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Post Lockdown Poker Question

nytider
nytider
in Poker News

I am curious if anybody has played live yet, and what your thoughts are if you have. I am also curious as to your opinions on when you might play live, under what circumstances, etc. Here is where I stand as of today:

First, I know that the Hard Rock in Tampa is open again. I am not sure about others, although I think I saw that there were a few more due to open over this past weekend. Tampa looks like 6-max with plexiglass. I am not sure if any of the Las Vegas rooms are open yet, but I saw that the Nevada Gaming Commission guidelines called for 4-max poker, at least a week or two ago. I live in New York, and Mohegan Sun is the casino nearest me that is open again. But my understanding is that the poker room is still closed.

So there really aren't any realistic options for me at this point. If I want to play live poker, I can't do it at a casino poker room. I have heard of some underground games opening back up. But there are a number of issues with this option, not just health.

I also play in a bar league, but I am not optimistic that poker is going to comply with the reopening rules in my area, or that it will be a priority for either the venues that host games or the players that regularly attend.

My own is the most widely attended home game among my circle. We could usually get three tables going, and probably could get two tomorrow. But in addition to not wanting to thest the waters, as far as law enforcement is concerned, I still have those stupid health concerns. I am elevated risk. My wife's mother is elderly and at risk. We have older guys in the group, and some of the other younger folks have their own elderly parents. I feel some sense of responsibility, regardless of how much I want to play cards.

By its very nature, poker is ideal for spreading the virus. Strangers sitting next to each other for hours, probably eating and drinking, passing cards and chips among themselves for hours at a time, touching their faces, etc.

So I think the bottom line for me is to stay online until the situation is resolved enough to feel reasonably safe playing something reasonably close to real poker. That probably means I fire up a home game at some point. But I don't think the time is right yet.

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