The build-up was tremendous. Long ago in 1947, Lincoln Downs, a dog-racing track, opened in Lincoln, Rhode Island, then 30 years later was renamed Lincoln Greyhound Park. Eventually it became a slots-only casino, and poker players driving through Rhode Island to play our favourite game in Connecticut's Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun desired to know when this less complicated spot might start spreading poker.
In 2007, Lincoln Park became the dual River Casino, with a category I gaming license that allowed table games and poker. We were disappointed once again, however, as Twin River would spread blackjack and offer roulette, craps, and other table games, but opted to not have poker.
But then, on the end of 2015, they finally opened a 16-table poker site. The joy and buzz among New England poker players was intense.
Introducing the dual River Casino
The Twin River Casino is a less difficult place for poker players located in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and most of Rhode Island than are the 2 excellent, well established rooms in Connecticut. Twin River is solely 10 minutes from Providence, 10 minutes from the closest major airport, under an hour from all parts of Boston, and just a little greater than a half-hour drive from Worcester and Framingham.
But there’s a value to pay for this convenience, to make sure. I'd characterize the casino normally as a grade C establishment — surely not failing, but not competitive with the full-service casinos in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Connecticut, California, and elsewhere with which many people became familiar.
Starting with entertainment, you do not are inclined to get the categories of major acts that you simply get at major casinos just like the two in Connecticut. Foxwoods, for example, regularly hosts popular acts like Jerry Seinfeld, Howie Mandel, Bob Dylan, and girl Gaga, but you can see no such lineup on the Twin River Event Center. There's also no hotel at Twin River, although one is outwardly within the works.
Whereas the Connecticut casinos offer dozens of fine dining options, including Italian, Chinese, BBQ, seafood, steak, and perfect buffets, Twin River has one only one fine dining establishment (a fantastic steakhouse), a few pubs, two fairly lame food courts, and a buffet that may be regarded by many I spoke to as "pretty awful." The food court nearest the poker site at the second floor, has Sbarro (pizza, calzone, and other "Italianesque" fast food), Johnny Rockets (a '50s-retro hamburger joint), and Dunkin' Donuts. That's it. The opposite food court has a reasonably good Asian takeout place, but little else worth visiting.
Perhaps the best gastronomic deficiency is the shortage of a breakfast place. Though there may be Dunkin' Donuts with its limited breakfast options, it doesn't open until 9 a.m. So if you have been playing all night and wish an entire breakfast, and even some tiny breakfast nosh before then, you have to go outside Twin River (where, in fact, there are a few very nice breakfast places a couple of 10-minute drive away). But in my book, that is not what I expect in a 24/7 casino operation.
And with out a hotel there aren't any major conventions, and that implies there are not any major conventioneers gambling it up all night within the poker room.
Poker on the Twin River Casino
But let's not bury the lede here — the large news at Twin River is that now there may be a minimum of a poker room.
They constantly spread $1/$2 no-limit hold'em with a $300 maximum buy-in. In addition they have $2/$5 NL with a $500 maximum, and $5/$10 NL with a $1,000 max. These games all run nearly the entire time, although you may also not find the $5/$10 game getting into the wee hours or early on a weekday.
I've played in each of them, about 50 percent of the time at $1/$2, 40 percent of the time at $2/$5, or even one session at $5/$10. For now, the $1/$2 games are pretty soft, as players new to a casino are inclined to populate these games. There appear to be a comparatively lower percentage of winning regular casino poker players on this room, no less than within the $1/$2 and $2/$5 games. There's a crowd of casino regulars within the $2/$5 game, but since there are sometimes a minimum of three tables of it throughout the busy periods, there's usually a soft version of this game to be found. Will probably be quite beatable for the intense player.
The room also regularly spreads a $3/$6 limit hold'em game, or even very often a $5/$10 or $10/$20 stud game made from players who've migrated over from the Connecticut rooms. The limit hold'em could be very soft, while the stud is a rock-fest as a rule. Note that the room never spreads any split-pot game. There's also no Omaha, and no stud hi-low, HOE, or OE.
Though the games have pretty good, soft action some of the time, the room has a couple of persistent and annoying deficiencies. First, with just 16 tables, and with its convenient location and popularity, it is usually nearly impossible to get on a table in no time. Don't expect to get a seat with no 2-3 hour wait when you come after 10 a.m. on a Saturday or Sunday, or if you happen to arrive Friday night. You could even discover a long wait on a weekday night, or in the course of the wee hours after they have did not schedule a sufficient selection of dealers.
Though the management team is welcoming and creating a big effort to run the room, the dealers at Twin River are sometimes inexperienced and often completely inept. I'VE noticed numerous dealer mistakes, with reference to creating change, setting the blinds, even dealing the right kind player first. As recently as a few weeks ago I observed a few dealers defer to loud players on find out how to divide a pot into side pots, which can not happen. If the dealer can't determine what is going on on, she or he should call over the floor, not depend on probably the most confident-sounding player (who could be wrong). But from what I've witnessed this room routinely allows players to bully the dealer into compliance — not an even thing.
This situation does appear to be improving, because the worst dealers was let go. But they still have far to head before their dealers are consistently doing a fair job.
Additionally, the dealers and floor are sometimes lower than the most important task of controlling a crowd that regularly overwhelms the room. I've noticed players often jumping the line, sitting in open seats when dozens of players sooner than them at the electronic sign-in list are waiting to play. The ground doesn't do an even job of policing this, and protests of waiting players usually go unheeded.
The room is adequate for now, though. There are new decks, perfectly fine chips, nicely felted tables, moderately comfortable chairs, good lighting, a convenient bathroom, and adequate table-side beverage service (with awfully long waits thrown in at times identical to some other room I've ever been to).
The rake (i.e., the quantity the home takes out of the pot every hand) is 10 percent as much as a maximum of $5 in preference to the $4 maximum charged at Foxwoods and Mohegan. It'll even be noted that unlike on the Connecticut casinos, there is not any bad beat jackpot and therefore no additional $1 bad beat jackpot drop at Twin River.
Conclusion
The tag line for the dual River Casino appearing on signage and imprinted on all in their poker chips reads "SUCH A LOT. So Close!" I BELIEVE that's only half-right. If it were currently accurate, it could read "NO LESS THAN It's Close!"
The room is actually conveniently located for the myriad of players who come from Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and northerly New England. Unfortunately, the room is one notch or two below the choices which might be further away. You will have to judge for yourself how much that shorter drive is worth to you.
The Twin River Resort is found at 100 Twin River Road, Lincoln, RI, 02865. Phone: (401) 723-3200; email: contactus@TwinRiver.com.
Photo: Twin River Casino.
Ashley Adams have been playing poker for fifty years and writing about it since 2000. He's the writer of hundreds of articles and two books, Winning 7-Card Stud (Kensington 2003) and Winning No-Limit Hold’em (Lighthouse 2012). He's also the host of poker radio show House of Cards. See www.houseofcardsradio.com for broadcast times, stations, and podcasts.
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