Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan C. Lawhon
CT007:
Very good points - especially the bolded. This is why I believe the New Jersey GCB is going to come down really hard on the Borgata. The state will impose a stiff fine and/or an enforcement action that sends a clear message to all New Jersey operators. The "message" will roughly equate to: "Don't ever let this happen again!"
From the state's perspective this is about protecting the steady flow of tax revenues emanating from the casinos. Anything that brings into question the integrity (or "fairness") of the games threatens the flow of all that tax money. Politicians in states like New Jersey, Mississippi, and Nevada would much rather have people handing over their "taxes" voluntarily rather than having to go on record voting for a tax increase that pi**es voters off - like they do here in my state of Alabama.
The dilemma though is what happens in the aftermath of a draconian DGE enforcement action imposed on the Borgata? Other operators, fearing that the same type of calamity could befall them, will (presumably) tighten up security procedures and (hopefully) crack down on cheaters. Poker cheats - and suspected poker cheats - should be treated the same way blackjack cheats are treated ... barred and (occasionally) taken out in the alley and beaten to within an inch of their lives. (If a thief walked up to you on the street, pulled a knife or a gun and demanded your money - "Or else!" - wouldn't that person be deserving of swift and sure justice? Poker cheats are no different ... every one of them ought to be hung.
The problem is that "cracking down" on all these cheaters will cost money and the casino's profits (from poker) are not that great - compared to all the other games they offer. If the cost of ensuring game integrity and weeding out the cheaters exceeds poker room profits, the operators will say "To hell with poker!" and that will be that. The operators will close the poker rooms.
Maybe the solution to this problem is that we poker players will have to help the operators weed out the cheaters. One way to do this might be for honest poker players to act collectively as a group. How might this work? If a known cheater, (like for instance, Russ Hamilton or Men the Master), walks into a poker room and buys chips; all players immediately make it clear to the floor and the poker room manager "If you don't eject this cheater right now, we're all getting up and leaving. There's another poker room next door and we would rather play there than be forced to sit and play with this thief!" (Word should also be spread quickly to all the recreational players who might not be aware that they are in the presence of a known poker cheat.) By proactively acting to protect the game, the vast majority of honest poker players will be acting to help save the game.
people need to understand that 1000s of these types of tournaments have been run across the country (consider how big the 200 deep stacks even are at the rio - 1000 + runners every day, 40k prize pool - significant money) and this is the first major scandal to occur....the controls the wsop puts in place are very similar. they have some very poorly trained dealers and you can walk a pretty far distance when changing tables.
if you are a professional player or someone who wants to be, you really don't want the casinos placed in a situation where they have to put in expensive controls or spend big money on extra staff. Having a small amount of cheating is better than paying double the rake every tournament you play. People might say they don't agree with that, but if your someone who plays a ton of tournaments the rake cost would be much much more.
So, I'm just being realistic. People need to realize how many similar events like this have occurred without a scandal.
Yeah, some simple reforms need to be made. Maybe better chips sets and making the dealers more involved in the bagging process. But it does not have to cost a fortune to fix things a bit.
And regulators should understand that due to the nature of poker tournaments the casino cannot be held responsible for every single bit of cheating that occurs.
