The Sting Poker Room, Great Falls, Montana (MT)
08-18-2019
, 01:54 PM
Great Falls is a small city along the Missouri River famous for being the location of a month long portage undertaken by the Lewis and Clark expedition. The suprising and interesting Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center, opened in 1998 and run in cooperation with the United States Forest Service, is well worth the $8 admission fee (two get in free with National Park Pass -- annual @ $80).
There are walking / bicycle paths along the Missouri River as well as a decent sized skate / bike park and tennis courts on the banks. Many visitors here will be on their way to, or returning from, Glacier National Park via the local international airport or by car, perhaps with their family so I wanted to point these activities out.
I was told bars (and really any other business) can operate a poker table with a cheap (<$1k annually?) gaming license. NLHE 1/2 is typically on offer, though the HiHo Tavern is said to offer mixed games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
Montana has $800 limits on betting, so games like PLO x/y and NLHE 2/5 are not often spread here.
The Sting Poker Room is directly to your left as you enter the Sting Sports Bar and 5th Quarter Casino. The bar was populated but not crowded during my Friday night visit. The casino room is on the other side of the large island bar and I saw about a dozen slots type video games, with one person sitting down (not me!). There are no table games.
Upon entering the bar the room is easily seen to your left. I stood at the podium for a moment until a dealer waved me over to the free seat at the second table. Beyond my two and the three seats was storage for the bar and an open entrance to a utility area. It is clean but not upscale if this matters to you. The chairs were comfortable and the players very friendly and casual.
Nearly all of the players seemed to know each other and were very friendly and chatty. I spied one grinder (though surely I missed a couple). I think it'd be tough to be a reg in these waters as the games are small and the player pool not much bigger.
The second table seemed to be a 'could move' table. Your name is taken by one of the players who also runs the room, or was that evening. You buy chips from the dealer and cash out via an off duty dealer, who will rack you up and pay you off. 3/4 dealers rotate each half hour or so.
Games start at (or slightly before if players arrive early) 6 pm and stop at 1:15 am (12:15 am on Sunday night) -- not 2 am as listed. A half hour warning was announced at 12:45.
Rake is 10% up to $5 max. Worn blue 25 cent chips play as rake is not rounded up
I never saw a bet including these chips (except all ins). There is no jackpot drop. I simply added the blue meanies I won to the tip.
Minimum buy in is $50. I saw rebuys from $50 to ~ $200. Stack sizes varied widely at the second table. 6-7 stacks at the main were $250 - $400+. Recall that maximum pot size is $800.
Play is active, a lot of preflop limping and calling of raises. More family pots than I have seen previously. 3 bets usually with hands like AQo or better. The main table had more serious players.
When my name came up on the list for a newly empty seat at the main table I exersized my option and changed tables.
I very much enjoyed my time at the Sting Poker Room, staying well past my scheduled bedtime even though I had a 6 am flight including layovers. Play was good but not great and most people were there to have a good time (even the dealers were in pretty high spirits) -- and a good time was had by all!
Lyft > Uber at this time in Great Falls, both expensive given the relative shortage of drivers to demand. Lyft is cheaper for the passenger yet the driver still makes more $. My 3 mile trip was $12 before tip. I'm confident I could've asked for and received a ride from a fellow player had I not been anxious to get back to my room and been willing to wait for the game to break.
Many many thanks to my fellow patrons and especially to the hard working staff that made my visit so enjoyable. I encourage my fellow 2+2'ers to visit the Sting Poker Room for a great time if their travels take them near Great Falls!
There are walking / bicycle paths along the Missouri River as well as a decent sized skate / bike park and tennis courts on the banks. Many visitors here will be on their way to, or returning from, Glacier National Park via the local international airport or by car, perhaps with their family so I wanted to point these activities out.
I was told bars (and really any other business) can operate a poker table with a cheap (<$1k annually?) gaming license. NLHE 1/2 is typically on offer, though the HiHo Tavern is said to offer mixed games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
Montana has $800 limits on betting, so games like PLO x/y and NLHE 2/5 are not often spread here.
The Sting Poker Room is directly to your left as you enter the Sting Sports Bar and 5th Quarter Casino. The bar was populated but not crowded during my Friday night visit. The casino room is on the other side of the large island bar and I saw about a dozen slots type video games, with one person sitting down (not me!). There are no table games.
Upon entering the bar the room is easily seen to your left. I stood at the podium for a moment until a dealer waved me over to the free seat at the second table. Beyond my two and the three seats was storage for the bar and an open entrance to a utility area. It is clean but not upscale if this matters to you. The chairs were comfortable and the players very friendly and casual.
Nearly all of the players seemed to know each other and were very friendly and chatty. I spied one grinder (though surely I missed a couple). I think it'd be tough to be a reg in these waters as the games are small and the player pool not much bigger.
The second table seemed to be a 'could move' table. Your name is taken by one of the players who also runs the room, or was that evening. You buy chips from the dealer and cash out via an off duty dealer, who will rack you up and pay you off. 3/4 dealers rotate each half hour or so.
Games start at (or slightly before if players arrive early) 6 pm and stop at 1:15 am (12:15 am on Sunday night) -- not 2 am as listed. A half hour warning was announced at 12:45.
Rake is 10% up to $5 max. Worn blue 25 cent chips play as rake is not rounded up
I never saw a bet including these chips (except all ins). There is no jackpot drop. I simply added the blue meanies I won to the tip.Minimum buy in is $50. I saw rebuys from $50 to ~ $200. Stack sizes varied widely at the second table. 6-7 stacks at the main were $250 - $400+. Recall that maximum pot size is $800.
Play is active, a lot of preflop limping and calling of raises. More family pots than I have seen previously. 3 bets usually with hands like AQo or better. The main table had more serious players.
When my name came up on the list for a newly empty seat at the main table I exersized my option and changed tables.
I very much enjoyed my time at the Sting Poker Room, staying well past my scheduled bedtime even though I had a 6 am flight including layovers. Play was good but not great and most people were there to have a good time (even the dealers were in pretty high spirits) -- and a good time was had by all!
Lyft > Uber at this time in Great Falls, both expensive given the relative shortage of drivers to demand. Lyft is cheaper for the passenger yet the driver still makes more $. My 3 mile trip was $12 before tip. I'm confident I could've asked for and received a ride from a fellow player had I not been anxious to get back to my room and been willing to wait for the game to break.
Many many thanks to my fellow patrons and especially to the hard working staff that made my visit so enjoyable. I encourage my fellow 2+2'ers to visit the Sting Poker Room for a great time if their travels take them near Great Falls!
