Pls post anything here involving poker in Florida.

We recently got the green light for improved poker laws. You can read about those laws here. Our state used to be a laughingstock for poker with $2 max betting. Now, we're about to compete with the rest of you for the juiciest games in the country.

This thread is for your questions about where to play, what to expect, etc. As well as locals discussion, TRs, etc., etc.

I guess I'm a wanna-be mod here, so if this is deemed inappropriate or whatever by the Gods of 2p2 then pls delete/ban me/kill me in a grease fire. Otherwise, let's keep this place as the de facto thread @ 2p2 for Florida poker talk and questions.

nah, i don't really like this idea. the state is too damn big. if it will be done i think u'd have to have separate threads. like one for miami, one for tampa, etc. there's a borgata thread, a taj thread, a commerce thread, etc. u don't see people starting a california poker, new jersey poker, or nevada poker thread.

Baby steps ... let's see if this gets thrown out first.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest vacation destinations in the state, Orlando, looks to remain poker-less. A poker geographic oddity: 50+ miles from everywhere.

you can blame the mouse for that one.

I'm going to stop at the Rock in Hollywood tomorrow night. Get an inside perspective on when they'll implement new limits.

Darin

I plan on doing the same in the next 24-48 at The Isle. Will post unless someone beats me to it.

Any good poker near/around Gainesville?

From what i hear the limits are supposed to increase July 1st.

hobokes your only game is in Ocala. I heard they bus UF students down there sometimes.

i used to go to UCF in orlando, yes its every far from a lot of poekr rooms, the nearest by in dayton i rmeber bout 45 minutes, but the hour and 15 minute trip to tamps is well, well , well worth it. My buddy and I would drive out about 4-5 times a week, sometimes getting a hotel room so we didnth ave to drive back. thep layers in the tampa are atrocius, i have playedin A.C, Vegas, CT, missiippi, Even south dakota, online poker sites, AND I NEVER IN MY LIFE SEEN WORSE PLAYERS THAN THE ONES AT THE HARDROCK IN TAMPA IN THE WORLD, promise you aboslute garbage players

The Mouse doesn't like poker -- it's competition. There will never be poker anywhere near Orlando while the Mouse is there.

Hey, I have an idea ... we should talk about how the play is here is FL in such a way as to attract every opportunist with a car, bus ticket or thumb, so that we can really extend this, make it better, maybe even make the FL poker boom last forever! With your help, this will be possible.

Ocala Greyhound is prob your best bet

Sorry, that last post was a bit too far. I just get frustrated with the pure stupidity, the irrational exuberance, the hysteria of youth. When you've never known any other way it's easy to make snap judgments about things like the play of others.

I agree with the sentiment of the post, but you also need to consider that the format of the games encourages bad play. With only a $100 max BI, players don't feel like there is much to lose to get it all in quick. And in $5 max limit, forget it -- 8+ to the flop in O8, no reason to fold, see what happens. It's like play money online. I know good players that play badly in FL cardrooms. I predict that the FL cardrooms will be an absolute killing zone for a few weeks, and then the players will either adjust or quit. And the influx of foreign players (thanks to moronic comments like the one above that encourage it) will accelerate this process.

I've played the underground games here for years. There are a lot of bad and a few good players in them, just like in Vegas, LA, AC, or anywhere else I've ever played. Some of us lament the loss of our own private ponds to fish, as these private games will be gone soon.

But all in all, it will all be good for the game IMO. Before long, FL play will be like anywhere else, but the wide-open nature of the new rules together with the fact that FL is much more inviting a place to visit will likely make FL, and Tampa in particular, the world's #1 poker destination, more than Vegas or LA or anywhere else. This may sound crazy to the more provincial among you, but write it down. It will happen.

And with the play age going up to 21, the kiddies will have to go home and ride their scooters and tricycles for a few years. Sorry.

This really sucks for those of us already here making money. Now it will be flooded with better players . The home games will cease to exist. I guess I either have to step my game up or get my resume in order. ***. I havnt held a job in years.

Oh well it was fun. I'm sick of not being productive anyway.

Maybe it's just my lack of experince playing in FL as opposed to in the northeast, but there were so many fish when I played I think because of the max buy-in of $100. I've only played twice in FL, in St. John's county, but everyone at the table was looking to make freinds, ordering drinks for each other. Guys were getting massages, def not the type of cut throat, i dont care that u need to pay rent give me your money games im used to in AC or home games in jersey or philly.

But yeh maybe its just my very small sample size, but I think I would make more playing $100 max buy-in 2-2 rather than $300 max buy-in... seems like you guys may lose a lot of fish.

Entirely possible, but not right away.

Everyone here is overlooking a significant factor: The control each poker room will have over its games. There won't be uniformity among the poker rooms. Some rooms will realize that they'll drive away customers by upping the buy-in of the 1/2 game. Some might make their games with a $40 minimum and no max. There will probably be a balancing act at each room until they all figure out how to keep all of their tables in play for as long as possible. Remember, a 1/2 $100 NL game will get the exact same rake as a 1/2 $300 NL game because the rake is capped at $5. So as long as a pot gets to $50, they won't care. Clientele will also be a factor as some rooms try to cater to the senior crowd, which means 1/2 and 2/4 fixed games won't go away.

The reality of fish drying up in Florida would not happen right away. It's not like we're going to see an influx of poker pros living in studio rentals in Florida. Our fish are just as juicy as Vegas', but Vegas' fish come in by the planeload every 4 minutes.

Ocalapoker.com about 15 minutes from gville. It is in between ocala and gville

Unless something goofy happens with what was passed yesterday, July 1st for removal of all betting limits in FL is my understanding as well.

To me that means on July 1st, any game, any limit, any buy in amount that the rooms want to spread.

LOTS of discussion and good info on this over in poker legislation forum.

Lou

FYP

Im moving to florida in June and was just there this past week getting a house. I went to play in Ft Pierce and in West Palm. The quality of play was even worse than I had thought as I was sure many of the 'florida players suck' posts had to be exaggerated. Every table was the best table ive been on in my life. I only played 2-5 as I did not carry enough cash to ride out the 5-10 but from watching 5-10 there is no real difference in the horrible play.

Ft Pierce is ok, and will be closer to where I live, but I really liked WPB and will probably spend more time there.

Welcome to Florida. Thanks for the first-hand account of your experience. No one outside of FL believes at how many idiots are down here. It almost rivals Vegas during a busy weekend evening.

No.

The change in poker law is tied to final ratification of the state's compact with the Seminoles. That could take months -- probably depending on how hardline their stance will be about wanting to keep the blackjack tables open in Immokalee.

this all depends on immokalee?? wow, that's surprising (and i'm not being sarcastic, i don't know anything about this, but i am interested)

In a nutshell:

The change in the poker law is tied to successful implementation of a compact with the Seminoles. The Legislature just passed a law that gives the governor the OK to sign a compact that includes terms that say blackjack will be allowed only at the Seminole casinos in Broward and Hillsborough counties.

That does not include Immokalee, where blackjack has been up and running now for a few months. In order for the Seminoles to accept the compact, they would have to shut down the games at Immokalee.

If the Seminoles and Crist want to change the terms of the compact provided by the Legislature, the whole process must start over again, and the Legislature must sign off on it.

The Seminoles an Aug. 31 deadline to sign a compact. If they don't, for whatever reason, then the changes in the gambling law -- including poker -- do not take effect and are thrown out the window.

Immokalee is the wild card here. Are the Seminoles willing to pull the plug there? If so, the ball will continue rolling toward higher poker stakes. If the Seminoles decide they want to keep casino games at Immokalee, it will be months, maybe years, before any progress is made.