TPT Archive: Winstar's New Poker Room Worth the Wait

Winstar's New Poker Room Worth the Wait
(previously posted at Texas Poker Trails on Friday, April 12, 2007)

I was sitting at home last night and channel-surfing through the air looking for something to watch on TV, and there was absolutely nothing on...all these channels and the best I could come up with was a "Stargate SG-1" marathon on the Sci-Fi channel. Give me a break.

So after a minute or two of considering my options, I decided to make the 10 minute drive to the Winstar and check out the new poker room. I'm glad I did.

The new poker room is located in the building to the right of the main casino entrance, next to the humungous bingo hall. There is no direct entrance into the room itself, you must walk through the main casino and turn right until you hit the tunnel that leads you to the new digs. Last night being my first visit, I walked through the bingo hall instead...it was a little closer that way. But when the bingo hall closes for the night, that's not an option. So if you come, park near the southern entrance to the casino, and once inside turn right and look for the hallway leading to the poker room.

My first impression was, "Wow...this is cool." Of course, compared to the old room, my brother's garage would be an improvement. But this new room looks terrific. The wood paneling, flat screen TVs, and huge open space with numerous tables is going to make the room an attraction for the whole region. One of the nicest additions is the Player's Lounge, a nice sized room with comfortable leather chairs and sofas. It provides a relaxing place for players to wait until they get a table slot. The new room also has it's own grill for hot and cold food.

At the table, the first thing I noticed was the space...the poker tables are no longer butted inches apart like in the old room. The room provides plenty of area to stretch out in. I also immediately noticed the relative peace and quiet, as compared to the noise-fest in the old room. There are no slot machines whirring in the background, no screaming echoes from the main casino, no reverberating "all-in" yells from a table across the room. "A player can actually hear himself talk in here," I was thinking.

I was talking to another player in the Lounge, and he said, "Man, this sure beats the old place."

"Yea. Our baby has grown up." I said. "It looks like the Winstar has hit the big time." I was also thinking it was about time the Winstar put our rake money to good use.