Midwest Gaming Journal

Wisconsin: Good Blackjack - Bad Poker

I've been traveling in Wisconsin over the past month and stopped by some of the state's biggest, and smallest casinos. Overall I found most casinos offer double-deck blackjack games that pay the critical 3:2 on a natural 21. I've also played cards at some grubby so-called card rooms. Here's a list of the best and worst for card games.

BEST BLACKJACK

1. Menominee Casino & Bingo - Keshena This game is identical to downtown Las Vegas tables with one exception: Great penetration. Up to 66%. $10 min with at least one table going at all time. Yummy.
2. Ho Chunk Casino - Baraboo $10 minimum tables on the main floor. No doubles after splits seems to be the biggest drawback. Very nice and new floor. 
3. Oneida Casino - Green Bay The double deck games are green chippers and are located in the high limit area. Sightly better than Potowatomi, only because of the penetration (55%-65%)
4. Potowatomi Bingo Casino - Milwaukee A handful of games on the main casino floor. Penetration sucks at barely over a deck. If there's more than one person sitting with you it's almost pointless.

         BEST POKER

1. Potowatomi Bingo Casino - Milwaukee The 20+ table room is brand-new. Spacious and friendly, albeit busy. Games that are spread are a little weird: No $1/$2 no-limit, just a $3/$5 no-limit $600 max. Usually the only limit games run are $2/$4 and $4/$8.
2. Menominee Casino & Bingo - Keshena A dozen of the most underused poker tables in Wisconsin. Not a bad room for the area, but cash games are lame - mostly low stakes limit games with an Omaha game on Thursday. Frequent tournaments look appealing.
3. Oneida Casino (Mason Street) - Green Bay This grubby room has a handful of tables and a friendly staff. $3/$6 limit and $1/$2 no-limit seem to run perpetually. There are a few weekly tournaments.
4. Ho Chunk Casino - Baraboo The poker room is just a section of the horse book (I think so all of the degenerate gamblers can be kept in one area). It's smoky, dingy, oddly-lit, and you have to play cards next to those damned horse-bettors. One point of note: There was a $6/$12 limit mixed game of Hold'em and Omaha Hi/Low (sometimes referred to as a HO game, but be careful how and with whom you use that terminology.)   

I was only able to sample a handful of the 27 casinos in the great state of Wisconsin. Many of the gambling joints are slots only, the ones I hit are the larger ones with tables. While none seemed overly crowded, they were far from dead.

Tourney Time

The battle for lakeside tournament poker players has begun, and it looks like the Horseshoe has the early advantage.

At the end of the month the Horseshoe will hold the area's first World Series of Poker Circuit event. Starting tomorrow the Majestic Star will fire up their Deep Stack Challenge, running through the 26th.

The main event for at the MS conflicts with the WSOPC. Obviously, the newer Horseshoe has a huge advantage - especially with the World Series of Poker branding, but the standards for success at each poker room is different. It will be interesting to see who wins this round in the battle between the two biggest poker rooms in the Chicago area.

Valet Tips

That big building on the left of the picture is actually a boat. Seriously. If it weren't a boat, how could there be gambling inside. We all know gambling in the Midwest can happen only on a boat, or it will kill you. Unless, of course, you're in the sancitity of a Native American casino. Then the gambling demons will spare you.

The building on the right is the new Horseshoe, Hammond pavilion. That enclosed bridge in the middle of the picture is the one that fell into the lake just before it was supposed to open last week. It's still closed, so if you valet in the pavilion you have to walk much further than if you park in the general parking garage. I heard many complaints taking that long walk.

"This is ridiculous!" said an elderly woman to her two gambling co-horts as they trudged through a 1,000 foot alternate walkway. "I wrote a letter. Told them that. Ridiculous!"

"Good for you, Bea." responded one of her friends. Gambling solidarity is important these days.

My first thought was about that letter. I can't remember  the last time I received a personal letter. I think I'd be suspect of anyone sending me a letter these days. Like it might me laced with anthrax or something. I didn't suspect this lady to be a terrorist, but I kept my eye on her nonetheless.

This place really is something special, and while it's great for the Chicagoland area it will kill the competition. The three boats within a 5 minute drive are going to be pummeled, maybe rightly so. The Majestic Star I & II and the newly named Ameristar casino are bona fide dumps. I've played dice in behind an Aldi in Coal City that was more inviting than these gambling barges.

The three guys I talked with playing cards all agreed the poker room has a distinct Venetian vibe. It's every bit as nice as any of the Big Boys on Las Vegas Blvd, and that goes for the rest of the casino, too.

There are still way too many slots, and not enough table games. The blackjack has the typical shitty Harrah's conditions - but all of this can be said for every Midwest casino, unfortunately. Still, once they fix this bridge thing there's little reason to go anywhere else.

It's Just a Pepsi

The only thing I remember about my last visit to the Horseshoe casino in Hammond, IN was the passed out guy who had wet himself. He was slumped on a bench by the parking garage escalators.  I'm pretty sure I lost some money, and the casino was as dumpy (or dumpier) as its Gary counterparts, but the 60 year old mill worker that had pissed through his work jeans stuck with me more than anything else. That was 10 years ago, and I vowed never to return. That changed today.

When the top of my Pepsi came off as I went for sip, soaking my lap, I thought of that pee drenched fellow from a decade ago. I hoped my assumed accident wouldn't turn future gamblers away. But today I could have smeared a melted Hershey bar on the rear of my trousers and people would have had no problems sidling up to me if it meant getting into the new $550 million casino.

The Horseshoe's website says the opening of the new and improved casino is slated for August 8th (8-8-08). Today was their "soft" opening. I've never understood this "soft" terminology. These things are always more rough. The past few days have been no exception. This opening was supposed to have been this weekend, a minor construction accident pushed it back to Monday. More gaffes pushed it back to today. I'd heard the opening would be noon, but when I arrived at 12:30 a security guard told me gambling wouldn't start until 3. The inspectors were running late.

Talk amongst the people waiting for the elevator was when was this thing opening? Noon? Three? Today? Tomorrow? 8-8-08? A yellow helmeted construction worker shrugged, "I don't know why they're not letting you on."

There are four restaurants on the second floor, just the grill was open. I got a cheeseburger and the infamous lose-lid soda. Watching the throngs of people flow from the parking garage, and waiting for my cargo pants to dry, I wondered if our economy is really that bad. Hundreds of people have enough disposable income and time to wait around for three hours so they can dump a few bucks into a Top Gun slot machine.

If you don't like the design of the pavilion you can blame Steve Wynn. There are hints of the Bellagio and Wynn. A lot of mellow toned wood and funky light fixtures.Yet there's also a striking similarity to the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace - makes sense since that's a Harrah's property.  The Jack Binion Steak House is on the third floor and shares the same view as the buffet a floor below: Overlooking a beach, that was packed on this 90-degree July day. Despite the gray steel mills looming behind, it looked inviting.

The friendly Horseshoe staff gave out water, cookies, and updates on when cards would be in the air. The crowd grew exponentially larger as three o'clock approached. It never got unruly or unpleasant, but I felt uncomfortable. Nothing could be worth this wait.

I left around 2:15. I didn't feel like standing shoulder to shoulder with people who were more concerned with tossing dice than if I had pissed myself. Besides the beach looked a lot more fun.

Ameristar The Not So Beautiful

Those people on HGTV are so right when they say a fresh coat of paint can really liven up a place. The Ameristar Casino (formerly the Resorts East Chicago) has spruced up the Indiana riverboat since taking over recently. The place looks nice. It's amazing what a can of Glidden and some new sconces can do!

Tacky sports memorabilia was removed from the bar & grill restaurant. New light designs by the bars are neat. There are new gaming tables and new chairs for slot and video poker folks. The carpet is brand-spankin' new, too.

On a beautiful Tuesday afternoon the place was packed. It was almost impossible to get on a 21 table, and for a seat in the poker room was at least an hour. No one seemed to mind the   improvements are minor and cosmetic.

It will be interesting to see how this new company deals with a rabid, yet savvy gambling market.
The new name and new paint will attract some gambler, but Ameristar will have a tough time competing with the Four Winds, the Blue Chip, and especially the Horseshoe after it expands.

So far, they seem to be doing pretty well.