@daveopie, if Horseshoe has only 30 poker tables in its plans, I don't think it will be much of a threat to MD Live because the area north of Baltimore already is covered by Harrah's Chester, Perryville, Delaware Park, and Parx.

MGM National Harbor will be Live's main competitor whenever it opens a couple years down the road if it plans to have enough tables to compete.

Rapini, you need to have your avatar taken away, since you are literally THE most unironic person in the world.

Also, no one south of Aberdeen is gonna go to the extant non-mdl casinos once horseshoe opens, except sometimes Perryville.

SquAta8's PGC thread:

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/17...lo-mdl-1375006

I don't think Horseshoe Baltimore will be a "threat" to ML. Being only 15 minutes away, of course it will compete for some of the same customers, but I think ML stay a very strong room, with Horseshoe taking many of the overflow customers when ML is full. I think that will HELP ML.

When National Harbor opens, it will change the game. I'm not sure exactly how. I just saw they have a website and a cool video view of the proposed casino at http://mgmnationalharbor.com/home.aspx

I noticed that included on that page are a white man, a black man, AND an Asian woman. That demonstrates strong commitment to diversity.

It is a good thing that MDL's action on weekend nights (52 tables and 100-200 on the wait list) indicate MDL and CT could run completely full. This supports the theory that I posted earlier that the was a huge pool of home gamers that wanted a place to play but just needed the convenience CT did not offer. It will be interesting to see the affects of Horseshoe and PG County location on player pool in this region when they open. I suspect Horseshoe will divide MDL, but that the PG County location will draw from another untapped market in Southern Maryland and NOVA.

Choices are healthy for the game; I just felt like a lot of folks were taking turns giving each other their chips....while CT was pulling its rake. I think the 5/10 game at CT was dying a slow death until MDL opened. For the seasoned player, all this means your hourly should go up.

2:30pm- bravo says only 30games?

surprised that low since a lot of people are off work today (govt shutdown).

yeah, some are worried about $ but those people probably don't come to play poker anyway?

Looks like fed guys just got out and there's a list now with 31 games going. However, no paycheck no buy-in.

Big difference between govt employees and govt contractors. Govt employees for the most part make **** salaries and probably don't invest a lot of it in poker.

Govt contractors and related entities typically make more comfortable living, but still have work today. Which is why I am not playing this very moment.

This is just completely untrue.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...8-8f4a667597b5


Not gonna do the math. You can look up salaries for GS10--GS14 though.

Agreed. Many are paid insane salaries imo. My good friend has a bachelor in psych, but is a manager over like 10 people at age 25 in one branch of the gov't. He makes enough that he bought a very nice car this year.

I dunno about "insane" (at least relative to private sector), but they're definitely comfortable. I think GS9 or GS10 is starting for a BS. GS11-GS12 is graduate degree. Also, keep in mind that PG County has voter-mandated property tax limits (yay ****ty schools!) so arguably more disposable income (all else equal).

OPM pay table for DC area:
http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-overs...hedule/dcb.pdf

Here is a Baltimore Sun article on the new Horseshoe Casino being built in Baltimore, and what they had to do in order to not be building in a flood plane.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/mar...,4359236.story

How do people feel about Horseshoe opening up in Baltimore next summer? I live in Baltimore, and I drive right past it every time I go to Maryland Live. I was so super excited when ML opened - like I just had to be there on the soft opening and on opening day. Yet for some reason I'm not so psyched for Horseshoe.

I guess, now I know that we have an excellent poker room in the area (still a few growing pains, but still ML is a very solid room). So I figure, worst case - when it opens, if Horseshoe is awful somehow, I can continue to drive right past it and keep on going to ML. And maybe Horseshoe can convince me to play there - I'm not sure how. Maybe better comps, less waits, lower rake, or the games I want to play? I don't know. The drive to the Shoe (or to The Horse?) will be 15 minutes shorter for me, but that's not a big deal if ML offers a better product.

I guess I just feel like we have a very good situation now, and maybe competition will convince someone to fight to have me as a customer, so maybe some part of my poker experience will be better in the future. But that potential jump from good to possibly better than good doesn't have me nearly as excited as the jump we had at the end of August from no good options to suddenly having a very good local poker room.

I'm wondering what other people are thinking, especially other Baltimorons. What does the Horse (or the Shoe?) have to do to convince you to play there.

dave,
will the tunnel toll factor into your decision at all?
or what does $4 mean when you're gambling hundreds?

No. I live in Baltimore, as in actually IN the city, so I don't go through the tunnel. I drive through downtown and then out Russell Street right past the Horseshoe when I go to ML. I guess I use an extra gallon of gas or two for that extra 10 minutes to ML and back, but yeah, that's nothing when gambling hundreds.

Eventually I will have to decide which place gets my business. I don't know what I'll base that decision on. I could very easily stay loyal to ML as I'm pretty happy there. I am wondering what others are thinking, if others are excited for Horseshoe, or what Horseshoe has to do to win their business.

I'll be wherever the best game is.

Afyer visiting 3 Rivers casino while up in Pittsburgh for a weekend during a game, I know that I'll be at the Horseshoe on Sundays in the fall.

Hello Everyone, I'm new to the forum. I was curious if anyone has played poker at Rocky Gap Resort in Cumberland, MD yet. I understand they do NOT have a poker room but do have 3 tables set up in the lobby. I'm headed over for the weekend and was currious what the poker volume is like there. I was hoping i could just stroll and and play, but we will see. The Bravo app does not list them since they are not an actual poker room. If you have been there please give a heads up on what to expect. If not I'll try to provide an update when i get back.
Thanks

Have you seen the threads for Cleveland or Columbus? I hear those are a cluster F... With regards to the Horseshoe properties.

All I know is fish filled the room on a home game weekend.

The place will be packed with drunks that tailgate but don't go to the game and other non pros.

I'm hoping that Horseshoe will take enough business from ML to alleviate the long wait times. They're going to have only 30-something tables, so I know they're not attempting to become the next regional powerhouse a la Borgata or Foxwoods.

They usually get 1 or 2 tables running if it's busier. The managers and dealers are all VERY new and a lot of them don't know basic rules. Prepared to be frustrated by this.

I got it from a reliable source, that Ocean Downs in ocean city md. will have poker next summer.