Originally Posted by Garick
Moose Lodge TR. Went under contract for a house yesterday, so I had some time to play.
Moose Lodge is, indeed a small room. It's a completely separate room from the main lodge, with its own entrance. Just four tables in the room, and only two going. One table of 1/3NL and one of 5/5 PLO. There was a cop there for security, and things were run pretty well, if a bit loosy-goosy.
I played 5 hours of 1/3, and there was never a list, though I suspect Sunday night is as slow as it ever gets. The game runner was propping and selling chips from a rack under the chips he was playing when I got there, though he got up once the table got to 7-players. Table ranged from 6 players to 9, often with one or two being PLO folks splashing around while they waited for a PLO seat.
Game was very good, though if you really love money and can stand the swings, play PLO. At least 75% of the PLO players were folks who earn a lot of money through extra-legal means and were extremely gambly with it.
There were two obvious grinders at the 1/3, at least one of whom has likely at least lurked LLSNL, based on his use of terms common there. They were good guys, though they were talking a bit too much strat at first. (If you're reading this, hi and thanks for the advice on which games to check out) Everyone else was one brand or another of awful.
The game played decently deep. BI is from $100 to $300, or 75% of the big stack. Straddles were common, both OTB and UTG. Rake is taken into the dealer's rack as they push the pot, which I don't much care for, as it is hard to track. It seemed to be 10% max $6, but I didn't want to make it obvious that I was paying attention, so not sure.
Payout is in 20s, which makes for a silly large wad of cash for a moderate win, and must be ridiculous for the PLO guys, but it's a nice first world problem to have.
Tables are a bit beat up, but real, not fold outs or toppers. Chairs were a bit cheap, but not rickety and were at least office style. There was a soda fountain and you could bring in your own beer if you wanted.
Overall, it was fine. Not a world-class experience, but not a sketchy one either. I definitely felt safe and unlikely to be cheated. I'd be surprised if the record-keeping is meticulous, but I also didn't feel like I had to watch the dealer like a hawk for over-raking.