{"id":319605,"date":"2024-05-09T18:42:49","date_gmt":"2024-05-09T23:42:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=319605"},"modified":"2024-05-10T09:08:54","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T14:08:54","slug":"poker-player-doug-polks-plan-for-largest-texas-cardroom-up-in-smoke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/poker-player-doug-polks-plan-for-largest-texas-cardroom-up-in-smoke\/","title":{"rendered":"Poker Player Doug Polk\u2019s Plan for Largest Texas Card Room Goes Up in Smoke"},"content":{"rendered":"

The City of Farmers Branch, a Dallas suburb, has passed on the chance to host Texas\u2019 largest poker room. On Tuesday, the city council voted 4-1 against an ordinance that would have legalized card rooms, paving the way for the proposed venue.<\/p>\n

\"Doug
Poker\u2019s Doug Polk, above, wanted to bring a 47,000-square-foot card room to the City of Farmers Branch, Texas, but was rebuffed by city officials this week. (Image: 888)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The decision dashes the plans of three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Doug Polk, who wanted to open a 47,000-square-foot card room with a bar, restaurant, and 100 poker tables.<\/p>\n

Polk said the facility would have employed around 300 people and attracted an estimated 300K visitors per year. Farmers Branch is a 20-minute drive from Dallas International Airport.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt obviously wasn\u2019t the result we were looking for. It felt like there were a lot of comments about residents not supporting us and that\u2019s not true,\u201d Polk told The Dallas Morning News <\/em>after the vote. \u201cWe had a lot of supporters here and I just want to thank them. It\u2019s not just the outsiders to Farmers Branch that lost tonight, but also a lot of residents.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legally Ambiguous <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Polk and his business partners already own the biggest card room in Texas, the Lodge Card Club in Round Rock, but the Farmer\u2019s Branch venue would have been bigger. The poker player indicated to The Morning News<\/em> that he hadn\u2019t given up on his plan and was prepared to look for a new location. He described the region as a \u201cpremium market.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a man who made his fortune taking calculated risks at the poker table, investing in Texas\u2019 live poker industry seems like a pure gamble for Polk.<\/p>\n

\n

The legality of poker clubs is ambiguous in the state, and there is no certainty that the live poker scene will endure. This may have played into the thoughts of the Farmers Branch City Council.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Poker rooms like the Lodge argue they operate via a loophole in the law because they are private clubs.<\/p>\n

Gambling is illegal in Texas unless expressly authorized by the legislature. However, it is a defense to prosecution [for gambling]\u201d if \u201cthe actor engaged in gambling [is] in a private place [and] no person received any economic benefit other than personal winnings.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, instead of taking a rake, Texas card rooms charge customers by the hour to be at the venue. Let\u2019s just say not everyone is down with this interpretation<\/a> of the law. Detractors argue the carveout was intended only for private home games and the clubs operate as commercial venues in practice.<\/p>\n

Dallas U-Turn<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The nearby City of Dallas legalized poker in 2019 when it granted a license to its first card room, the Texas Card House.<\/p>\n

But in January 2022, the city revoked the club\u2019s permit and advised the card room\u2019s owners they were \u201ckeeping a gambling place.\u201d That followed intervention from Dallas City Attorney Chris Caso.<\/p>\n

The situation is tied up in legal wrangling<\/a>, but the club has been permitted to remain operational pending resolution of lawsuits.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The case is likely on a collision course with the Texas Supreme Court, which will decide the clubs\u2019 legality once and for all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The City of Farmers Branch, a Dallas suburb, has passed on the chance to host Texas\u2019 largest poker room. On Tuesday, the city council voted 4-1 against an ordinance that would have legalized card rooms, paving the way for the proposed venue. The decision dashes the plans of three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":319606,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,83771,13592],"tags":[90840,90838,90839,83169,82459],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nPoker Player Doug Polk\u2019s Plan for Largest Texas Cardroom Up in Smoke<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"City of Farmers Branch rejects Doug Polk\u2019s plan for what would have been Texas\u2019 biggest cardroom. 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