The lack of some 2/4 tables.

Are you sure you were at Parx in Bensalem? What exactly did you find "beautiful"? It's actually rather bland. The tables are too small, you have to pay for drinks, the bathrooms are average cleanliness, there's smoking at the bar, etc.

You're correct about the parking lot (no problems) and the dealers are improving, but it really isn't anything special compared to other poker rooms. Maybe in time.....

I'm sure it varies from day to day and week to week, but can any regular LHE players give me an idea of how often the 8/16 and 15/30 games run mid-week?

Quick question--- will straddles be available at parx anytime soon? Its my understanding that Chester has them.

Pretty much every day, from around 6-2 for 15-30. 8/16 is spottier.
You can always go here http://www.taeyeonkim.com/parx/ and select the game you want to see on the dropdown on the right. Then select a timeframe on the left (like 5 days). Slide the bar at the bottom to see when games tend to start and stop. Little slow this week with the weather and the Borgata WPO.
Slowest day is Monday by far, and ramps up slowly till Sat night, by Thursday you should see two games during prime time.

chester has straddles. i play there regularly. UTG only IIRC.

Why your hate for Parx? It's not the be-all to end-all, but outside of the Borg, there is no room in the tri-state area that is as nice.

Tables are perfect for 9-handed play, which is how Parx seats.
Most poker rooms in PA charge for drinks (at this time).
Ever been to the bathroom at the Taj? Slowboat? Caesars? Even the Borg's room can be a little spotty, at times. Bathroom at Parx is fine.
PA gaming allows smoking. How is this a Parx problem?

Recently moved to South Jersey, and made my first trip to Parx last Saturday.

Overall impressions were good. Staff was friendly and competent, room and seats were comfortable. TV availability is very good. Drink service was non-existent at the table I was at (1/2 NL), but access to the bar and speedy service there made up for it.

Parx is 30 minutes from my house, as opposed to 60 for Atlantic City, so I will definitely be back.

Read any and all of his posts, he is just a troll who is mad they don't have 2/4.

bump

NLHE game list
1/2, 2/5 NLHE, and 5/10 NLHE running during peak hours (Occasional 10/25 NL).
For LHE the most popular games are 4/8, 15/30 LHE followed by 8/16.
http://www.taeyeonkim.com/parx/


Parx Non holdem game report:
4/8 O8b starts ~ noon most days
4/8 O/E - at irregular times but most likely on Friday and Saturdays? (It looks like the O/8b morphs into an O/E game)
1/2 PLO - Tuesdays regular game
2/5 PLO/NLHE mixed game on Friday game
8/16 HOSE - has only run once or twice?
Stud has run before but now there is never an interest list


It seems like to get a new game going the best method seems to be to get 3-4 regulars to agree to meet to get the game started and that's sufficient to pull in others that make the game really worth playing?

30/60 Limit runs sometimes also.

IFSATG, no hate for Parx at all... how could I hate a place I'm in four nights a week? I just posted in to make the case that Parx still has a lot of work to do. The wasted potential for this place is a little infuriating considering how long I waited for poker to arrive in PA.

Not sure whether you get a chance to play in other rooms, but I assure you there are plenty of comparable rooms around. I realize complementing Harrah's is akin to sacrilege around here (esp. by Grim who apparently is either a Parx employee or Ari's best friend), but I think the space is just as good (as do the hundreds of others who are playing there at any given time)
and now is offering even better comps.

To address your other comments: The fact that most PA rooms charge for drinks doesn't mean that Parx HAS to. It also doesn't mean I have to accept the policy quietly (I'm just as vocal at the Seminole Hard Rock where I often play). Ditto for smoking, just because it is allowed doesn't make it good policy. Yes, I've been to the bathrooms at the Taj (though I choose not to play there due to the noise from Ego), Slowboat (comparable to Parx), and Caesars (you got me there, it's dirtier). But I also play at Harrah's Marina and find their bathrooms better than average. Actually, you're probably better off asking GH about the cleanliness of various men's bathrooms as I'm sure he's spent more time in them than I have.

I'm sure if you've played at the Borgata, the Marina, Bellagio, Venetian, or Aria you'll understand what I mean when I say that Parx is just rather plain. There's no animosity meant, I just don't find it all that and a bag of chips. Its best feature continues to be its location.....oh, and the waitresses!

Regarding the 2/4 issue, yes it's a pet peeve of mine as well. I would really like the room to have a wider appeal and not just entertain the smaller groups of poker elitists who maintain a presence on this site. You may feel otherwise, and I enjoy the ongoing dialogue about it.

See you at the tables!

He's also the troll that's taken your money on more than one occasion.

But thanks for keeping up with my posts! See you, again, at the tables!

@BB

You misunderstand again about "poker elitism", I wish that everyone know matter what stake they play enjoyed themselves and the game they are comfortable with. If casinos raked 2/4 at $2 there would be absolutely nothing wrong with the game being spread. Please reread my earlier post about the economics of table cost and 2/4 being raked at what it is, and what that does to the players. For 99.9% of poker players there are people playing much higher than them, it has ZERO to do with high or low, just value to the individual.

Marina? Seriously? Whatever your smoking, I want some

In NJ, I only play at the Borgata. It's clearly the best room in AC. But, IMO and I have had many dialogs with Stan, there are things that could be improved there.

I play often at Bellagio, both in the 15 and the 30 (although they have changed to 10 and 20 now - bad move) and I always stay there when I am in town. Other than the fact that it is a resort and not just a casino - it's not any better than Parx, poker room wise. In fact, the staff in the B's poker room are largely inattentive and sometimes downright rude and I know most of them personally.

The V is a great room. Aria is joke, waiting to fail. But, like the Borg and Bellagio, they are resorts and as such, you should expect a different level of amenities.

I've been to all of the poker rooms in PA and DE that are close - they all are inferior to Parx.

So, on a level playing field, the folks at Parx have put together a very nice room. And, yes any comparison to Harrah's is sacrilege. I made one trip there and would never go back to that **** hole! But, if you like the Marina.....

In the conversation of poker room comparison, it should also be noted that Parx isn't even 3 months old yet.

I'll be there Saturday night, down for 30-60 if there is at least 7players...
Any1 who wants to play,just start a list of Interest when you get there..
THX, hope to play

j

Cool, I'll be there also...might be after a late dinner...but I will be there.

Taking the last point first - please do notice the number of people using the Parx poker room. It clearly has wide appeal, and not just entertaining the "elitists" you refer to. Every time I've been there, there has been a sizable crowd. In terms of the LHE games there, the evidence points to their success at least in part because there is no 2/4 game. Looks like Ari is on to something positive here.

As to your comparison with Harrah's Marina. Are you serious? I play at Harrah's quite a bit, and really like playing there. But the room is not up to (in terms of physical appearance) the standards of Parx. Not by a good margin. Nor are the chairs. Nor the lighting, nor the number of TVs. Parx wins on all those points.

Harrah's wins on comps - by a wide margin. Both rooms, in my humble opinion, have really good dealers and floor people.

As for Bellagio, Aria, and Venetian - they are all over 2,000 miles away, so what difference does it make?

I've played at Delaware Park - which comes closest, in my opinion, to Parx in terms of having a good poker room. But Parx is better. And Parx is certainly better than Harrah's Chester. The comparison there isn't even close. Parx is also better - by a wide margin - than any other Atlantic City room other than Borgata.

BB - you are of course entitled to your own opinion. But what you are saying simply doesn't make sense, when the Parx is compared to other poker rooms in the area. It is clearly in a leadership position, and much better than most rooms.

Would it be nice if the drinks were free? Of course. It would be even better if the building (or at least that floor) was entirely smoke free. It would also be nice if the rake was the same as in AC - $4. Nothing is perfect. But, overall, Parx is doing a wonderful job. Especially considering that the room is not even 3 months old!

Lee

8/16 LHE is probably in the black hole of LHE between the low limits & 10/20. Every room in AC that's spread those limits in the last few years (Borgata, Taj, Trop) has seen those games die.
I think we've pretty much established that hold 'em players who buy in with $200-300 are gonna play 1/2 NL.

If the 8/16 LHE game is sporadic (and there's no 8/16 O8 game), then I can't see an 8/16 HOSE game going. Might be better to try 4/8 HOSE, or just promote the existing 4/8 OE (since stud isn't catching on).

Maybe the problem with stud not getting spread isn't a lack of interest overall. It's a lack of interest in the 4/8 limit. The players who'll make up the core of that game (mostly ol' timers) WILL NOT play with a $1 ante. A good compromise would be to try a 2-10 spread (no ante/$2 BI) game. This is much better than the typical 1-5 senior citizen snooze-fests, even with no ante. I also think it would be ideal with the $2 chips @ Parx. Just my .02...

Very good analysis. Maybe Ari can comment on the house rules/setup for Stud Hi and whether or not he'd spread a non-ante game. When I've played S8b there, I think that it's a $1 ante, $2 BI, and then 4 to complete. $4 for 4th street and then $8 bets on 5th-7th streets. Lastly, I remember from earlier in this thread (Nov?) that when Stud was spread before it did have a wait list.

I'll play any 4/8 or 8/16 games if people are interested in trying to coordinate. I personally think the best scenario for getting a new game is to get 4-5 people to agree ahead of time to start a game and be willing to play short until more people show up.

I haven't played 8/16 LHE to know if it's worth playing but it does seem like an odd situation. I went this week with the intention of playing of LHE, O8b or PLO. There was open seating on O8b so I sat, while the 8/16 LHE wait list was 5-6 deep (why not start another table?). When my name was called off the 8/16 LHE at least an hour later, I passed it up. The O8b game was good but never a full table. I figured that I'd go play 8/16 LHE once the O8b game broke. Except the 8/16 LHE vaporized before midnight, while the O8b game went to at least 2 am.

I PM'ed Ari last month about the stud limits. He's not interested in spreading a no-ante game.

I'm gonna be at Parx next Saturday between 2-3PM. Hoping to play some 4/8 OE, and I'd gladly start a list for 8/16 HOSE.

I was playing in the 4-8 OE game earlier today... there is a *serious* problem with game in the Stud-8 round.

The ante is still $1, which is great, since it keeps coins off the table.
The bring-in was changed from $2 to $1. This is insanely stupid.
Complete is still $4.
And, they only deal 8 players in.

I was told by Dave that these changes happened recently.

Apparently, the regs were complaining about the $2 BI and wanted it to be lowered to $1... to stimulate action. Are you effin kidding me????? This alone is turning the game into a game like 1-5 stud/no ante. There were a couple of them in the game today and they were insisting this was "for the good of the game". Right! Yet, it still went fold-fold-fold-fold.

Playing this game correctly now requires you to call with almost any 3 cards, since you are getting 4 cards for $1 - with $8 of ante's in the middle. Even in Stud-8, you are almost never an 8-1 dog after 3rd street. Yet - these bitter old rocks were folding! When late to act, I completed every hand, all the BI's folded and I pick up $10 without seeing 4th street.

The game also slows down when 5 players call the $1 BI with $2-chips, requiring the dealer to make change.

This is stupid and makes for a horrible game. The BI needs to go back to $2. Let the bitter old rocks go play 1-5 stud and peddle the nuts there.

As for only dealing in 8 of the 9 seated players... this is because as authorized by PA gaming, they are allowed to deal in only 8 players. This can and should be, changed. The state needs to be re-petitioned for the game to be played 9-handed... like in every other casino on the planet that spreads OE. Simple fix.

Ari - please!!! I know you are trying to listen to the players and give them what they want. But, this is not at all good for the game.

Oh - and the rounds should really change on the orbit... but, that's a nit I could acquiesce to, if the other serious problems are corrected