Doug Polk announced on Twitter that he is planning to open a new poker room. Doug bought the largest poker club in Texas with his friends Brad Owen and Andrew Neeme in 2022. The name of the club is The Lodge Card Club.
After buying The Lodge, Polk published a video on his YouTube channel where he said he plans to open new branches of the room around the country where the laws allow rooms to exist.
Doug wants to establish a major Dallas poker stream and have big tournaments in the new room.
Location of the New Room
Polk and his partners are considering opening a poker room in one of Texas’s major cities, such as San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas. They also considered expanding beyond Texas but decided to stay in their current state. Doug was also looking for contacts from local poker communities and business owners to get as much information as possible and help with his project.
On May 7, the Farmers Branch city council will vote on whether to allow the opening of poker rooms in the city. If the commission votes positive for opening, Doug will need approval from the city for a business license to operate.
Farmers Branch is located close to Dallas North Tollway and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
Some people were saying that the area was dangerous and that it would be between two other poker rooms that take each other’s traffic, and other locations were suggested.
Problems That Can Occur
Texas state imposes strict anti-gambling regulations; gambling is illegal unless certain conditions are met. As mentioned before, poker rooms are prohibited from taking rake from players or have any involvement in the result of the game.
Poker rooms have created alternative ways of making money, such as charging players hourly for sitting at the tables and requiring membership fees from players who want to join the social club.
There is still much skepticism around poker at state and city levels of Texas, particularly in Dallas, where city council members vigorously oppose any operation of poker clubs. The reasoning the council is giving is that residents are complaining about gambling, religious objections to gambling, and pressure from casino lobbies in the state.
Polk has engaged with the city council, emphasizing the potential benefits a poker room can bring to the city, such as jobs and increased tax revenue. He also believes that poker rooms can help bring more people to this area, which is primarily industrial.
As he mentioned in his YouTube video, Polk plans to create new branches of the same poker room and spread The Lodge brand. He is asking local players to show up at the city council meeting and show support for poker.
Argument With the Follower
Doug argued the X(Twitter) with a follower who said it would be illegal to gain any kind of profit from a poker room, including membership fees or hourly fees.
Doug responded by saying that the whole subject is much more complex and mentioned the only poker vs state case that has gone to court where the discussion was specified that “within the game itself” room is not allowed to make profits.
Doug also assured the follower that he wouldn’t go into this if they thought poker was technically illegal. He also added that they have a good attorney and a strong argument around legality.
Doug doesn’t plan to quit whatever decision the city council makes, and he will look for other locations and opportunities.
