Currently, there are 5 rooms operating legally in Manila, the poker room in Okada Manila, the Poker Room at Resort World Manila, then there is the Master poker club and Lucky Sen in Malate and the last one is the Metro Card Club.

The two new rooms

But reports have just come in that there will be 2 new rooms that will be added to the list soon. A poker room that was renovated before the lockdown was forced to shut down due to the pandemic.

It also shares the name of a poker site that is beating out the leading brand.

Then there is a new poker room that will open where big events were held in Manila.

The Owners of the new room is still a mystery, but they could open soon.

Will things change?

Metro Manila always had a lot of poker rooms even before the pandemic. A lot of them have closed down as well.

As we have witnessed the ups and down of poker rooms. The truth is the mystery is not that complicated, A poker room’s life will depend on the key person that the room will hire, From their first week of operation alone, we could tell if the room will succeed or not.

Looking back to more than 10 years ago.

The big tournament strategy

More than 10 years ago, the Malate war started. Poker rooms were so close to each other all with the same tactic. Make big tournaments and hope people play cash games.

That was the only strategy they promote. some so-called “experts” would even promote that this was “their” strategy before and hence there were many players in that room.

The fact was less complicated than that. A lot of those rooms closed down after a “big tournament”.

The bad beat jackpot strategy

Another strategy was the introduction of the bad beat jackpot. “Experts” would often say once there a big bad beat jackpot. players would start playing.

This is partially true. as with the recent cases, when the bad beat jackpot does grow big. the poker room tends to have more players. but there is also a sad part to this.

It is not like players do not know the odds. They do. One of the big poker rooms in Manila does not have a bad beat jackpot yet they remain strong. 

The reason is that it takes time to make a bad beat jackpot grow big enough to make it attractive. and when it does become big, the action on the table is killed as there would be a lot of players who would just keep folding hands unless they play with the premium and this is due to waiting for a bad beat hand.

The reason why the biggest poker room in Manila does not have it is simple. The rake they collected if there is a big bad beat and no bad beat is actually the same. 

However, some rooms have a higher rake. If you add the amount being collected for the bad beat. A player does not really win anything and it is slowly killing the market.

Moving forward

Although from time and time again those theories have been disproven. The so-called experts will never stop selling them. but the next move of the Metro Card Club is something people should look into.

Metro Card Club daily tournaments and 750K gtd

The theory that a tournament must have a guarantee for people to play was disproven by Metro. They run a prize pool-only tournament and surprisingly it is very successful.

A lot of players do join the tournament even without any guarantee.

The truth is that the so-called branded organizers in the pink casino would fail miserably or have failed miserably as they have tried to do the same thing before back when it was in its old home.

Metro has pulled it off, not once or twice. they are doing it weekly!

Then there is the 750k GTD with a day 2 and 3. Already some are saying it would fail but even we believe that they might pull it off and the buy-ins would double the GTD. The local Pros are even saying they would join every day.

What Metro is selling it that no it will not have a big guarantee like what “experts” sell that they should have? It is banking on that people knows the Metro Card Club and the assurance it will have a great structure.

The APT-RWM Mystery Bounty Weekend.

The recent APT was actually a very good tour. They kept the structure intact while introducing something new that pushed the players to quicken the action on their own.

What is surprising is that comparing the cash game after the tournaments. the cash games at The Resort World were great. 

While there was a big tournament held at the pink casino as well. The cash game was not good.

APT has now led the innovative part and proven that structures do not have to be set to turbo and still finished on time and still leave the players with a good feeling.

The organizer that is only a one-trick pony

Even without naming names, people will know who we would discuss. Although we try not to write anything negative. Let’s just be honest.

If we were to discuss having bad structures, which organizers will come into mind? The highest fees? The worst trophies? 

If let us say there is a question about a certain hand situation. Would their floors be on the top of your list on advice and opinions?

The only thing they have is simple. if they have a guarantee it will be exceeded. other than that. nothing!

How it affects the 2 new rooms.

Quite recently a poker room in Malate opened. They hired a floor that claimed to work for the organizer in the pink casino.

She pretty much copied the structure and starting stack of that organizer. A daily tournament with only 2k starting stack.

The end result will always be the end result.

It was a missed opportunity for that poker room. It was a second time to shine in a period where there were and even till now no good tournaments in Manila.

They could have made a good structure. have players feel great and enjoy coming back.

There is a new era coming and it is shaping the way it should.

The future is still left unwritten. but sometimes we do not have to have a crystal ball. Just stop repeating the same mistakes over and over.

APT and Metro Card Club is definitely going in a great direction. 2022 will be the year poker can be great again.

Stay safe poker playas!