Atlantic City Poker Scene Part I

BY: Ashley Adams
Contact at: (Asha34@aol.com)
Author of Winning 7-Card Stud

The stud capital of the world is certainly Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut, with more than forty stud games, ranging from $1-3 no ante up to $75/150 or higher on most weekend nights - and only slightly less action during the week. I love the room; I learned how to win in these loose games, and I recommend it to stud players the world over.

Still, my mission as a serious stud player and writer is to experience and learn about stud and hold 'em wherever I can find a game. I learned a few years back that Atlantic City was a great place for stud. But I'd heard that in recent years, with the ascension of hold 'em, especially no limit hold 'em, that stud was dying in AC.

I'd recently seen firsthand the transformation in California and Las Vegas - where stud had largely dried up after flourishing for a couple of decades. So I decided to check out Atlantic City, to see for my self what stud was still being spread and what else was being spread in its stead - if anything.

I don't sleep well, especially with the prospect of a poker road trip looming. So I awoke at 1:00 Am on Saturday morning, saddled up, and left for AC at 1:45, bolstered by a double espresso from a 24 hour Dunkin' Donuts near my house. Personal rules about not playing when tired notwithstanding, I decided to make the six hour sojourn from Boston to AC and then play in all the poker rooms that would have me that I found open - focusing especially on any stud that I could find. It seemed like a good plan at the time.

The good news is that there is still stud inAtlantic City - in fact lots of stud. The bad news is that mid-limit stud, that is stud above $5/10 and below $75/150 has largely dried up except in one room, the Trump Taj Mahal (known familiarly as just the "Taj").

Below is a summary of the rooms and their games. I'll provide more detail of each of the rooms and the games I played in, plus some interesting strategy observations - but in future articles.

Ten of the casinos in Atlantic City spread poker: Bally's, Borgata, Caesar's, Harrah's, Hilton, Resorts, Sands, Showboat, Tropicana, and the Taj. That's five more than they had three years ago when I last played. One of the casinos, Bally's, even has two rooms - one devoted just to tournaments including sit and goes.

All totaled, there are 306 poker tables among all the rooms and 94 tournaments a week not counting sit and goes or monthly or annual tournaments. Most of the cash games and all of the tournaments are hold 'em, with about 60% of the cash games of limit hold 'em and 40% no limit hold 'em. Seven of the ten Atlantic City poker rooms spread stud. While there is a smattering of mid-limit stud games in a few casinos, only one room, The Taj, consistently spreads more than $1-5.

Just about all of the tournaments are no limit hold em. There are no stud tournaments.

Here's a list of all of the poker rooms in Atlantic City, with a brief summary of the number of tables, frequency of tournaments, and list of what stud games they spread, if any. I've also included their phone number so you can call the room to verify what they're spreading before you head over.

Bally's: 609-340-2000, 800-225-5977, caesars.com/ballys/atlanticcity. 20 tables plus 10 more in their Wild West poker room for sit and gos and tournaments. Five tournaments a week (Monday-Friday) and 24/7 sit&go action and large $150+25 multi table tournament in the Wild West poker room. $1-5 with ante and $5/10 stud

Borgata: 609-317-1000, 866-692-6742, theborgata.com. 35 tables, eleven tournaments a week (at least one a day except for Saturday). Stud games of $15/30/45 occasionally.

Caesar's: 609-248-4411 x5109. 24 tables. Seven tournaments a week (one a day) plus evening sit and goes. No stud.

Harrah's: 609-441-5000, 800-242-7724, harrahs.com/our_casinos/atl. 25 tables, twelve tournaments a week (at least one a day - usually two). $1-5 no ante stud.

Hilton: 800-257-8677, hiltonac.com. 20 tables. Thirteen tournaments a day (normally twice daily). . $1-5 no ante, $5/10 sometimes.

Resorts: 1-800-336-6378.resortsac.com. 6 tables, two tournaments a week and one extra "Ladies only" event once a month. No stud.

Sands: 609-441-5000, 800-227-2637, sandsac.com. 14 tables, seven tournaments a week (daily). $1-5 stud - rarely $5/10

Showboat: 609-242-4000, 800-621-0200, harrahs.com/our_casinos/sac. 25 tables, fourteen tournaments a week (two a day). No stud.

Tropicana: 609-340-4000, 800-843-8767, Tropicana.net. 42 tables 8 tournaments a week (once a day and twice on Sundays - going to two a day in June). $1-5 no ante and $5/10 stud.

Taj Mahal: 609-449-1000, 800-825-8786, trumptaj.com. 85 tables, fourteen tournaments a week (two a day). All levels of stud 24/7.

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