Poker to benefit from Louisiana casino bill

Louisiana casino expansion could benefit poker rooms and draw in big tournaments, operators say.

US.- A Senate committee has recently approved bills that would allow Louisiana riverboat casinos to expand 1,200 feet onto the shore and add more gaming tables and slot machines. According to local operators, potential legislation changes may benefit poker room operations as bigger events may be drawn in to bigger stages.

Horseshoe’s poker room manager Chad Disante believes that the number of cash game players and the potential to create big poker events may increase should legislation gets passed. “We’ve really got something going here. We’re already talking about getting [the RunGood Series] back in here in October or November,” he said.

“We’ve got to get the legislation through. I could have put five more tables out there, but don’t have the space. We got everybody seated, but I had to have 50 people wait for hours as alternates,” Disante said, adding: “I would feel with us having the I-20 corridor right here and Houston to the south of us, and the space and the facility, we can hang with them (…) Horseshoe Bossier City is the No. 1 service provider in all of Caesar’s properties.”

Mississippi currently allows riverboats to conduct gaming within 800 feet of the coast but may soon stretch it out to 1,200 feet. That way, the bill would enable Louisiana’s riverboats to be larger than the ones in Mississippi and bring in more revenue.