What follows is a true story.

This past June, Poker Atlas showed that Pete’s 881 Club was hosting one of their $125 (or was it $100? I’m not sure, it’s been so long) 5PM Sunday tournaments (they also hosted them on Saturdays and Mondays, I think). Feeling incredibly isolated due to lockdowns(!) and with a full week of work ahead of me, the idea of playing in the tournament at Pete’s was something to look forward to, to help me get through my week. Pete’s is a very cool venue, and their tournaments are very cool. I also (naively, I know now) thought that it portended things going back to normal, fun being allowed in the Bay Area again. Long story short, Sunday rolls around, and the tournament is no longer listed on Poker Atlas, and I call Pete’s, and the lady who answers the phone doesn’t know anything about a tournament. And here we are, two years after the media hyped “Covid” and there still hasn’t been a tournament ran in the Bay Area, when there were awesome tournaments ran before (my personal favorites were at the Oaks, Lucky Chances, and Pete’s but there were others), and the Bay used to be one of the best places to play poker.

Also, I don’t think I gave enough credit when the 19th Hole Casino opened up (in my defense, I didn’t really know they existed before, and they aren’t/weren’t listed on Poker Atlas, at least in the Bay Area).

I'm flying into San Jose to see old friends and family. I have free time to visit the San Jose casinos which I haven't been to in a long time. Didn't one of them build a new building and move? Do any of them now have hotel rooms? I think I stayed at like a Fairfield Inn across the street years ago. And are the casino restaurants open? Anything like Asian or Sushi? I see M8trix has a Lotus Cafe, but it looks like only premade Vietnamese sandwiches...do they do Vietnamese Pho noodle soup? Any Pot Limit Omaha action? Does it run frequently even during day time hours or only at night? Feel free to add any details you see fit.

Confusingly, the casino poker forum isn't about poker casinos. You'll want to ask at this thread in the poker venues forum:

[mod: thanks for the assist, conan!]

Taking those questions in order. Bay 101 is at new smaller building; parking lot usually packed with baccarrat players. No hotel rooms at either, but a couple of hotels close by (relatively short walking distance). Restaurants open at both. I've never tried Lotus Cafe or looked at the menu, but I doubt they have pho. M8trix had one PLO table on Dec 27 when everyone had the day off, but usually 60% 1/2/3 and 40% 2/3/5. I haven't seen PLO at Bay 101, but they usually have Limit running.

This shows M8trix waitlist, but idk if number of tables is accurate https://www.casinom8trix.com/games/

I was wrong on the pho. They also have lentil soup. Board says Omaha Monday and Wednesday, but they have an interest list for Sunday rn

The Vietnamese pho is reason enough to go.

Thanks for all the other details about the San Jose casino scene too.

Any update on this? Sounds like dealer shortage was/potentially is the issue, maybe there’s enough dealers now. And perhaps cash games make more money than tournaments, but tournaments still make money (on top of the the cash games/everything else, not to mention providing additional jobs + work for dealers), and bigger tournaments might even make more than cash games. Not to mention the additional players being brought in who will play cash games after the tournament/after getting knocked out, will go to the bar and restaurant, etc. Oaks got around 120 players for a weekday tournament before the shutdown. Not to mention the good vibes/goodwill sent to the poker community/players, better/more fun vibes inside the card room, increased word of mouth, etc. Not everyone want to have grind ‘em out cash games be their only option, all the time. Even the grind ‘em out cash players want tournaments back/things back to normal because it’s better for everyone: them, the casino (more revenue/profit), the overall vibe of the casino, + dealers who need jobs + work. I feel bad for dealers + other casino employees who haven’t been able to work!

Going to be tough. In general for California, the pecking order from the Casino point of view is california games, poker cash, poker tournaments. I don't know what the waiting lists are these days, but 8 max cash tables will generate a much higher hourly drop than an 8 max tournament table. Until the rooms can't fill up cash table, don't expect tournaments.

Classic either-or, scarcity based thinking. It doesn’t have to be one or the other (as I expressed in my previous post). Plenty of players, including myself, won’t set foot in a casinos anymore because they’re boring af. No offense, but you sound like a curmudgeon. Why don’t you go live in the suburbs or rural America? Most of America (by square footage) is not a big city or a metropolis like SF or the Bay Area, and yet, you, and that type of thinking, want to make it that by taking away our recreation. Why the hell are we paying all this high cost of living for?

And as far as the tournaments, the ones I’ve played elsewhere have drawn hundreds of players. Most of us know that Graton was having waitlists of 3 hours long for their cash games. The rest of the country (and state) has moved on and has been hosting tournaments for a long long while. Why the hell does the Bay Area insist on being such a p***y (or are they insisting on being so “unique”, “liberal”, and “smart”)? It boggles my mind how the Bay Area can go from being such a great place to damn near the equivalent of a retirement community. Why the hell do we work so hard and pay so much in rent? So we can come home and cry about the coronavirus? ������

(Those were crying emojis, if that wasn’t clear).

I think somehow you think that to host a tournament, a card room has to pull players from its cash games. Pretty much all they have to do is post/advertise their tournament/tournaments on Poker Atlas, and they will get a horde of additional/extra players to fill their cash games, frequent their bar and restaurant, play their table games, let alone their tournament. Yes, there will be some cash players who will play in the tournament but, am I the only one who remembers how things were pre shutdowns? If you don’t, I can promise you, cash games weren’t hurting, there were more jobs for everyone (including dealers and card room staff), and card room were making much more money! There’s been a huge pent up demand for tournaments (assuming two years!) of shutdowns haven’t killed everyone’s/poker players’ spirits.

(Not to get too personal, but I know for me, it’s been a constant battle/struggle to maintain my sanity/spirit/any sort of hope and optimism with the lack of recreation and socializing opportunities. Not to mention the hit to the economy, as evidenced by the plethora of small businesses here in the Baythat were killed by the shutdown, as well as the jobs lost, etc etc.)

Don't know what you're talking about; of course it's an either/or issue. The rooms in the Bay Area, and in at least most of California, are limited by local law to a certain number of tables, which can be used for any of the games they're licensed to spread. If they use a table for a tournament, they can't use that same table for a cash game (or a CA game). There is an artificial scarcity, imposed by law.

And, of course, it shouldn't matter to you anyway, since you won't set foot in a casino anymore, yet you complaint that the helpful forum member who is just giving you accurate information is trying to take away your fun?? Bizarre!

Because scarcity thinking is based on very archaic laws for California poker rooms and California Indian gambling compacts.

It possible, it is extremely difficult to open up new tables and it is virtually impossible to grant a new card room license. So capacity is constrained across the state. Add Covid that still retrains even further the amount of players at the table per local regulations. In the bay area its simple math for a card room to maximize profits by spreading California games as they drop more than poker cash, which drops more that poker tournaments. Its not more difficult than that.

Dude - I don’t know what the *bleep* you’re talking about. I can only assume dishonesty on your part, ignorance, or perhaps that you’re new (or relatively) new to the area. These places were running tournaments that drew plenty of players before you-know-what. I don’t know if you know, but most of these places (at least the ones that run/ran tournaments) have plenty of tables, most of which sit empty most of the time. Even during tournaments, there were empty tables (not to mention, and it is unnecessary to mention, they would run them during times when demand for cash games/poker might be down, I assume to draw more players/people into the club).

“If they use a table for a tournament, they can't use that same table for a cash game (or a CA game).”

What the bleep man. I can only assume you’re high when you say something like this. This sounds like it’s written by a kindergartner. Of course if a table is being used for a tournament, the same table can’t be used for a cash game or a CA game - at that time! Lolol - what what do you think, they’re going to run three games at the same time, at the same table? (Laughing emoji). I am genuinely laughing right now, reading/thinking about this (and trying to understand the bizarre logic that created the words I just read lololol - thanks, I haven’t had a good laugh in a while). Luckily, as mentioned before, there are/were plenty of empty tables, even during tournaments!

“And, of course, it shouldn't matter to you anyway, since you won't set foot in a casino anymore”

I explained in my posts why it matters to me! (Face palm emoji). Oy vey!

“yet you complaint that the helpful forum member who is just giving you accurate information”

I assume this “helpful”
forum member is just trying to give me “accurate” information. Yep - totally, dude. (Another laughing emoji).

This may be true for some of the smaller cardrooms such as Palace Poker, but even those previously before you-know-what used things like “creativity” and “non-rigid” thinking to host tournaments in the morning (when perhaps demand for those other games weren’t as high) and to use the other tables temporarily for tournaments (which don’t/didn’t last that long). I was more thinking of the larger cardrooms, such as Lucky Chances and the Oaks, which, as mentioned in my response to “chillrob” had empty tables even when they were running their tournaments (and had all their California games running, didn’t have to shut any of those down, or use any of those those tables). And of course (it’s unnecessary to say, of course) in tournaments, it’s really not that long before one table is available, and then another, and then another . . .

“maximize profits by spreading California games as they drop more than poker cash, which drops more that poker tournaments”

What I’ve seen at cardrooms over the last year or so (and maybe before that, too, although I wasn’t paying much attention before), is that California games aren’t as busy as everyone seems to make them out to be. But again, as just mentioned, it doesn’t have to be (and isn’t) an either-or situation (at least at the larger cardrooms, I’ll grant you maybe just a little bit of credence for the smaller cardrooms - mayybe)

California games drop more per hour than poker tables by a large amount. Capacity controls have limited occupancy, players per table. It difficult to keep enough dealers dealing to the more profitable areas, why would you expect tournaments. I"d consider the oaks to be a small card room., AJ's seems to only want to deal Cali games, at least last year when I went to their tent..

I am done with you. *plonk!*

Gone2life - tone it down and quit being a dick to other posters

“why would you expect tournaments”

. . . Well mainly because there were tournaments (. . and cash games . . and California games . . and bar . . and restaurant,m) before these very special, unique last few years (and btw, the Oaks had a ton of customers/did very well for itself. Seems like the problem is dealer shortage, which, ok, if that truly is the problem/issue, makes sense to me. But do the dealers not want to come back to work, or are the owners and/or managers preventing them from working? One of the reasons I came across as so heated before (Lattimer) because it’s not only about the players being able to enjoy tournaments and the owners being able to earn more in profit because tournaments are running, but it’s also about people (employees - dealers) not being able to earn a wage/living - which seems cruel to me. (What is this, North Korea? ‘It is decreed! No fun for players! Also, fewer profits for owners! As well as - fewer jobs for people! Truly a lose-lose-lose! Perfect!’) Add to this the false (and scarcity based/limited/either-or/backward-thinking) notion of wanting California games to replace everything to “maximize profit”. If California games earn more per hour than the bar and restaurant, do you tear down the bar and restaurant to put in California games? How about the bathrooms? They don’t earn any money at all! We should tear down the bathrooms and replace them with California games! You guys should teach an MBA class on running a business. Such visionaries, oh wow, truly! The answer to everything - California games! We are the most advanced we have ever been as a species, and according to your logic, we should tear the bathrooms and replace them with California games. What amazing things the future would hold if your thinking/logic were king! I do think, however, there is at least some amount of trolling in your post/responses. You’ve gotten me to repeat myself, which I don’t often do/don’t like to do.

Yiza!

Oh - me so sorry!

(As an aside - and just as an FYI to everyone - I may not be posting again on these forums. At least, that is my sincere hope/I think/hope there’s a decent chance/shot that may happen. Again, just as an FYI).