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I reviewed the Caesars Virginia poker room the second day it was open. This is an update.
Overall, the Caesars Virginia poker room is below average, but I am thankful to have a poker room close enough to my home that I can go for the day.
The quality of the dealers have improved significantly. And the staff is friendly and accommodating.
Here are some of the problems:
(1) There is a roulette style game built into the poker tables called “Bonus Spin Extreme” which slows the game down. Bonus Spin Extreme is an abomination.
(2) Bring a heavy jacket. They cannot control the temperature of the poker room. Sometimes it is fine, but other times it is an icebox. I keep several layers in my car at all times.
(3) They rake 10% up to $7, and for promotions they take 10% up to $2. So, if you win a pot $70 or more, $9 leaves the pot. If you win a $20 pot they rake $4, that's 20%. I estimate conservatively that they take $200 off of the table an hour, but it is probably closer to $225. So, you are paying $25 an hour on average for rake and promotions. This is high. It makes it difficult to beat 1/3 unless some players are giving their money away.
(4) There is not enough room. If you are in an bad seat, your seat will be banged into, mostly by staff, constantly.
(5) The poker room is open to the rest of the casino which lets in noise and cigarette smoke. There is a tremendous amount of cigarette smoke in the casino.
(6) On average, the poker players have higher poker skill then Cherokee and Rivers Casino Portsmouth. 80% of the poker players come from the North Carolina Triangle and Greensboro area, a population that has a more advanced poker culture than other areas.
If you love poker is is worth all the problems. But I would love to live in a place with competing poker rooms so players vote with their feet to pressure the poker rooms to improve.
