Borgata Poker Room Reopens in Atlantic City Offering Cash Games

After seven months of being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the poker room at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, New Jersey will finally resume operations starting October 21 at 10 a.m. local time.

The poker room is one of the largest in the United States and will operate at a reduced capacity, initially opening just 30 tables, with polycarbonate dividers installed between each seat. Each table is limited to just seven players. The venue will also be offering just cash games for the time being as it’s still unsafe to run tournaments.

Borgata is also implementing multiple health and safety protocols for those entering its poker room. As with all the other public areas in the casino, mandatory wearing of face masks will be enforced in the poker room.

Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa

 

The venue is also equipped with readily available hand sanitizing stations, and spectators and non-players will not be permitted to go inside. Food will not be allowed as well, but players will have access to beverage service.

Positive Development

Announcing the good news, Melonie Johnson, President and Chief Operating Officer of Borgata, said they have implemented some changes to their poker operations to provide a safer experience to their loyal players.

The poker room at Borgata becomes the first to reopen in Atlantic City since the COVID-19 lockdown in mid-March. The reopening sends out a positive signal for the live poker scene in the city, which has been greatly impacted by the global health crisis.

The city is home to four other major poker rooms, namely, Bally’s, Tropicana, Harrah’s Atlantic City and Golden Nugget. The Borgata has been the dominant player in the poker market accounting for nearly $18 million of the $28.5 million in revenue generated by all five rooms in 2018 and 2019.

Over the years, Borgata has built a strong reputation in the world of poker for hosting major in-house tournament series such as the Borgata Poker Open which has a Spring, Summer, and Fall edition. All of these events had been dropped this year due to the pandemic, but they are expected to return when the live poker scene gets back on track.

Borgata-WPT Partnership

Borgata is also known for its existing partnership with another premier poker brand – the World Poker Tour (WPT).

Before the COVID-19 crisis, both brands joined forces for the 2020 World Poker Tour Borgata Winter Poker Open $3,500 Main Event, which attracted a huge field of 1,290 entries.