I played Monday. Call ins for 1/2 plo only. Had to wait a hour for a 2/5 seat to open. They would not run 5/10. The set up is nice upstairs. I had dealers that used to deal poker at first, but then had 4 blackjack dealers in a row and it was VERY rough. I'm sure they will learn but I planned on playing all night, and couldn't take it after 4 dealers and left. Hopefully in a few weeks or a few months they will be able to hire new dealers and be able to open the poker room and be back to normal.

Thanks for info. How many players at table?

9

I used to wear a suit in this room. You were a top tier dealer and everyone knew it. Ridiculous but entirely predictable move by Soto.

There has to be a reason for the room to be closed on what would be the busiest days of the week. I wonder what that is?

Not enough dealers?

I assume there's some sort of capacity limit by law due to COVID and they want table games players at weekend. Complete speculation tbh.

This would have been my guess. Either that, or they have some other limited-capacity thing they want to run in the Venue on some weekends.

I have a real job. The burning question for me is when they'll finally start running poker on the weekends again. Based on my spot-checking on Bravo, they had no trouble getting plenty of players on their 8 or 9 Venue tables this week.

First week back after months off so not surprising. I just hope I can get to play on a weekend soon enough, I'm 2 weeks past 2nd jab now so just about ready to go.

Hopefully this opens before the Rivers poker room!

A week from today and it will be two weeks from my second shot. I too am looking forward to getting back. As far as Rivers opening. . .well, the poker room is part of the expansion so that will be awhile. I would, however, like some facts about a Hard Rock room.

I appreciate the comment. While dealing I like to have fun and interact and joke around but at the end of the day I take my job very serious. As far as me and sotos work relationship I was professional in my mind if I disagreed with him I voiced my concerns or opinion but at the end he doesnt like resistance only conformity. Upper management loves a yes man but they dont care that his subordinates think or what the EOS say about him..

I have been around since the beginning of the poker movement in the Chicagoland area. The games were always very enjoyable. The floor people and the dealers interacted extremely well with the players. As time went on and we lost some of the superstars of floor people. It came down to every form of service for the player that The Shoe offered, dealers, floor people, and of course managementwent crumbling down. So all you people are so hungry to to play you will bow to inferior conditions. Good luck to all. Hello Soto

That's a true statement especially even more than ever now being one of the only games in town.

Hi, Everyone. I haven’t been to this casino since COVID. Can anyone tell me why the tables are in the venue? What happened to the room downstairs?

Also, why no weekend games?

You would get your answers if you read the last few pages but I will give you the cliffs:

Since the casino reopened during covid, they replaced the poker tables in the old poker room with slot machines, because these are extra popular during covid. So I guess when they decided to reopen poker, they didn't want it in the old poker venue for reasons that may include:
- not feeling like moving the slot machines when poker may have to close again
- wanting to leave the slots to generate revenue on the weekends when poker is closed
- wanting poker in a more spacious area, and to have room for players to wait

As for why no weekend games, as people have said in the last few posts, it's most likely because the casino is already at covid capacity on weekends, and they don't want to waste valuable spots on low revenue poker players.

venue should be permanent home of their poker room. Stop hosting crap concerts and pack that place with 100+ tables like they do for the WSOPC. Potential to be the best room in the nation.

Interesting idea, but it will never happen. Why would Horseshoe consider opening a poker room with 100+ tables when even pre-Covid the numbers were way down? Sadly, what is more like to happen is a smaller room when things get back to 'normal'. . .whatever normal is now.

Are we sure it's a weekend thing? Bravo was showing zero tables yesterday and maybe Thursday.

Ditto! The (long time) period when Horseshoe Hammond, Indiana poker room was putting in-progress poker tables down (no dealers), and putting the players BACK ON THE WAIT LIST was coup de grace.

It was not funny. But, players would show up, look at long waiting list and assume a new game would soon be started - They did not know, nobody could get a seat until someone already playing would leave a game.

Thank you!!

This was due to poor management - not lack of interest. Room was always packed every weekend with long lists.

Weeknights were of course slower but they could still get tons of games if they would just open tables and higher more dealers. That was always the biggest issue there.

Probably a good idea to wait and see what the hard rock & rivers casino do for poker rooms but a lack of local competition could really allow the room to flourish.

We know you guys are sharp!
There is sufficient info in that post, for you guys to figure out Horseshoe Hammond's response to having lost money during shutdown and "poker operation".
If you have played in there as has poster, it is more or less obvious!

Is there anywhere near Hammond Horseshoe to safely park a travel trailer?

Finally fully vaccinated, and I decided to go to the Shoe website, just to see the following:

I assume this is still the case, since there is no further update? If so, looks like I'm not going down to Hammond after all.

There's a Wal-Mart very close.

That was from 2020. Call the shuttle company numbers listed on the page to see if any of them are running again.