Sneak Preview of the New Hard Rock Poker Room

The PR people at Hard Rock are trying to keep a tight lid on the unveiling of their new \”Poker Lounge\”, which opens to the public tomorrow — they don\’t want any bad pictures getting out that fail to capture the venue in all its glory, nor any inaccurate information being spread widely for many to misconstrue. Er … ok, but that\’s kinda what we do, ya know?

I\’ve heard two numbers about how costly this new construction was — $12 million and $30 million. While there\’s a big difference between the two, and at least one of them is probably wrong, either way, you get the picture … it\’s a really nice place — built from the ground up and the inside out. Brian from the Poker Atlas and I swung by yesterday, where they were busily at work in their final stages of preparation, and we got a little tour from the Director of Poker Operations, Houston Waldie, who was brought to HRH after his success turning the Golden Nugget\’s rinky-dink room into arguably the best game downtown. No cameras allowed as he pointed out features he was most proud of, but I did manage to sneak a few pics from behind the ropes to give you a sense of the space we\’re talking about here.

I gotta say … Fuckin\’ A …

Go Hard Rock. (General info and future reviews here; official site here.)

The luxe tables, couches, chairs, flatscreens, etc. were all expected, maybe a tad nicer. But the art, the architecture, the vibe — all created specifically to be a poker room, the most well thought out and well funded since the Venetian — make me miss living on the east side of town, where the Hard Rock was the most convenient casino to my old pad. And though I suspect it may take some time to build up a player base (perhaps when the new hotel rooms at the Hard Rock open?) that should make it one of the premiere poker destinations in LV, at least the set-up for the action seems pretty sweet. Here are a few tidbits I picked up without the benefit of tape recorder or notepad:

• The $2/$5 NL game will be a $200 min / $2,000 max buy-in. The $5/$10 NL will have no cap.

• They\’ll be spreading multiple stakes of Hold\’em/Omaha – round of each. Can we say paging Bent Tree Boys?

• The \”Hard Rock Straddle\” — which I like to think of as the Dallas Underground Straddle — is in effect. Straddle from under-the-gun or on-the-button … last action\’s always on the straddler, but at no time do the blinds have to act first (as they do with the \”Mississippi Straddle\”).

• 7,000 dealers, chip runners, and floor people applied. About 80 or so got a job. All those who made the cut have been warned that bitching about being stiffed on a big pot will get \”a boot in their ass.\” But all of them presumably already understood that, or they wouldn\’t have gotten hired.

• Some top dealers, tourney directors, and floor management folks were recruited away from Bellagio, Venetian, and Caesar\’s … along with some of Waldie\’s top lieutenants from Golden Nugget, who now are serving as \”generals.\”

• A select few veteran Hard Rock pit dealers — the most loyal, professional, and studied in casino psychology — also got brought over to the poker room, and are reportedly enthusiastic about learning the nuances of poker.

• 18 tables, well spread out in about as much space in the Bellagio poker room.

• There are 5 VIP tables and one big-big game table … set up kinda like a nightclub, as these tables can be reserved for private games and have bottle service. Each of these is also wired for iPod hookup, so you can bring your own music.

• The big-big game room was going to be open to the folks coming out of a concert, but for security purposes, they had to wall it off in glass on one side. But still open on one side, with a buffet area built into the architecture.

• Big tourneys can/will be held in The Joint, the Hard Rock\’s mini-arena rock concert venue (which is undergoing a redesign of its own).

• Ja Rule (I think it was Ja Rule … some hip-hoppy rock star) was at the Hard Rock just a few days ago and he was bummin\’ that the tables weren\’t open, because he was itchin\’ to play.

• It\’s the only poker room I\’ve ever seen with a bar directly connected to it — this comfy lounge (leather seats, small tables, video poker at the bar) is close enough to the game yet ever-so-slightly separated … such that you can only imagine it could become a popular hangout for railbird hotties who are bored to tears by their boyfriend/husband/john\’s impressive play.

• Speaking of … while there, two absolutely lovely 20somethings — one blonde, one brunette, both busty — walked by comfortably and casually in nothing but perfectly fitting bikinis and pool shoes. They stopped to take a peak over the ropes, and it was so matter of fact as they gandered and giggled that workers in the back of the room hardly noticed; but I took note for sure, as the scene provided a refreshing reminder of the near-nudity-in-the-middle-of-a-workday that makes Las Vegas such a special environ.

I\’m headed back to the Hard Rock Poker Lounge right after posting this — they\’re apparently having a little soft-opening/real-money dress rehearsal … a bunch of sit-n-gos, I think, with free booze and a fancy buffet.

Public opening is supposed to be tomorrow morn. ZZ Top and Fall Out Boy will be watching you:

Here\’s their debut tourney sked, via The Poker Atlas.