people who leave for half an hour will actually get picked up now.

Has anyone ever heard of a casino room having a curfew like this, even during Covid? The smallest card room I can find in the NE area in Lebanon, NH is open until 1am...

Not to beat a dead horse, but is it coincidence that poker only runs when the rest of the casino is not busy? Have poker park at the Rivergreen Lot.

I'm not sure that's an issue. I mean Encore had how many dealers pre-covid ?

Looool, 10AM to 8AM only on week days in the funniest thing I ever heard for poker. I can't stop laughing really.

Who made this decision? Do they actually want to fail? They won't get anyone at these hours (either full blown 5-10 pros, or 1-2 OMCs looking to spend their retirements 1$ at the time).

I didn't step a foot in Encore since Live Poker closed and not looking to do so. I'll resume my weekly bashing on social media to raise some awarness as well. The lady saying "we will resume live poker" in the video is so stupid.

It’s not about poker we should know this by now. It’s about appeasing the MGC by offering live poker while ensuring their is plenty of parking for their table game/slot players.

I don’t think that is the entire story either. A large percentage of dealers nationwide are in that 25-45 age bracket and raising a young family. I know many families where both spouses worked (at least one in a casino) but now one of them is staying at home raising the child due to the uncertainty with the virus, vaccinations, etc etc as they realize it is doable with proper budgeting. This isn’t only at casinos and in poker rooms but in nearly every industry. I have a friend who owns 10 physical therapy centers and he is closing 2 of them not due to lack of patients but due to lack of staffing. If you know people in business you know people who are struggling with staffing issues and it isn’t only the money.

Keyword, HAD. Within the first year the turnover was ridiculous, when everyones lease was up, they screwed!

So maybe your “friend” just doesn’t pay his staff enough for people to care for the job. Ever think about that?

This

That wasn’t the reason his therapists didn’t return. It was for the reasons I mentioned. Workers, especially those raising children, are leery about physically dealing with the public. Surely this can’t be that difficult to understand especially if you have young children.

Admittedly I am an old fart, but I have literally never heard anyone raise this concern as a reason to not work. I understand the concept but just never heard it directly. I am sure some have quit or chose to stay home but I don’t think it is as prevalent as you have experienced.

My contacts are obviously a small sample of the entire country but between my poker dealer acquaintances, family, friends, and neighbors the number is into the double digits off the top of my head. I’m not even sure about the others in my neighborhood who are either working remotely or not working but the driveways that were empty at 11am two years ago nearly all have a car in the driveway now. It falls in line with the massive staffing issues that so many businesses are facing today. Went to Dunkin Donuts tonight for a coffee there was one worker in the building and 7 people in line. It’s a horrible culture in the workplace today with businesses so short staffed. It has nothing to do with collecting unemployment or payments from the government as those ended 6 months ago where I live.

Providing they pick the right mix of games to start dealing, they can fill every table from 12pm to closing, every day, if not filled sooner than noon time.

I take it, my chances of playing an Omaha/8 game is slim ?

Question: What mix of games will fill the 12 tables the quickest ?
Question: Knowing how the Encore will screw it up the decision, what mix of games will they actually deal?

People think they are going to deal expensive games, I actually think they are going to start dealing $1/3 and $2/5 tables at 10am. Imo, they will fill right up, fast.

Question: If you were trying to maximize income/rake from 10am to 8pm, what mix of games would you deal? Are rake games more profitable for the Encore than table charged/time charged games (10am to 8pm) ?

I predict there will be a lot of vocal input at the beginning, by wanna be seated players, on which mix of games the Encore should deal.