" Niagara Hold-em"...

Just came back from Casino Niagara (old casino- saturday night) and it was dead, thousands of empty thiefs, I mean slots.

They have this new table game they are trying out, one of the few games that was full, a ridiculous game called Niagara hold-em. Heres how it works:

-7 players sit at a regular sized blackjack table
- each player posts 4 bets infront of them 5-5-10-10
-each player is dealt 2 down cards and then dealer takes all 7 first forced bets of $5 each for a total of $35, of which the house takes $10
-house has also dealt 5 down cards of which 3 are now turned and each player now decides to play( allow the house to put next bet into pot), or fold, where the player takes back their 3 other bets.
- the same process continues on 4th and 5th street.

No checking, no raising , just hit to win. Average pot was probably $120 and it took 2-3 minutes to deal a hand. Big crowd watching.

On another note, I asked 3 different suits in the casino if/when they were getting a poker room. All 3 said yes, all 3 said that they were in the process of building a room/ under construction ( on the 2nd floor-saw it myself), and all 3 gave different dates ( end of october- end of the year) because of regulations and liscencing. So it does appear poker is coming to little Vegas very soon.

Comments

  • Sounds pretty boring to me. Isn't this why you need antes/blinds? Seems pretty self evident that if you don't nail the flop you fold it and wait a few minutes to try again. Where's the sport in that? No thanks. I may never make a lot of money playing, but I like poker, and this isn't it.
  • It seems like there are blinds. Since the "pre-flop" bet is forced, this game is equivalent to *everyone* being the big blind (with no raising allowed) in terms of the pre-flop round.

    ScottyZ
  • Yeah, but while EVERYBODY is the BB, the rules do not allow anyone to steal the blinds.
  • But who acts first/last? and how does it change (if it does) hand to hand?
  • Does it really matter? It's a 'house' game. A $10.00 rake no matter what? No thanks. I'd rather let one of you guys (or ladies) win my chips fair and square, than give 'em to the house.
  • I think this is great!

    It helps Niagara test market the demand for poker.

    It introduces the game to people who otherwise may not have played.

    and

    It builts momentum and inquires about the new poker room.
  • Call me cynical, but why would they need to test the market for poker? This more likely an attempt to cash in on people's desire to play poker, while allowing the house to rake an obscene amount of funds from the players. If this game stays in the main room AFTER the card room opens, then I guess I'm right. If not, I'll apologize at that time.
  • Phred wrote:
    Call me cynical, but why would they need to test the market for poker? This more likely an attempt to cash in on people's desire to play poker, while allowing the house to rake an obscene amount of funds from the players. If this game stays in the main room AFTER the card room opens, then I guess I'm right. If not, I'll apologize at that time.

    I totally agree with you on this.
  • Call me cynical, but why would they need to test the market for poker? This more likely an attempt to cash in on people's desire to play poker

    But why wouldn't they? what if the demand is greater than anticipated? By analyzing the demand Niagara could make adjustments to their poker room. Let's make something clear, A casino is a business just like any other therefore we can't blame them for trying to maximize their profits (as long as it is within the legal boundries)
  • I don't fault them for trying to make money. I DO if this is some attempt to give people "poker" without REALLY giving them poker, if you take my meaning. Profits are one thing, fleecing the rubes is my/your job.
  • I am not going to play "Niagara Hold 'em" either. But I did watch the game for about two hours last night. I am hoping this is a 'sizzle' tactic and they are planning on taking some of the space at either Casino Niagara or the multi-floored Casino Fallsview and turning it into a full fledged "bet, raise, call, limit, no limit, all in" style poker room. For me, it's a 1.5-2 hr drive to Brampton - sometimes too far to play.

    If you are in the Niagara casinos, I would suggest starting a conversation (when the employees can hear) suggesting a traditional game. It might make the wheels turn faster. I did last night and to my somewhat surprise, I was not the only one who was there to do just that! :)

    (BTW, this is my first post - I am very pleased I found this site!)
  • I emailed Casino Niagara about poker, explaining my thoughts on the "Niagara Hold' em" game, and asking them if they were planning on bringing a poker room to the site(s).

    This was the reply..

    "James (that's me - :) ),

    We appreciate your e-mail regarding poker at the Niagara Casinos.
    Just to make you aware we are going to be introducing (real) poker to Niagara
    in the not too distant future. It wont be long before you can come to us instead of
    other casinos and save yourself the travel time. We look forward to seeing you then.

    Alistair
    Casino Shift Manager
    Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort
    "
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