hiya, folks!
this weekend, i was invited to a pre-opening "simulation" at the new borgata casino in atlantic city. here's the scoop! enjoy!!
1 location, location and location
those are the three most important things in real estate, right? well, i'm sorry, but the location of the borgata sucks. the only way to get to the borgata (or to leave it) is by means of the access roads (route 87 or route 187)
which are part of the bridge-tunnel complex. as you head towards brigantine, just before you get to the bridge, you can turn right into the trump marina, or you can turn left into the borgata.
ok. so it's a destination location. that means that there won't be any drop-ins from the boardwalk. or from anywhere else. in other words, the only people who will go to the borgata are those people who have already decided to go to the borgata. obviously, this is a choice made by the people who own the borgata.
2 elegant, but as garish as any casino
i don't often think of casinos as being "elegant." not counting the true sawdust joints, even the nicest of casinos are pretty tacky. but, in their own way, places like bellagio, venice and mirage are beautiful.
borgata fits right into that class. i didn't get upstairs to the hotel rooms (over 2000 of
'em), but the main floor is similar to the ambience i find in the bellagio.
moreover, i am advised that the entire complex has been constructed with "high tech" in mind.
3 high-tech slots
as part of my invitation, my father and i each received a borgata card with a $20 slot credit. i had no idea how to download my credit into a slot machine, and neither did the first two slot hosts whom i asked. the third one walked me through the procedure, and i was all set. i had selected a "double diamond" machine for historic and sentimental reasons (if you're really interested, you can read all about it via google - look for my second year atlarge trip report). it turned out to be a $.25 machine, so i had lots of quarters. after a few spins, i hit a winner, and rack up five credits ($1.25). but, no. there aren't any coins that drop in the hopper. just a credit on one of the
screens. however, on my next spin, the machine automaticlally took my 5 winning credits, instead of from my original stake. ok. i learned a lesson. next time i hit a winner (to the tune of two credits), i hit the "cashout" button, and the machine printed me a voucher for four bits......as the *sound* of coins dropping into the hopper rang and rang and rang! lol!!
from then on, whenever i had a winner spin, i printed out a cashout voucher and listened to the sounds......
some twenty minutes later, my father and i are out of the $40 in freebies, and we've accumulated $28.00 in winning vouchers. we take the vouchers to the cage, and it takes them thirty minutes to give us our money. whew! is it time for poker, yet?
4 location, location and location
if the location of the borgata sucks, the location of the poker room is even worse! my father and i wander through the casino for 20 minutes, and finally get correct directions from the third securty critter i ask. it's all the way at the back end of the casino.......and then downstairs on the escalator.
man, oh, man!! ***nobody*** is going to go to the borgata poker room unless they are grimly determined to get to the borgata poker room. there won't be anyone wandering in from the boardwalk. there won't be anyone wandering in from the casino pit. there won't be anyone wandering in from the main escalators that lead from the garage (as at the taj). there won't be anyone wandering in from the front door. there won't be anyone wandering in from the theatres.
and there won't be anyone wandering in because they just happen to pass by the escalator that leads to the poker room, because the damned thing is way in the back corner of the casino. yuck!
5 did i say beautiful? or even elegant?
the borgata poker room is the nicest damned poker room i've ever seen!! it is gorgeous! yes, and even elegant, too! ;)
there are 34 tables spread out in a very large room. there's lots and lots of room between tables, so you are never going to be jostled by some extra-large lumbering bumbler. so there's lots of room for sweaters.
there are seven tables along the left side, which are intended to be the high-limit area. the remaining 27 tables (2/3 stud and 1/3 hold 'em) are to the center and the right. the front podium has (what looks to be) a fabulous
high-tech sign-up board system, with an automatic paging feature, and many other
features (including estimated waiting time!). the room is well-lighted with high ceilings. no food is allowed in the room, but there is a small snack bar and lounge immediately outside the front podium. there are lots of large plasma screens on the walls for your favorite sporting event.
and the chairs!! all chairs in the room are like those at bellagio - wheeled comfortable armchairs, which can be adjusted for height and tilt. great!
but they've got those dratted speed chips. i hate speed chips.
the manager of the borgata poker room is a fellow named stan strickland, who used to be at sam's town in tunica, mississippi. he seemed like a nice enough fellow, but couldn't answer my question about why he moved from mississippi
to new jersey!. virtually all of the senior staff people in the room are from the tropicana (kate dumas, bruce dixon, tommy morell, tommy mooney, joe luca, anita, peter and a few others). and i was delighted to see jerry bear (former manager of resorts poker room) as a shift supervisor. the overwhelming
majority of the staff comes from the tropicana. i am advised that some 60-70 dealers and floorpeople from the tropicana have made the move. tommy gitto of the taj mahal told me that he only lost four dealers to the borgata. from what i could see, the staff in the room will be fine.
comps will be equivalent to that of the taj and the trop ($2 per hour for 10/20 and above, $1 per hour for 5/10, $.50 per hour for low-limit). i forgot to ask if it will be a "clock-in" system (like the taj) or a "swipe/scan" system (like the trop).
what games will they spread? whatever the players want. the rumors that the room would only spread high-limit action have turned out to be just rumors.
and they've got those dratted speed chips. i hate speed chips.
adjacent to the poker room is a super-high tech race book. besides the huge screens at the front of the room, each player has his own screen, where he can view multiple races! and there's a card reader at each player's seat, which brings up a complete teller's betting screen after your swipe your card. you
can place your bets at your own screen, and never have to go to the cage!
and did i tell you that the poker room will use those dratted speed chips? i hate speed chips.
i got to the room at about 3:30 pm. besides the staff, there was me, the fishman twins, motorcycle joe, taj dealer glenn, and one or two other good players. no, i didn't see a live game cranked up while i was there.
the official openning of the borgata is scheduled at 3:00 am, thursday, july 3. i have been advised that a significant portion of the taj swing shift employees will be there to play. i will definitely be there next weekend for the experience. speed chips, and all.
will the room be a success? dunno. will it hurt the tropicana? dunno, but
i think it might. will the room hurt the taj? no way.
i'll seeya there next weekend!
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