Although I could, I would prefer an honest assessment of our action from a player. Me talking about it sounds like I am trying to sell it, while a player who has played there could offer a more candid and objective opinion (both positives and negatives).

I've absolutely heard the legend of the Beau from Florida players, hopefully we'll get some testimonials itt.

+1 for the honesty

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likely the same motivation for implementing the MS straddle

Oddly enough, it wasn't... We had the MS straddle in our PLO games as far back as I can remember (which was as early as 1999 at Horseshoe in Tunica, MS). Players who played PLO eventually crossed over when I was at the Beau and began to play Hold'em. They wanted more action in the 5/10 NL and 2/5NL games (both of which were time raked.)

We introduced it for about a year, then stopped it after some of our "tighter" players complained a lot. Within a year, the same players wanted it back because the action was not as good.

Soon after, players in our 1/3 No Limit games that had played 2/5 and higher started asking for it, and it wasn't until a competitor began offering it that we decided to offer it as well. Kudos to our current poker manager at Beau Rivage, Henry Garrison, for pushing the issue. It made our games exponentially better ...

Johnny, thanks for actively responding to all questions in this thread. No matter what particular decisions you decide on with the active topics, you seem to take criticism and suggestions very well, which bodes well for a poker room.

I think I'm your man. I've played probably over 2000 hours at the Beau. Granted, this was back in 2009/2010 and I played almost exclusively 2/5 NLHE, so I can only speak of that timeframe and that game. What's funny is that the Beau was basically my first and only casino experience for a long time, so I didn't really understand how good I had it there until I ventured to some other poker rooms later on down the road.

Not sure exactly what you want me to speak on, but here are some quick recollections:

FLOOR/STAFF: Top notch, competent, professional, efficient. I have nothing negative to say.

COMPS: Very fair and generous comps. Much better than what I'm currently getting at MDL. I always felt like the Beau Rivage truly appreciated their poker clientele.

RAKE: I loved the $6/half-hour time rake (+$1 for jackpot IIRC). My philosophy was always that paying time is better (as compared to raking the pots) for good players, as the rake is distributed evenly among everyone this way, whereas if pots are raked, the good players end up paying a higher percentage of the total rake than the fish, since they're winning more of those (raked) pots.

BUY-IN LIMITS: I hate short-stackers with a passion, and this is probably fueled by my time at the Beau, where it wasn't really an issue since the minimum buy in was $300 at 2/5 IIRC. And the uncapped structure was phenomenal. There were several players who would regularly throw down a rubberbanded brick of hundreds on the table (bills played back in those days), equivalent to $5,000 or more as their initial buy-in. On a ten-handed table, it was pretty common for 7 or 8 of the players to be 300 BB's deep. I personally rarely bought in for more than $600 or so, as I was more comfortable starting with a reasonable stack and grinding it up. But the uncapped nature of the game never bothered me. Quite the contrary, in fact. I always saw it as that much more earning potential. I guess I understand why some people think it would scare the fish, but the kind of fish that are going to be scared of uncapped buy-ins are the nitty fish, and aren't the ones I want to attract to the game anyway. I want deep-pocketed gambling whales who see an uncapped buy-in and think "now there's a game where I can get some good action!" This was probably my favorite thing about the 2/5 games at the Beau.

ACTION/PLAYERS: Over the course of the time I played there, the action got a little bit worse, though this was no fault of the casino. It seemed like a few too many pros started popping up and became a larger percentage of the player pool. I think this was right around the time Florida poker began, too, which wiped out a large portion of the rec players who would otherwise travel to Biloxi to play. When I first started there, though, the action was insane. Which is why I moved there in the first place. Also, there were some times during the week where there might only be one 2/5 game running so table selection wasn't even an option.

Overall, my memories of action at the Beau are quite fond, and I would implore Johnny to do whatever he can to replicate that dynamic at MGMNH. In my years of poker POST-Beau, I've come to realize how many amazing things there were actually outliers to the industry norm, and it was a sad realization. The buy-in structure being the biggie.

If you want me to elaborate further on anything, Johnny, or if there's a subject I didn't touch upon, let me know and I'll be happy to do so. If anyone has any questions for me about the Beau, shoot. Just know, everything you've heard was real. The legend is true.

As far as negatives go, there were often frustratingly long wait times to get into a game at the Beau, and luckily that's something I almost never have to experience at MDL. That's obviously a function of the Beau having only 16 tables and MDL having 50+. This is the thing I'm most concerned about with MGMNH. I know as soon as it opens it's going to be the spot. The rumors I've heard about poker room size make me think long waits will be the norm. If by some miracle that's not the case, I'll probably be playing there almost exclusively. But if I know I have to wait an hour to get into a game, I'll probably just keep going to MDL more often than not.

Also, the 10-handedness of the games at the Beau always irked me a little bit, and same deal at MDL. Not just because you have to play a tight range, which sucks, but it's physically uncomfortable to be crammed in there knocking knees with the dudes next to you. 9-handed tables are the only reason I go to the Horseshoe sometimes, and if MGMNH went 9-handed it would be a godsend.

Thanks for both responses. Much appreciated.

Also, the 10-handedness of the games at the Beau always irked me a little bit, and same deal at MDL. Not just because you have to play a tight range, which sucks, but it's physically uncomfortable to be crammed in there knocking knees with the dudes next to you. 9-handed tables are the only reason I go to the Horseshoe sometimes, and if MGMNH went 9-handed it would be a godsend. [/QUOTE]

9-handed would be unreal. Depending on number of tables, I wonder how many people wouldn't mind waiting an extra half hour to get seated because it's 9Hed, rather than 10Hed.

I sure wouldn't care.

Not to nitpick, but aren't your points about wait times and 9 vs 10 handed tables slightly at odds with each other? I would personally easily take slightly shorter wait times and a 10 handed game.

I feel like everyone wants to build their own perfect room, which is nice, but will be almost always be outside of the constraints MGM is actually going to be operating under. Good luck Johnny managing expectations

i hear this everywhere i feel the same way about being cramped playing 10 handed. doesn't anyone manufacture larger tables ?

I assume larger tables = fewer tables in the room

10 handed tables definitely make me think twice about whether to sit to immediate left of a recreational in seats 4-7 or opt for the more comfortable seats 2-3 or 8-9 so I'm not tilted by invasion of space...

/useless rant

so you cant have a bigger room either ?

No, you can't. Space is limited inherently. There is some point at which there will be no more space and at that point you have to make a trade-off between table size and number of tables.

Take personal responsibility regardless of 9-handed or 10-handed. Make sure you're not spilling over into your neighbors' space and ask the dealer (or floor of necessary) to square the table if necessary.

Or switch to PLO.

Wynn Las Vegas, my favorite room of all time, had really big tables that fit 10 people pretty comfy.

It seemed like the space from the dealer to the 5/6 seat was wider then any other table i ever played on. It gave more room to the players on the ends in and the 4 and 7 seat as well. It was maybe 6 to 8 inches wider maybe, could have been more I just remember the extra space, the plushness of the chairs, the nothing but 10's for drink service. That place rocks.

so your saying the casino cant allocate as much space as they want for poker ? i have a hard time believing that.

Of course they can. Within the confines of the limits of their building anyway.

Why would they allocate any more space than they feel they need to for the least profitable venue they run?

When it comes to revenue per square foot on the gaming floor poker comes in dead last. So thats generally where the overall cramped conditions come from in most casino poker rooms.

Switch to five card and play 8 handed! Just imagine if the poker room spread nothing but super stud, triple draw, and big o. Us horizontally gifted Americans would love it.

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Believe whatever you want. You're apparently incapable of thinking like a business owner.

yes ive heard the million arguments about poker profitability over slot profitability in every other thread , AND i understand business is about making maximum profit. it would be nice if for once someone consider something else besides $1 per hour per table more at the expense of customer satisfaction and or comfort.
i really dont see how adding 500 sq. ft. to poker room to accommodate 1sq. ft. bigger poker tables is gonna cut into the daily multi-million dollar profit of a casino ffs.
im not looking from a perspective of a business owner anyway im looking from a perspective of a poker player and i dont like having to belly up to the feed trough like a hungry pig that has to elbow his way in to wait to be slopped with the grace of a card game. its that kind of thinking that has killed the aspect of having fun at a poker game.

If it was a settled issue and a large majority of customers felt this way, it would be an easy decision. As we see in this thread, that just isn't the case. There are many people who prefer the game 10-handed, as it suits there "Snug" playing style. We, as business owners, must hear their voices too....

Rest assured, If we have crushing long waits or need extra space or tables, and there is a business incentive to make it happen, it will eventually happen with our company...

9-handed would be unreal. Depending on number of tables, I wonder how many people wouldn't mind waiting an extra half hour to get seated because it's 9Hed, rather than 10Hed.

I sure wouldn't care.[/QUOTE]

We have actually split the difference at Beau... all 2/5 NL and above tables play 9 handed there...