I am driving over there tomorrow morning to do some research on the gaming industry as part of my independant study, and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on cheap places to stay in the area.

Also, if there are any big features of these casinos that may be worth looking into closely, something that they may do differently than other casinos.

Thanks

Too late, most likely, but I don't have any recommendations on rooms anyway.

As for the features that differentiate it from other casinos, I'd say the main one is that they are an Indian casino and not regulated by the State Gaming Commission. Also, their lack of close-by competition allows them to get by with offering 2nd rate service and games.

The place is not bad, but every time I visit, I can't help but wonder at what spectacular changes could be made without them spending a dime.

The other key difference in it and other casinos in the area is the volume of roadkill you'll experience on the drive there. As a bonus, visitors are often treated to sudden close encounters with the deer population, which is even more exciting by night.

Be sure to post your impressions of it as a first time visitor. Good luck with the project.

If you play golf they have one of the best courses in the state.

I had a great meeting with someone in the HR department, and one of the big things that came up was the lack of regulation. In terms of human resources they really dont have to worry about any legal actions, in fact the tribe needs to be asked if it is ok to sue them, which obviously makes it damn near impossible for them to get in trouble in that aspect.

They have a new Chief Operating Officer, Dale Hipsh, who has been there 8 weeks so far and is implementing a lot of significant changes. From the ideas that were explained to me, there should be a definite impact on the quality of service that the employees offer to guests.

yea noticed that big time on my drive up there, also some of the worst drivers i have ever encountered anywhere. and im from new jersey...

i ended up driving back same day (about 2 1/2 hour drive). There were a lot of pros and cons that i noticed just through general observation and in my meeting with management. They are a little behind the times on certain technological advances that casinos have made in many different aspects of the casino, but they are aware of them and are making the move to catch up.

I had brought some money with me to play some poker, but by the time i was done speaking with management, and was then given a tour of the employment center where they have training facilities for dealers, i was too tired and decided to make my way back.

I walked by the poker room, and it wasn't anything too great, but from a very quick overview of the players, lots of older players. possibly because it was mid day on a friday?

I didnt go into the silver star, so i dont know what conditions are like over there, but the golden moon is generally very clean and has a nice environment. time will tell if the new COO implements effective changes to make the customer service more efficient.

i do, but sadly did not bring my sticks or had time to play. I had read that their course was very nice.

Sorry I'm too late to have an impact on your trip. But this is the most poorly managed casino I've ever seen. Their location covers up a lot of their incompetence as people in the area can't seem to throw enough money at them. Ever since they terminated Boyd Group's management contract early, their management team has consisted of people too incompetent to run a sidewalk lemonade stand. And I was no huge fan of Boyd. I have seen no part of their "resort" which is competently managed, but I've never played golf there or visited their water park, so perhaps there is a silver lining somewhere that I've missed. It is truly mind-boggling to consider how much more money they could have made, if someone in the organization had a brain.

I hope that doesn't sound too negative

God bless their technological failings. It was a gold mine for a while. My general
impression from a few trips was that they were quite satisfied with what they had. You should see the line of cars coming to the water park on the weekends.
It is the only attraction for miles and miles. Cursory trips through the pit let me see some good action for a very low tier gaming destination. It beat the hell out of Oklahoma, Vicksburg, and the PAST offerings in Seminole. Their clientele isnt likely to make a trip to NO, its not their kind of town. The slots are definitely older, but my unconfirmed understanding was that as opposed to many casinos, they OWN those machines, and don't rent them. Its a sunk cost, and getting new ones may not make financial sense to them. They had some decent looking promos, but the lines were always huge so I skipped them. Not to be racist, but service from the native american staff was well below that of the other staff. It seemed the pit was staffed by experienced non natives fo rthe most part. Native Americans predominated in security, environmental, and somewhat in the slot attendants. Until something new is around to snap up entertainments dollars, not much will change.

I think in my 5 trips there, Ive played poker twice. Youre right on the age front, its a definitely a geezer crowd. Weekday play is crap, Im told local home games have most of the players. There isnt a large population base within easy driving distance for games during the week. Its a weekend town.

There is actually a decent explanation for this that has everything to do with the race of the employee.

As it was explained to me, if someone in the tribe wants a job in the casino, they will get them one. Even if it is just some random bs, the casino is there to take care of the tribe.

The manager i talked to explained that a big problem is the constant hassle of dealing with lackluster employees who they cant fire because they are part of the tribe and "know this guy" or "is this guys son" etc...

So this of course leads to having numerous unqualified and unenthusiastic employees dealing directly with customers which results in terrible customer service encounters ("moments of truth").

Anyone tried this place out in the past four years for poker games? Experiences?

I read a long time ago that this place went bankrupt or closed.
Happened to check the Bravo Poker app today and this room showed up. They say it's a 12 table room open 24/7 in the promenade between Silver Star and Golden Moon. They have a bunch of promos running.
Anyone played there recently? Comments?

I've logged a lot of hours over the years and I'm really glad they seem to have things back on track.

The new poker room manager, Neil Atkinson has things moving in the right direction. It's not the Beau or the Shoe but I think they have a shot to get there and it's a solid alternative for Low limit Holden and the action is very good on the weekend. Right now they have a few tournament promotions running and an O8 promotion that seems to have that game running 3 or 4 nights a week. If you make it to the river with any four wheel cards (no pairs in your hand) and don't get some portion of the pot you win a rack of white.

They mainly spread 3-6 Limit and 1-3 NL but they'll spread or start a list for pretty much anything you can get an interest up for. We played a short 1-2 5 PLO game last Sunday and they took a 5 per half hour time drop in case we wanted to run it twice.

The new location is good for several reason;

The locals can drive up park and the poker room is very close to the front door. They can go straight to the poker room without having to walk through smoking pit or slot isles. This can be a downside because you don't pickup the casual pit players unless they're on the way back to their room at the Moon.

The room is situated right between the two hotels so it doesn't matter which hotel they have available.

They have room to grow. Right now, half the room has slots but the sound is turns down to the point that you don't even know they are there.

Food is decent to good depending on where you go. I'm not a buffet fan but Phillip Ms great the sports bar is right across the hall from the room, delivers and has pretty good food.

Poker rated rooms are plentiful and a competitive rate. $35 Mon Thur and $45 Fri-SatAlso,

Best of luck

GS

I love/hate the new spot. Just as Gordon said it awesome placement for a player right there by the door. Bad location to get the floor game guys/gals to come and play. Over all i would rate the room a 6.5

Thanks for the detailed reply, Gordon!

I was thinking of coming for the day on Saturday. Do 1/3 NL cash games typically run Saturday AM? I see that there's an NL tournament at noon, so I'm sure they would run by the time people start busting.

Looks like this place is running a spring series starting today according to Bravo app. Might play the 100k ...field has to be soft

Does anyone have any updates on this place recently? Was thinking about going there on the weekend sometime soon, to play 1/3 NL

Does HR take a drop on now flop? I am not what about uncalled bets? I what about promo drop?

Don't drink and post

Ed Hutchinson (aka "Doc") passed away last year, but I just heard about it. His obituary only mentions his teaching/psychological career and accomplishments in stage magic, but neglects the mark he made on Poker. Ed created what's become known as the Hutchinson Point Count system for starting hand Omaha Hi-Lo selection back in 1997.
I didn't know Ed well, but enjoyed many hours playing Poker with him in games at PRR and Ameristar in Vicksburg. Rest in peace.
https://www.clarionledger.com/obituaries/jcl127259

BUMP. I am planning a road trip around the deep south, LA/AR/MS/AL, and trying to figure out which direction to take at various points. Could go round the outskirts just stopping at Tunica/Memphis and Biloxi, also one route I'm looking at goes north to south stopping near here.

Does this place have games getting off at all times? Looks like they're usually active on Bravo the last few days.

Beau Rivage is great and usually has plenty of games. Pearl River and Harrah's New Orleans both have nice series coming up if you are in to tournaments.

Where on the Pearl River property are the Poker Open tournaments held? The Silver Star or the Golden Moon?

Golden Moon

Golden Moon, but not in the poker room, in the Magnolia Room.
If you missed this series, the next one is July 20-31, 2023.

You can still enter the Main Event of this series until 10am Sunday.