Small-time St. Johns County card players are no longer going to be secluded to underground poker rooms.
Dealers are being trained and construction is almost finished to furnish a new 30-table poker room set to open Feb. 26 at St. Johns County Greyhound Park off Race Track Road, according to Michael Munz, vice president of Dalton Agency in Jacksonville, which represents both Jacksonville Greyhound Racing and The Poker Room.
The Poker Room will feature popular games like Texas Hold 'em, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud 8 and Better Omaha. The maximum bet will be $2, with a three-raise limit set for each round, Munz said.
Admission is free, but you must be at least 18 to enter.
Plans for The Poker Room began last year after the Legislature agreed to a $10 pot limit for shortened games, Munz said. "Having a maximum bet of $2 really gives a broad perspective of people who live within this community," Munz said. "It's not just coming in for a high roller."
He said the location was chosen since it is centralized for St. Johns and Duval residents to come and enjoy the games.
"With all of the attention with celebrity poker on television, and the different specials, it has really become a popular sport," Munz said. "I think people are going to look forward to the doors opening at the end of February."
About 80 dealers from all over the country and some from casinos on cruise ships will run the tables, Munz said. He said about 20 other employees will work various jobs inside.
"Food and drink in the 14,000-square-foot Poker Room will not be free," Munz said. He added that half the tax money collected will go to Florida's general revenue, with the other half going into the pari-mutuel wagering division trust fund. "Some of that tax money could end up finding its way back to the county level," he said.
Although some in the public might think organized gambling in the county can usher in immorality and more crime, St. Augustine Police Chief David Shoar said there is little evidence that crime and government-sanctioned gaming is related.
"Nobody has demonstrated to me a nexus between the crime rate and a government sanctioned pari-mutuel poker game," he said. "The only thing that has been empirically proven is that gambling results in people having less money in their pockets."
St. Johns County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Chuck Mulligan said while there is evidence of some circles organizing chicken and dog fights for gambling, he has no knowledge of big poker games being played illegally in the county. "Gambling, we know it exists," he said, adding that big-stake gamblers are often very secretive. "How widespread, to what degree, it's hard to say."
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Dealers are being trained and construction is almost finished to furnish a new 30-table poker room set to open Feb. 26 at St. Johns County Greyhound Park off Race Track Road, according to Michael Munz, vice president of Dalton Agency in Jacksonville, which represents both Jacksonville Greyhound Racing and The Poker Room.
The Poker Room will feature popular games like Texas Hold 'em, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud 8 and Better Omaha. The maximum bet will be $2, with a three-raise limit set for each round, Munz said.
Admission is free, but you must be at least 18 to enter.
Plans for The Poker Room began last year after the Legislature agreed to a $10 pot limit for shortened games, Munz said. "Having a maximum bet of $2 really gives a broad perspective of people who live within this community," Munz said. "It's not just coming in for a high roller."
He said the location was chosen since it is centralized for St. Johns and Duval residents to come and enjoy the games.
"With all of the attention with celebrity poker on television, and the different specials, it has really become a popular sport," Munz said. "I think people are going to look forward to the doors opening at the end of February."
About 80 dealers from all over the country and some from casinos on cruise ships will run the tables, Munz said. He said about 20 other employees will work various jobs inside.
"Food and drink in the 14,000-square-foot Poker Room will not be free," Munz said. He added that half the tax money collected will go to Florida's general revenue, with the other half going into the pari-mutuel wagering division trust fund. "Some of that tax money could end up finding its way back to the county level," he said.
Although some in the public might think organized gambling in the county can usher in immorality and more crime, St. Augustine Police Chief David Shoar said there is little evidence that crime and government-sanctioned gaming is related.
"Nobody has demonstrated to me a nexus between the crime rate and a government sanctioned pari-mutuel poker game," he said. "The only thing that has been empirically proven is that gambling results in people having less money in their pockets."
St. Johns County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Chuck Mulligan said while there is evidence of some circles organizing chicken and dog fights for gambling, he has no knowledge of big poker games being played illegally in the county. "Gambling, we know it exists," he said, adding that big-stake gamblers are often very secretive. "How widespread, to what degree, it's hard to say."
http://www.staugustine.com
