Quote:
Originally Posted by gamble153
Other rooms that have a BBJ, also have a fund that awards tickets for such events. Does Mardi Gras not do this? I feel if you gave away X amount of tickets that would garauntee a kick off, then you would get a better turn out.
Gamble,
In our $125 SNG, we have the top two chip leaders get $550 entries and the high hand wins a $500 certificate.
Additionally, we will be giving away more seats this week randomly as a promotion.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pride of Cucamonga
I live equidistant to Mardi Gra & Gulfstream, but I have not played at Mardi Gra in months because the last few times I was there they were running only one 2/5 table.
Gulfstream regularly (as in every day of the week) runs at least two 2/5 tables, two 5/10 tables, and in the evenings regularly runs a 5/10/mandatory 20 straddle tables & occasionally higher limit tables, too. Plus they're starting to run some PLO tables, too. And Gulfstream is only about 4 blocks away from Mardi Gra!! What gives??
Will, why did all the players with money stop playing at Mardi Gra? Speaking only for myself, I stopped going because I got tired of having to wait to play, plus got tired of sitting at a table filled (primarily) with a bunch of bored senior citizens, who sit there day-after-day grinding & waiting to play the nuts.
The definition of stupidity is doing the same thing over & over expecting different results. I'm not insinuating you're stupid (I know you are not), but if one of your goals is to attract more players & spread more higher limit games than you currently are, IMO you have to do something to differentiate yourself from your competitors.
There are three card-rooms in the immediate area (Gulfstream, Mardi Gra, & Dania) plus another five or so within a 20-30 minute drive. Players have lots of options in regards to where to play; since at the moment the action is not at Mardi Gra, why should players such as myself choose to go to Mardi Gra? I have some suggestions--why don't you begin to offer some comps or benefits to those higher limit players that other card-rooms currently do not? Such as:
1) Free drinks (or drinks for $1) 24/7 & not just after midnight. (And keep the liquor real, not the rot-gut that Dania serves)
2) A limited menu of free (or heavily subsidized) food.
3) A timed rake instead of the normal % of the pot.
Also, who's idea was it to comp players $0.25 for each hour of play?? Seriously, a quarter an hour?? That's an insult. Gee, after playing for eight hours I can buy myself a bag of chips . . .
Maybe the reason Mardi Gra attracts such a cheap crowd of poker players is because management/ownership treats poker players so cheaply. Just a thought . . .
Pride,
No offense taken. I appreciate your well thought out post. I agree with you and we are trying to come up with some new promotions that will create and reward action and bigger games. We do believe some of the issue is location; however, I believe that this can be overcome. When I first came here almost 2 years ago, we would have 20 tables running and only 1 or 2 were NLHE. We now run between 50/50 to 60/40 NL. Also regarding comps, it is 50 cents per hour, not 25 cents.
Also, starting Nov 15 (today), we are offering free drafts, wine, and well drinks from 5PM to 8PM and 10PM to 2AM Mon - Sat. On Sun, we offer free drafts from 12 PM to 12 AM. This will be an ongoing promotion. We also have $1 drafts and drink specials at other times.
The food is a great idea. We have offered free sandwiches before; however, we stopped offering after we moved to the first floor. That is something that we may be able to address as well.
I disagree with the statement that we treat our guests "cheaply". We have for the past year given away more money every day than any other Poker room that I am aware of. We treat every player like a guest in our own home. If you every experience otherwise from one of my staff, please let me know.
We do need to attract a younger clientele that enjoys to play more action games and will be coming up with some new ideas and promotions to make that happen.
Thanks again for the insight from your perspective. Next time that you come in, please ask for me. Maybe I can bounce a few ideas off of you.
Wil Herrera
Director of Poker Operations
www.playbigeasypoker.com
Mardi Gras Casino