Dusk Till Dawn has just opened its doors, and I was lucky enough to get inside information straight from the horse's mouth - Simon Trumper.
Lucy Rokach: Simon, what's your role in all of this?
Simon Trumper: As live poker director and host, I was initially brought in to assist in design and to try to overcome all of the bad elements of playing poker that I have experienced worldwide, such as cramped conditions, poor-quality tables, cards, and chips, and so on … to poor dealing, dismal rulings, insufficient information via plasma screens, crapshoot structures, and more. Part of my job is also to help new players enjoy the poker experience, whether it is their first time, or they started online and now want to play live, or are stepping up from smaller stakes. I will be available daily for advice, from live-table etiquette to teaching how to spot tells and even listening to bad beats. I'm also here to listen to good and bad criticism, as our goal is to provide the best poker experience possible.
LR: Sounds like you've had your work cut out for you, so what's the club like?
ST: The club is 15,000 square feet with 7,500 used for poker. It has 220 car-parking spaces. Once through reception, you see 45 of our tables set in three tiers. The lowest level has the TV table and five normal tables, the first tier has 15 tables, and the second tier has 24 tables in three rows of eight. There is a 40-cover restaurant and 220-person capacity bar and lounge area with Wi-Fi for online play. We also have a VIP lounge; capacity of 150 with a small stage and dance floor, and a high-roller room that looks out onto the main room, but at the flick of a switch, the glass can be blacked out for privacy. We also have 24 plasma screens. No expense has been spared. While building the club, we had a TV company come in and advise us. As a result, we have access panels for outside broadcast trucks, as well as a permanently installed lighting rig and all of the necessary cabling for quality television broadcasts so that there will be unimpeded crane shots of the whole club without compromising spectator seating. We will use our TV table for in-house presentation and commentary during major finals, as well as regular webcasts. Furthermore, we have a 24-hour alcohol license.
LR: Wow, it sounds fab. So, will you be open around-the-clock?
ST: Initially, we will open Thursday to Sunday from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m., but if there is sufficient demand, we will extend both the opening hours and days, so that by September, we will have a seven-day-a-week operation. My personal goal is to reach this point much more quickly.
LR: What's your tournament schedule?
ST: To begin with, we will be holding no-limit hold'em freezeouts between £50 and £200 buy-ins, all starting at 7:30 p.m. These will appeal to players who would normally play £10 to £30 rebuy events that traditionally start later, then have a fast clock after the rebuy period and a poor structure. We want to encourage good poker, so we will have the best structure available in the UK. There will also be daily satellites that will provide two seats into the following day's event, as well as cash STT and shorthanded cash games alongside traditional ring games such as dealer's choice from as little as £0.25-£0.50 blinds, all dealer dealt. We would also like to try, at least twice a month, an Omaha or stud tournament, with the intention of building a player base in either or both. My own opinion is that pot-limit Omaha will prove more popular and we should be able to run regular tournaments, especially when we increase the number of days we are open.
LR: I'm glad to hear that. A diet of no-limit hold'em is quite monotonous. Are you going to rake the cash games, and will dealer tipping be allowed?
ST: Our smallest game will have a service charge of £3; the rest will be raked at 5 percent, with a varying cap dependent on size. At all times, we will listen to our customers and make sure that our charges are very competitive. We believe rake rather than service charge will prevent games from breaking up, as players traditionally leave when the charge is due; also, of course, it is the winners who will pay. Who, for example, wants to pay £12 an hour when they are losing? Dealers will be able to receive tips, but inasmuch as this has been acceptable only since Sept. 1, 2007, it will probably take a while for players to get used to it. Ironically, it is a fact that UK players tend to tip the best when in Europe or the U.S., and we hope the experience and level of service they receive at Dusk Till Dawn will encourage reward. All our dealers (even the experienced) go through a uniformity-training course to ensure that they all deal and rule the same. This level of professionalism extends from management to reception and valets.
LR: Sounds good to me, so have online sites been queuing up to host tournaments on your premises?
ST: We have been approached by several companies wishing to use our facilities, from well-known online sites to recognised tours, as well as pub/forum leagues and corporate clients. We intend eventually to be able to accommodate all of these, as well as at least three of our own major festivals, but we first need to build up our dealer team. That's not easy, as all our dealers have to be licensed, which can take up to six weeks, as well as a minimum of four weeks of training for beginners. However, the resources are in place for controlled expansion, and once we reach the necessary levels, we will be able to offer more services. Dusk Till Dawn will be the premier club in Europe, but it will take time to get everything right, and we will listen and evolve. The club is built, we have the license, and now we want to provide the best poker experience, and we hope the players will support us and embrace what we are aiming to provide.
LR: Thanks, Simon. We wish you the best of luck. It's high time organisers considered the creature comforts of us poker players.
Lucy has been playing poker for 20 years and has won more than $1 million in tournament prize money all over the world. She prefers playing pot-limit Omaha and pot-limit seven-card stud eight-or-better.
