Florida: Poker Room Let Some Players Enter Poker Tournament For Free, Didn't Randomly Seat PlayersHialeah Park Allegedly Cheated Customers |
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The Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering has found that there were indeed serious irregularities at an August poker tournament at Hialeah Park.
After players complained that the prize pool was severely short, regulators stepped in to investigate and found 11 violations, according to a report from the Miami Herald.
The scandal reportedly was the first major card-room irregularity since poker became legal in the Sunshine State in 1996. Florida has nearly 30 poker rooms.
The state report, dated Dec. 29, indicated that tournament staff allowed players entry into the event without having them pay for a buy-in. The tournament drew roughly 1,000 players, but no official number was released. The $250 buy-in had a $200,000 guarantee. According to one player in the tournament, tournament staff originally said there were 1,061 entries, but then later said it was 961.
Additionally, Hialeah poker staff put some players at specific seats rather than randomly determining their table draw, Florida said. Nelson Costa, the poker room manager who has since left, had the tournament money in his office, rather than in the cage, the state said. Florida also found that surveillance video did not properly cover parts of the poker room and that video was not preserved.
The poker room allegedly also wasn’t keeping records of its tournaments for the required three years. The six-day August tournament never had its results released.
Hialeah Park, which has the most lucrative poker room in Miami-Dade County, can appeal until Jan. 18. The property could end up being fined or having its license suspended.
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