Reno poker here I come. After an entire day of miserably flying across the country, I finally landed at a poker table at the Silver Legacy Hotel and Casino in Reno, NV. Apparently they have a newly constructed, non-smoking poker room and the place looked immaculate. I arrived at the place at the place quite early in the morning when it was still empty and the staff graciously allowed me to snap a few pictures.
The Room
The first thing you notice is the 15+ tables spaced out comfortably across the floor. No more fat guy bumping into your chair as he tries to squeeze into a seat behind you.
The chairs are comfortable and with 10 players to at table, the amount of elbow room is comparable with any other poker room that hosts 10 players instead of 9.
There is a stunning stained-glass ceiling light that looks a bit out of place but you have to appreciate the detail and artwork behind it. Farther off, two hand-blown glass chandeliers hang from office-looking ceiling tiles, creating a weird but 'Oh-So-Nevada-Casino' kind of look.
Libations and Snacks
Although I did not order any drinks from the waitresses wandering around, there was plenty of bottled water, coffee, and tea nearby, available to players. There was also a massive box of donuts and other sweet pastries. I wanted to grab one but my pancreas talked me out of it.
Bonuses
The poker room came with a chock-full of bonuses. Not only was there a $50 high-hand bonus for the best hand made every 2 hours, there was also a hot-seat bonus in which they would randomly pick a seat a player was at and give them $20 bucks. FREE MONEY. I also got a $10 bonus for playing in a tournament then going to a cash game afterwards. With all these different bonuses, it becomes fairly easy to play a tight game, make big hands, and clear bonuses to add to your winning rate.
In short:
- $50 bonus for high hand, every 2 hours
- Occassional, random "hot seat" drawing just for sitting at a table
- Non-progressive, bad-beat jackpot for $5000 (quads or better)
- $10 bonus for playing a cash game after participating in a tournament