FLORIDA ALLOWING POKER GAME STAKES TO BE RAISED IN JULY!

[FlyinJ]

Don't knock this Sarasota manager. Although he doesn't know what the players will want he is heading in the right direction. No I don't want to play a 6/12 game with a hundred dollar buyin, but if he pushes the law a bit and gets away with it then others will follow and use some of the other loopholes in the law. Hopefully some of them will have a clue about poker and spead some games that the players want.

[Roland32]

The Section in Question:

(b) The cardroom operator may limit the amount wagered

10 in any game or series of games, but the maximum bet may not

11 exceed $5 $2 in value. There may not be more than three raises

12 in any round of betting. The fee charged by the cardroom for

13 participation in the game shall not be included in the

14 calculation of the limitation on the bet amount provided in

15 this paragraph. However, a cardroom operator may conduct games

16 of Texas Hold-em without a betting limit if the required

17 player buy-in is no more than $100.



The last sentance was clearly meant for no limit texas hold'em but alas they did not put that in their so the 6-12 w a $100 buyin I think is legal.

[Cactus Jack]

Yes, the last line clearly means no limit. Some [censored] thinks without a limit and no limit are the same thing.

What does it say about rebuying?

[FlyinJ]

Yea I think you are right it is legal. I also think it's legal to spread 2/5 NL game with a required buyin of $100 and max buyin of $500. We just need the room managers to understand this and start to spread these other game. So while I think it's stupid to spread 6/12 with a $100 cap, I welcome it. It will open up the eyes of other card to room managers to read what the law really says and understand what potential they have.

[VOX]

Since everyone's dispensing their opinion, I will share mine:

The cardrooms in the state must abide by the decisions of the Division of Pari-Mutuels, the same body that threw a fit over $32+rake tournaments. They interpret the law, and the cardrooms must comply.

The Seminoles interpret the law on their own, without government oversight. As a result, they spread $1000+rake tournaments, without any explicit authorization in the law.

Normally, this would lead me to say that the Seminoles would be willing to read the $100 required buy-in as a ceiling for the minimum, and not a ceiling for the maximum. Coupled with this interpretation out of Sarasota, this seems to allow for poker (Texas Hold'em, anyway; the law makes no provision for PLO) in the manner of Vegas and AC -- unlimited stakes.

However, the negotiations between the Governor's office and the Seminoles for class III gaming might affect their decisions here, as the Seminoles may or may not want to ruffle the State's feathers, depending on how things are going.

Just my thoughts based on what I see. In short, it might be a really good time to live in driving distance to East Tampa or West Hollywood.

[Catch22d]

You have to understand the intention. The intention was to allow a low buy-in, no-limit holdem game for live action players. That bill has become law, but what comes with the law is a book with hundreds of pages outlining the guidelines of the law. For tournament players, the new bill defines tournaments but doesn't state that they have to have at least nine players, must start and end on the same day, etc. These are the types of provisions that are hammered out and put in writing for the cardroom managers to follow.
There is a division meeting and they will clarify what the "however" clause means and the provisions for re-buys, etc.

[NY60]

BRAVO - VOX: you hit the nail on the head.

Just as the nation's banks are awaiting the federal government to create "REGULATIONS" interpreting the recently enacted "LAW" banning internet gambling...so too will the pari-mutuels have to await the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations (DBPR)- Division of Pari Mutuel wagering to create "REGULATIONS" interpreting the "LAW" created by the Florida State Legislature in question.

Everyone seems to think that all is over and that the pari-mutuels can do whatever they like until the State Legislature meets again in its next session....NOT TRUE...not even close.

Remember the DBPR is an administrative agency which is an extension of the EXECUTIVE BRANCH controlled by the Governor through political appointments. So, although the State Legislature might want more gambling, the enforcement of the "LAW" through enactment of "REGULATIONS" by the Executive Branch can still act as a strong impediment.

The most obvious example is the "REGULATIONS" dealing with the current state of the existing tournaments. Although these "REGULATIONS" were successfully challenged...we had to await until they were actually created to begin with.

In short (again how funny is that), no one is going to want to rock the boat until the DBPR enacts its "REGULATIONS". I covered this in my most recent post where I posted the response from the poker manager from one of the pari-mutuels in Broward county wherein he stated that he will not spread a 3/6 game because they do not want to rock the boat until the "REGULATIONS" are written.

Also, this is a semi-negotiating process between the pari-mutuels and the DBPR so that litigation can be avoided so we will have to await the political process to play out.

In the meantime, lets get some $1 - $5 spread limit games going and some NL $100 max buy-in so we can all make some money while this plays out.

[Truthiness24]

[ QUOTE ]
hey cardroom manager of sarasota i hope you read this. what as sholes are gonna play 6-12 limit with just a 100 buy-in? just like playing 2-5 no-limit with the same buy-in. how about leaving it like it should be and have a 1-2 no-limit and either or 2-4 5-5 limit games spread.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is a really effective argument. Do you really think a guy is going to take you seriously when you call him an a-hole?

I hope that you play as dumb as you blog. If I haven't already, I look forward to taking your money at SKC.

[Truthiness24]

My thoughts:

1. They don't care about whether you can beat the game. They care about the game's long-term sustainability. They care about maximizing their rake and their bank without losing long-term customers. These goals (of the cardroom and the wannabe pro) ought to but do not always coincide.
2. They will spread those games that generate the most money. They will offer a wide variety at first and follow the market.
3. You will vote with your dollars. So will the gaming public at large. If you don't like it, talk to people in the room. Play somewhere else. They will notice.
4. Don't knock the SKC manager. He's good people, unlike most cardroom managers, who have the personality of a wet towel. Everyone likes him, and he's doing a really good job of maximizing revenue for his room and keeping the players happy to the extent that he can. And, he's pushing the envelope in an effort to do both. This I like.
5. This thread, and the 3 or 4 lawyers following and contributing to it, has done a fine job of sorting this stuff out.

[Russ M.]

Also some places may not want to ruffle any feathers after the tournament debacle last year and just play it safe and let some other cardroom do all the dirty work in raising stakes and looking for loopholes.