Pink!
That would always be how people would describe Okada Manila. Okada Manila is a casino resort and hotel complex located on the Entertainment City gaming strip in Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines.
The casino complex was opened for “preview” on December 21, 2016, and later commenced operations as a casino on December 30, 2016.
Poker
It took a while before Okada finally had its poker room. But it was in 2018 that poker changed drastically in Okada Manila.
A few months before March 2018. the poker room was operating, but it was not attracting enough players. They were following the old guide to poker rules that needed to be updated. A lot of the areas of the casinos were still not opened. Poker was not a priority.
It was in March 2018 that a junket initiated changes to how to run a poker room. But it was short-lived as the management was not interested in prioritizing poker.
However, A new organization was interested in Okada. After some negotiation. A deal was push through.
Finally, in November 2018. Pokerstars announced that it has a new home. Their next big event, The Megastack, will be held in Okada from 7 to 16 December 2018.
Pokerstars at Okada Manila
Pokerstars was doing great when it opened. Initially, it was located way back of the casino. As they held more events, they relocated to a more visible location. The latest relocation placed them near the food court.
Several events were held both international and local before the lockdown. The Red Dragon Manila was held in January 2020, while WPT Manila was held in February 2020.
Okada Manila Millions that was scheduled from March 9 to the 15th was cut short due to the pandemic.
Before the lockdown, Pokerstars’ bad beat jackpot was at more than 7 million.
Pokerstars was making its mark at Okada Manila. But the lockdown struck and all gaming establishments were closed.
General community quarantine – current
Forced to shut down, for several months there was no news of re-opening.
Pokerstars Viber channel was silent. It only comes alive to occasionally announce the cancelation of scheduled events. People were getting eager and restless.
Until December 6, 2020, an announcement of re-opening rock the Viber group. Pokerstars is finally opening its doors to the public on December 7, 2020, at 12 PM.
And it did.
New safety measures
There are now new safety measures you have to follow to play.
- Tables are now 6-player max.
- No eating on the table.
- Players need to wear facemask and face shield all the time.
- Transparent dividers are in between the players.
Okada is also implementing their 3T campaign that everyone must follow to play. The “True Safe. True Clean. True Heart.” campaign assures all the guests of a clean, safe, and memorable stay at the integrated resort.
The bad beat jackpot is available and is now more than 8 million PHP.
Closing 2020
Will the bad beat jackpot be hit before 2021? Will Pokerstars implement a shootout format tournament in order to attract more players?
With only a few days before the new year. It could be a good start for Pokerstars and poker in general for the Philippines.
We hope to see you all again soon poker playas! until then stay safe and remember the vaccine is coming. stay strong!
