The Borgata's Poker Open kicked off Wednesday.
CasiNotes: Borgata sets low buy-in fee for poker tourney's main event
IT'S NOT unusual these days for casinos to offer restaurant and hotel room discounts. But Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa has upped the ante, if you will, with a major price break for its latest big-time poker tournament.
Beginning Sept. 19, the Big B will cap its two-week-long Borgata Poker Open, which kicked off Wednesday, with a five-day World Poker Tour Main Event whose entrance fee is just $3,500 and whose prize pool is guaranteed to be at least $2 million. (Organizers believe that number will ultimately be north of $3 million; the amount is based on the size of the field.)
That $3,500 tariff may seem steep to many, but according to Borgata poker marketing chief Ray Stefanelli, it's a bargain of major proportions.
"Typically, [the entrance fee] is $10,000 for a televised event and as much as $25,000 at [Las Vegas'] Bellagio," he said. "In addition to winning the money, we'll put the winner in that event."
Despite the relatively low buy-in, Stefanelli bristled at using the word "cheap" to describe it.
"I wouldn't call it a 'cheap' buy-in but a more accessible buy-in," he countered. "It gives the average Joe the opportunity to live the dream - the possibility of being on television and the ability to become famous by winning a big tournament."
Of course, it won't be easy for the casual player to make the final table and thus be seen on an upcoming WPT broadcast on Fox Sports Net. While none had registered as of Wednesday, Stefanelli expects a full contingent of pro players in the house for the five-day Texas Hold'em marathon.
Past WPT tourneys at Borgata have hosted such superstars as Jamie Gold (who, by dint of his $12 million World Series of Poker win in 2006 holds the all-time first-prize record), Phil Ivey, Gavin Smith, Daniel Negreanu and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson.
Stefanelli wouldn't rule out the possibility of some Hollywood stars making the Main Event scene. Past participants have included James Woods ("Casino") and Cheryl Hines of HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm."
"Just walking around, you get the opportunity to meet celebs," Stefanelli said.
This year's fall competition at Borgata has a few new wrinkles besides the record-low entry fee for the Main Event. Next Thursday will see both a Double Elimination Heads-Up no-limit Hold'em contest ($1,090 to play) and a seniors event for those 50 and older ($400).
In all there are 31 tournaments as well as a number of daily "satellite" events in which, for as little as $120, you can win a seat at a tournament.
But for at least one poker luminary, Lacey Jones, a member of Absolute Poker's online stable of stars and a well-known poker broadcast analyst, the Main Event is where the action is. "With the buy-in for this event . . . it's televised . . . this is the tournament to play in," she said.
Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa, 1 Borgata Way, through Sept. 23, 609-317-1000, www.theborgata.com.
Wheelin' and dealin'
Speaking of poker, NASCAR titan Martin Truex Jr. will be at Tropicana Casino and Resort Sept. 23 to host the "Hook'em & Hold'em" poker tournament sponsored by his Martin Truex Jr. Foundation.
Joining Truex at the tourney will be fellow drivers Greg Biffle and Ryan Newman. However, another NASCAR big wheel, Kyle Busch, will not be in attendance, as previously announced.
The poker game, which carries a $200 buy-in, will cap two days of fund-raising festivities that begin Sept. 22 with a golf tournament ($200 donation) at the Seaview Resort and Spa in Galloway Township, N.J. That will also include a post-round auction and dinner.
Both events will benefit Southern Ocean County Hospital Pediatric Unit in Manahawkin, N.J. To register for either, go to www.martintruexjrfoundation.
org or call 704-664-1113.
Chuck Darrow has covered Atlantic City and casinos for more than 20 years. Read his blog http://go.philly.com/casinotes.
E-mail him at darrowc@phillynews.com.
And listen to his Atlantic City report Saturdays at 1:25 a.m. with Steve Trevelise on WIP (610-AM).
