Tampa Poker

Coming to Tampa and looking for a poker game while you're here?  You're in luck ... there are plenty of public card rooms for you to choose from.  Thanks to new laws (in 2010) have made Florida a poker destination and Tampa is no slouch. You can find 1/1, 1/2, 1/3 and 2/5 played regularly at the various venues as well as bigger games too.  For Omaha and Stud, the Hard Rock is still the place to go for the most part. NLHE is easy to find anywhere.

Below are micro-reviews of the local Tampa venues.

Tampa Bay Downs - Silk's Poker Room

"Silks Poker Room" is at the Tampa Bay Downs horse racing track with year-round poker. Excellent decor, some of the best dealers in town and they also offer great/regular high hand jackpots and other bonuses. Tournament structures are average for the area (read: somewhat acceptable) and they have regular mega/deep stack tournaments. Highly recommended. Lots of regulars (goes without saying) and usually action-filled. If you're at a rock garden, change tables. Unfortuantely not always busy enough to have 4-5 table choices, but there are usually at least (3) 1/2NL tables happening and (2) 2/5NL tables.

Tampa Dog Track - Lucky's Card Room

Tampa Dog track - no more dog racing; year round poker instead with simulcast racing. Awful decor, poor part of town. There's always a Tampa Police Department cop there, so that makes it easier to feel safe, but attendance is low. Fishy play can make for a big night if you can win all your coinflips with the guys who are buying in for the minimum ($20). Of all the spots to play, they can have the best tournament formats, but otherwise unappealing. Still, you'll find some Angry Jacks there on occasion :)

Hard Rock Hotel and Casino

Year round poker.  Newly formed table games. Poker is booming at the Tampa Hard Rock. Fishy play, some tourists, always lots of tables open, high stakes games are almost always going on, sometimes as high as $10/$20NL and above. Not unheard of to see a mandatory straddle at high stakes (effectively $10/$20/$40 NL). There are tourists here, more than you would think for Tampa, and they love to reach into their pockets.

Dealers are mostly good ... I've only experienced a handful of lethargic/lazy dealers. The brush stand leaves a little to be desired as they manage big lists, but overall not terrible.

Derby Lane Dog Track

Year round poker, with live dog racing. Probably the nicest poker room in Tampa asthetically. (Room is technically not in Tampa proper, but just over the Gandy bridge.) Dealers are OK, play seems to be erratic. Good tournament structures (for Tampa). Easy to cash out big or lose big here, depending on how you're running. Always seem to be able to get action, especially if you give some. Probably our groups' least visited place, but only because of geography. If it were closer, we may exclusively play here.