The live poker room at Harrah's Philadelphia appears to be permanently closed.
According to various social media posts by current and former employees, they received word about the decision on Aug. 11.
Harrah's Philly poker room closed for good?
Various poker room employees at Harrah's Philadelphia posted on social media about losing their poker-dealing jobs. On the condition of anonymity, a now-former employee ('Jake') discussed what's happening at Harrah's Philadelphia poker room with Play Pennsylvania. Jubilee mk12 slot machine for sale.
He confirmed that the room is closed, with no plans to reopen it. Management's calls to poker room employees came via Zoom on Aug. 11. Jake said that they did not offer anyone positions within the organization. However, Harrah's did say if employees had experience in tables games, they could apply, just the same as anyone else coming in off the street, for openings.
Rivers Casino is Philadelphia's hottest gaming destination on the waterfront with thrilling slots & table games, live entertainment & the best restaurants. Rivers Casino Philadelphia opened its poker room as well, although the citywide restrictions forced the casino to close once again on Nov. Parx Casino in Bensalem plans to reopen the state's largest poker room on Dec. The poker rooms at Hollywood Casino, Presque Isle Downs and Wind Creek Casino have all remain shuttered.
Those who asked if any classes would be offered for table games did not get a clear 'yes' or 'no' answer.
Play Pennsylvania reached out to Harrah's regarding the poker room, but they declined to comment.
Silent on social media
Harrah's Philadelphia poker room's Twitter handle no longer exists. Its Facebook page has not been updated since March 13.
Asked whether the poker room closure was permanent, a customer service representative at Harrah's Philadelphia said:
'It's closed as of now. We don't have a date of reopening.'
World Series of Poker-branded room
Harrah's opened a live poker room in 2010 on the floor below the main gaming floor near where race track betting takes place.
On April 26, 2019, after extensive renovations, Harrah's Philadelphia became home to the World Series of Poker poker room. Harrah's corporate parent company Caesars Entertainment owns the popular World Series of Poker brand. Those brands are now housed under Eldorado Resorts, which officially absorbed Caesars mere months ago, maintaining the Caesars brand name.
Last fall, Harrah's underwent a number of major renovations, including the new retail sportsbook the Book and a Topgolf Swing Suite.
General Manager Chris Albrechttold the Philadelphia Business Journal: Rivers casino philadelphia poker room.
'The poker room was moved from racing level to casino floor to have all gaming action on one floor. It was part of the reimagination of the back of the casino with new sportsbook and Topgolf.'
Parx has the largest live poker room in PA, with 48 tables.
Harrah's had 27 tables and a full slate of poker promotions and tournaments. On their website, they boasted:
'WSOP Poker Room spreads Texas Hold'em, Seven Card Stud, and Omaha. With nonstop action and a range of blinds, even the most discriminating Philadelphia gambler will find a perfectly suited game for their taste. Limit games range from $2-4-6 to $20-40, while No Limit games range from $1-2 to $10-25.'
The following pictures were taken at the vacated Harrah's Philadelphia poker room in July 2020.
Poker rooms in PA still closed
On April 26, 2019, after extensive renovations, Harrah's Philadelphia became home to the World Series of Poker poker room. Harrah's corporate parent company Caesars Entertainment owns the popular World Series of Poker brand. Those brands are now housed under Eldorado Resorts, which officially absorbed Caesars mere months ago, maintaining the Caesars brand name.
Last fall, Harrah's underwent a number of major renovations, including the new retail sportsbook the Book and a Topgolf Swing Suite.
General Manager Chris Albrechttold the Philadelphia Business Journal: Rivers casino philadelphia poker room.
'The poker room was moved from racing level to casino floor to have all gaming action on one floor. It was part of the reimagination of the back of the casino with new sportsbook and Topgolf.'
Parx has the largest live poker room in PA, with 48 tables.
Harrah's had 27 tables and a full slate of poker promotions and tournaments. On their website, they boasted:
'WSOP Poker Room spreads Texas Hold'em, Seven Card Stud, and Omaha. With nonstop action and a range of blinds, even the most discriminating Philadelphia gambler will find a perfectly suited game for their taste. Limit games range from $2-4-6 to $20-40, while No Limit games range from $1-2 to $10-25.'
The following pictures were taken at the vacated Harrah's Philadelphia poker room in July 2020.
Poker rooms in PA still closed
In mid-March, all 12 Pennsylvania casinos closed to slow the spread of coronavirus. Harrah's Philadelphia reopened on June 26.
When casinos' home county moved to the 'green phase,' they could reopen at reduced capacity (up to 50%). The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) laid out updated health and safety protocols, which included, to start, that poker rooms could not operate due to players handling cards and chips. They said they'd monitor and adjust according to guidance from the CDC and the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
PGCB Director of Communications Doug Harbachgave this update to Play Pennsylvania on Aug. 25:
'There has been no alteration to the casino reopening protocols released by the Gaming Control Board in May in which poker rooms were not authorized to operate. At the same time, this guideline can be reexamined based on health experts' guidance. Should casinos wish to explore reopening a casino room, it would need to provide plans to do so safely which would be reviewed by the board on a case-by-case basis.'
WSOP online poker plans in PA
While live poker is off the menu for the time being (and perhaps permanently at some casinos, like Harrah's), PA poker players still have legal, regulated as an option. PokerStars PA was the first online poker operator to launch in PA, doing so in November 2019. The lone operator has done well in Pennsylvania, peaking in April with revenue of nearly $5.3 million when all casinos were still shuttered.
And while live poker rooms remain closed, online poker revenue at PokerStars has come down to a reasonable yet healthy $3.0 million for July. But it looks as if PA will soon have more online poker options in partypoker(through BetMGM/ROAR Digital) and, ironically, WSOP.com.
Caesars (through Harrah's Philly) launched online sports betting and online casino products in PA in March and April, respectively.
While no timeline has been announced for the launch of a WSOP online poker room in PA, we know regulatory approval is underway. That makes for rather unfortunate timing for Caesars' live poker partner to fold, it would seem. But in 2020, anything is possible.
Note: This is a developing story. PlayPennsylvania will provide the latest updates on the Harrah's poker room closing as they become available.
Online Casinos in Philadelphia
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Types of Casinos in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
There are three types of casinos in Philadelphia: two racetrack casinos, one stand-alone casino, and one hotel resort casino.
Pennsylvania passed legislation in 2004 to allow slot machines at 14 locations in the state: seven racinos, five stand-alone casinos, and two hotel resorts. All of the casinos in Pennsylvaniacan have a maximum of 5,000 machines, except for the resort licensees, those two casinos are allowed up to 600. Additionally, all casinos in Pennsylvania are allowed to have table games.
Racetrack Casinos in Philadelphia
There are two racetrack casinos in Philadelphia and both offer a variety of electronic gaming machines, as well as table games.
Stand-alone Casinos in Philadelphia
There is one stand-alone casino in Philadelphia: Sugar House. It offers electronic gaming machines and table games.
Additionally, another stand-alone casino, Live! Hotel and Casino will open in the future. The $600 million project will house a 200,000- square-foot gaming floor and a 220-room hotel, plus a1,000-seat music venue. The resort will be located at 900 Packer Avenue in South Philadelphia. That casino resort is expected to open in late 2018.
Hotel Resort Casinos in Philadelphia
There is one hotel resort casino in Philadelphia: Valley Forge Casino Resort. That casino, like all other casinos in Philadelphia, offers a variety of gaming machines and tablegames.
All Philadelphia casinos offer the following games: slots, video poker, craps, blackjack, roulette, three card poker, mini-baccarat and Pai-Gow poker. Optional games include: baccarat, poker,ultimate Texas hold ‘em, Texas hold'em bonus, let it ride, pai gow, big-6 wheel, Spanish 21, four card poker, Sic-Bo, Mississippi stud, and casino war.
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Gambling Laws in Philadelphia
The minimum gambling age is 18 for pari-mutuel betting and 21 at all casinos in Philadelphia.
List of Casinos in Philadelphia
Shown below is a list of all Philadelphia casinos. Click on a casino name to see a page of detailed information about that particular casino.
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For more information on visiting Philadelphia casinos, or for general tourism information, call the city's Office of Tourism at (215) 636-3300, or visit their website at www.visitphilly.com.