MGM Springfield, Encore Boston Harbor deal with loss of poker during COVID pandemic – MassLive.com

SPRINGFIELD Would-be poker players are asking Massachusetts gambling regulators when the game will return to MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor, but state social-distancing rules limiting the number of players at the tables make it unprofitable.

Everybody wants to know, said Bruce Band, assistant director, gaming agents division chief for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission during a commission meeting this week.

Band said Encore showed him this week a table set up for five players.

But even that wouldnt be enough, he said.

Massachusetts casinos closed in March 2020 following the onset of COVID-19 only to reopen in July under occupancy restrictions that have varied over time.

But Encore and MGM Springfield the two casinos that offered poker before the pandemic have not reopened their poker rooms.

The problem, Band explained, is that Massachusetts rules for social distancing would limit the number of players at a poker table to just four. And poker is not profitable for the casinos with that few players.

We are always looking for ways to evolve our amenities to serve our guests better. As such, MGM Springfield will temporarily convert its poker room to a slot area, MGM Springfield said in a prepared statement.. We have yet to reopen the poker room since the pandemic, therefore, this gives us an opportunity to provide more gaming options to our guests.

On its website, Encore Boston Harbor says it is impossible to know when poker will be able to return.

When that time comes, we will evaluate the viability of the market, the demand for the game, and our facilitys capacity to support it. Until then, we will continue to operate without live poker, Encore stated.

Prior the pandemic, Encore had 88 poker tables, while MGM Springfield had 23 tables.

MGM offers live poker at its other casinos out of state, including at tables with seven-player limits. On the website for its MGM National Harbor casino in Maryland, the company explains that chips and capacity is reduced to 25% of normal and there are plexiglass dividers in place.

Poker cards are removed from play and sanitized every four hours. All chips returned to the bank are cleaned and chips in table banks are cleaned regularly.

Poker is available at Connecticut casinos. Foxwoods Resort Casino reopened its poker room with 16 seven-player tables, while Mohegan Sun advertises seven-player tables as well.

Brand also discussed how state mandated precautions in Massachusetts have slowed down craps, slowing the rolls from 130 an hour to 90 tosses of the dice an hour.

Related content:

Read the original post:

MGM Springfield, Encore Boston Harbor deal with loss of poker during COVID pandemic - MassLive.com