legality of this type of home game? No rake, but a monthly fee?

[Precept2]

MatthewD,

I am not an expert on the law or anything remotely close. That being said, I am under the impression that an establishments sole purpose (or main purpose) for gambling would fall under a "casino" title - which is illegal.

[TrvChBoy]

Illegal in most states!

However...

If I were to run a commercial poker game, this is how I would do it. If the game were low-stakes, it would be a hard thing for an overworked prosecuter to take to a grand jury.

I would call it a country club and have a few country-club-like actvities (golf tourneys, pot-luck suppers, duck hunts, canned food collections, blood drives, and full-bore drinking parties with a live band) from time to time to add "reasonable doubt" if it ever came to a jury trial.

On the other hand, if you live in small-town USA, this would be a major bust for the Barney Fifes of the world.

[chillrob]

A little off topic, but since someone mentioned bar leagues I thought I would mention something I didn't like about one I played in recently in Virginia. There was no drink minimum or anything like that, but players who ordered food got extra chips. It was free entry, but this made it kind of an optional paid add-on. Sounds like this would be illegal under the Texas laws, as all players don't have an equal chance, and a non-player (the bar/restaurant) is profiting from the game. Actually as it is not in a private setting either, I guess it violates all three rules.