Hey, poker players!
Another week pass by and soon it will be November! Will Metro Manila have a tournament before the end of the year?
Meanwhile, Taiwan been doing great in Las Vegas this year. As one of its top players won a bracelet.
Here the rest of the details.
4 poker rooms with the 5th underway?
Currently, there are 4 poker rooms operating in Manila legally. A 5th poker room that will be located in Malate has announced that they will be open by the first week of November. although that has yet to be seen but given the the first week is coming near. We just have to wait and see if the 5th poker room will actually open.
All poker rooms are slowly stabilizing and have regulars players that plays in each poker room. although the question is whether tournaments will come back anytime soon still remains a mystery. Poker rooms are moving forward with their operation and growing.
What taking tournaments so long?
The politics
it is a complicated issue to have tournaments in Manila.
At one side, the election is coming near and the current president of the Philippines wants to leave a good note before he steps down.
In the Philippines, the constitution only allows a president to have one term. So it is a matter of leaving a legacy behind.
While those who are eligible for government position are trying to prove they are worth to be voted for whatever position they believe they deserve on the next election.
Overcoming the pandemic is really vital.
But then there is the pandemic to think about. If the virus spread further forcing another lockdown. It will be a big red mark.
Poker tournaments will be crowd drawers. Can Metro Manila hold tournaments safely?
The organizer
Here the thing, organizer must put up a guarantee in order to make sure players will come.
They have to risk.
But considering foreigners are not yet allowed to enter the Philippines unless they have special visa. The market they need to depend on is the local.
Take note, for such a long time poker rooms and houses were not allowed to operate and incurred expenses. Some may not be healthy to provide a guarantee and fail.
Even for dailies, before the pandemic only one room was able to push for their tournament regardless how many player registered, which was the Metrocard Club.
Before the pandemic, even by experience they know they will make the guarantees. there are rooms that will only hold an event if 10-20 players registered before the tournament starts.
What more now?
Note: of course no one will ever beat the record of a poker room in Malate that proudly declared a week of high guarantees and free entries only to stake players because they could not even meet the numbers. They actually stake players so that people will play. They were the first poker room to close down and withdraw the bond during the pandemic.
Tournaments are a necessity.
Tournaments are needed to attract players back to the poker rooms. it is a matter of who will take the risk?
Everyone is waiting for who will take that risk. The rest will follow.
Until then, stay tuned poker playas!
