Rivers Casino Pittsburgh Pa Poker Room
Poker rooms slowly started to reopen at casinos in Pennsylvania nearly seven months after the casinos and subsequently poker games were shut down in March as a result of coronavirus.
Due to the social nature of the game, poker rooms were not permitted to welcome back players when casinos started reopening in June.
Five poker rooms reopened as of mid-November with Parx, the state’s largest, set to return in December. The city of Philadelphia added restrictions included another shutdown of Rivers Casino Philadelphia until at least Jan 1, taking away another option for live poker.
About Rivers Pittsburgh. Rivers Casino is based in Pittsburgh and is one of the area’s most popular casinos. In 2019, the name was changed to Rivers Casino Pittsburgh after the SugarHouse Casino became Rivers Philadelphia. The Pittsburgh casino includes 2,900 slots, more than 100 table games and a 30-table poker room.
One poker room continues to remain conspicuously quiet – Wind Creek Casino.
- Rivers Casino Pittsburgh has announced that its poker room will reopen on Wednesday. Games will be 7-handed with Plexiglas dividers on tables. Masks are required, and no eating or drinking will be permitted. For more information on poker room reopenings, visit our Reopen webpage.
- Rivers Casino, Pittsburgh PA. Dabby Red Chipper Posts: 84. I've heard that they've since moved the poker room up to the first floor somewhere. I may have to check.
- The Rivers Casino (originally going to be named the Majestic Star Casino) is a casino in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.It is owned by Holdings Acquisition Co. L.P., a joint venture of Walton Street Capital LLC and High Pitt Gaming LP.
- The Poker Room at Rivers Casino Pittsburgh is open!
Wins and losses for Wind Creek
Wind Creek is one of the larger poker rooms in Pennsylvania rooms with 26 tables. Located in Bethlehem, PA, it’s in a prime spot to attract visitors from New York City and northern New Jersey.
A representative from Wind Creek told PlayPennsylvania they had no update on when the poker room would open. On Nov. 18, Wind Creek opened the Betfred sportsbook. The sportsbook is the first for Wind Creek in the United States and the third US retail location for Betfred Sports.
Wind Creek claimed a number of honors from Casino Player Magazine in October including being named best:
- Overall Gaming Resort
- Table Games
- Poker Room
However, it hasn’t been all good news at Wind Creek Casino. Wind Creek announced layoffs on Sept. 24 that affected about 20% of its workforce. Total revenue in October was $33.1 million, a 16.41% decrease from October 2019.
Wind Creek provided the following statement to LehighValleyLive regarding recent layoffs:
“With recent business volumes significantly lower than we had hoped, we were forced to make this incredibly difficult decision. The hospitality and gaming industries have been crippled by the COVID-19 pandemic. We believe that our reduction in workforce will in the long term positively affect our future success.”
In addition, Wind Creek also announced the permanent closure of Emeril’s Fish House.
A Wind Creek employee provided an update on some of the happenings at Wind Creek including the poker room. The person agreed to share their insight based on the condition of anonymity.
“When Wind Creek shut down in mid-March, they could’ve easily had a mass layoff but they didn’t. They continued to pay all employees until May 31, 2020. Even those that work on tips got an average hourly wage and they continued to pay for benefits. Most casinos around the country just straight up laid off hundreds of dealers back in the spring.”
On June 1, the poker room employees were furloughed. They stopped getting paid but the full-time workers could keep their health benefits as long as bi-weekly premiums were paid. On Sept. 30, all poker room employees were laid off/terminated and the poker room was made into a high-limit slots parlor.
“We were told it was being turned into a high-limit slots parlor for the time being. Obviously a casino makes way more money on slot machines than a poker room, so I believe they’re focusing on that right now.”
The employee said it is their belief along with other employees that the poker room is not closed permanently and will eventually reopen.
“The plan is to reopen the poker room in the future. But who knows what the future entails considering what is looking like another round of closures. Wind Creek does see the value in the poker room but I think right now they’re trying to recover from the major financial hit they took during the 3.5 months we were closed up. The client base of the poker room really enjoyed playing at Wind Creek. I know some of them think it’s closed permanently but that isn’t likely the case.”
Poker pales in revenue comparison
Meadows Casino Washington Pa
In fiscal year 2019/2020, poker accounted for $37 million in total revenue across the state’s ten poker rooms. That number pales in comparison to the $607 million in total revenue by all other table games.
Casinos, trying to recover from an unprecedented financial hit as a result of COVID closures and operating at reduced capacity, are likely allocating resources to games that generate more revenue.
In late August, PlayPennsylvaniaexclusively reported that Harrah’s Philadelphia would not reopen their WSOP poker room.
Meanwhile, PokerStars PA remains the only online poker option in the state – for now.
Pennsylvania poker revenue by casino
As you can see from the table below, live poker is not the biggest revenue earner for PA casinos (though it can help drive other verticals).
2019/2020 Fiscal Year Poker Revenue in PA (figures from the PGCB):
| Tables | Gross Revenue | |
|---|---|---|
| Parx | 48 | $12.1 million |
| Rivers Casino Philadelphia | 28 | $6.1 million |
| Wind Creek | 26 | $5.9 million |
| Rivers Pittsburgh | 30 | $4.5 million |
| Hollywood Casino | 17 | $2.3 million |
| Harrah's Philadelphia (now closed) | 27 | $2.2 million |
| Mohegan Sun | 9 | $1.4 million |
| The Meadows | 14 | $1.1 million |
| Mount Airy | 12 | $757,893 |
| Presque Isle | 7 | $682,906 |
The Rivers Casino PA (formerly SugarHouse casino) poker room is the only live poker room in Philadelphia. Players in the city can take part in a SugarHouse casino poker tournament 24/7.
The Casino itself houses 28 state-of-the-art poker tables complete with backlit tables and full charging stations at every position. River Casino PA (SugarHouse Casino) can definitely lay claim to having the swankiest poker room in Pennsylvania.
100% 1st Deposit Match Up To $250
Additionally, SugarHouse is officially a branded Poker Night in America poker room and hosts live televised poker tournaments and cash games. There are regular Rivers PA Casino poker promotions, including hourly high-hand giveaways. This casino promotion includes player benefits such as:
- $300 every 30 minutes on Mondays and Wednesdays
- A $300 giveaway every 20 minutes from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. on ‘Super Saturday.’
- $500 every 30 minutes on Thursdays and Fridays
The SugarHouse schedule consists of a player tournament every night on a weekday, with three SugarHouse poker tournaments at the weekend.
We thought we would take a look at how the poker room at SugarHouse Casino compares to other poker rooms. Does it stand up well against the poker room at Deleware Park Casino orBorgata poker? We will also take a look at SugarHouse online casino and the developments in offering online poker games for players in Pennsylvania.
Poker Room Review
As you would expect, an experienced poker player is likely to play the lowest stakes available at every poker room. In fact, all players want to play at those low stakes. The stakes you will find at SugarHouse casino range from $1/$ 2 no-limit hold’em to $2-$6 limit hold’em. State games are also available to play on request.
The most popular game at SugarHouse casino is the $1/$2 no-limit hold’em. The rake at SugarHouse is 10% up to a maximum of $5 per pot, which is the norm across most poker rooms. One of the unique features that is not the norm at SugarHouse Casino is that players have an opportunity to straddle from anywhere. This heats up the action at the table and adds an element of excitement to the games.
The poker live tables SugarHouse Casino offers numerous exciting opportunities for players looking for a game. The atmosphere is fantastic, with the poker room separate from the rest of the Casino. SugarHouse Casino does a great job of keeping the players entertained, and it is very enjoyable taking part in a SugarHouse poker tournament.
Poker Player Quality
If you are wondering about the standard of poker player that may visit SugarHouse, there is a real mixture. Many tend to watch poker on television and like to play too many hands or feel they can bluff their way through games after watching the professionals. You do not need to be an expert to play, but having some basic knowledge of the games and how they work will, of course, help.
Amateur players can play at this Casino without much trepidation. The stakes are pretty standard, and as we have mentioned, the players aren’t all fantastic. If you want to play some games in a casual setting, this Casino certainly provides that.
SugarHouse Online Poker
SugarHouse Casino was one of the first casinos to apply for an online gambling license in PA. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board approved the license in 2018, allowing SugarHouse to offer slots, tables games, and online poker for Pennsylvania residents and visitors. SugarHouse Casino is one of the most reputable brands in the industry and is owned by Rush Street Gaming company, which also operates Rivers Casino.
The application for a license to offer online poker for residents in Pennsylvania cost SugarHouse Casino $2 million. So, although you cannot play poker tournaments online at present, this is something the company will want to offer in the future. Moreover, suppose they utilize their Poker Night in America broadcasts. In that case, there is an opportunity to do some cross-promotions as they look to build up and market their online poker offering and bring it to the level of competitors such as the Borgata poker blog.
Pennsylvania has some of the best casinos in the states and most of them have exclusive poker rooms. You can read more about poker tournaments in the state with our Poker tournaments PA guide. The Rivers Casino poker tournaments attract some of the best players from around the globe.
Summary
Being the only live poker room in Philadelphia, it is essential SugarHouse Casino provides an attractive environment to encourage people to come and play. It delivers that by hosting a room containing all of the modern perks, you would hope to find, including in-seat text-to-order foodservice and state-of-the-art tables. It may not be as glitzy as the bright lights of Las Vegas, but that does not diminish from its overall quality.
If you are a poker player in Philadelphia and are thinking, ‘I want a poker room near me,’ then you are in luck. You can visit a quality poker room at all hours at SugarHouse Casino. While the brand continues to work on its online poker offering, you can take a trip to the physical Rivers Casino Poker room and enjoy poker in person.
100% Deposit Match Up To $250
Three Rivers Casino Pittsburgh Pa
Relevant news
Rush Street to Launch in West Virginia
Rush Street Reveals they have a partnership agreement with Century Casinos to enter the West…
read more +
BetMGM Online Casino Now Live in PA
BetMGM Online Casino is now officially live and running in Pennsylvania After around three days…
read more +Michigan Online Casinos & Sports Betting Could soon be live
Online Casinos & Sports Betting could get the go ahead in Michigan this month Following…
read more +Pittsburgh Steelers Announce BetMGM Gaming Partnership
The Pittsburgh Steelers have agreed a new partnership with BetMGM It is all go for…
read more +Unibet to Introduce Live Dealer Games in Pennsylvania
Unibet has joined forces with Evolution to launch Live Casino gaming in Pennsylvania Evolution Gaming…
read more +Wind Creek & Betfred Join PA Sports Betting Market
Sportsbook operator Betfred has made its way into three U.S. Sportsbooks with Wind Creek Bethlehem…
read more +