The Best Little Poker Tournament

One of my mother's favorite sayings was, 'Money doesn't grow on trees.' But a growing number of casinos and card rooms around the country are doing the next best thing by adding cash to the prize pool in their tournaments.

Management does this in various ways depending on the game and the tournament structure. When I lived in Springfield, MO., I regularly played at Downstream Casino near Quapaw, OK..

Two charter bus companies out of Branson and Springfield operate regular bus services between those cities and Oklahoma casinos like Downstream, Indigo Sky, Cherokee and Harrah's in Kansas City.

For a small charge, usually $15, you get a round-trip ticket and vouchers good for $15 in free play on the slots or other table games. You also receive a free buffet and a ticket that will let you play in a free slot machine tournament that pays up to $500 in free play.

The regular casino goers in Springfield, Branson and Ozark love the services. Many of them are retirees who stretch their monthly Social Security check by dining regularly on that 'free' buffet. If they manage their money properly, they can eat well and have a chance to win big money by using those free casino dollars to win a jackpot or two.

Phoenix where I now live does not have that type of bus service service and perks for customers. There are shuttle services tat operate out of Scottsdale, Tempe and other locations for people without their own transportation or who simply don't want to drive.

Wild Horse Pass Casino off I-10 just outside Chandler has one of the best small poker tournaments I have ever seen. In fact, it may be the best little poker tournament in the United States.

The tournament takes place on Mondays at 3 p.m. It costs $30 to enter, there are no re-buys or add-ons and you receive $1,000 in chips. The exciting thing and what makes this tournament much better than the average poker tournament is that management adds $150 to the prize pool for each table.

Last Monday, for example, 134 players entered the tournament. The House added money for 14 tables. First place paid just under $1,800 and second place paid around $750. The usual 10 percent of the players were paid off.

I know players who spend more time at the poker tables than they should. Poker tournaments like the one at Wild Horse Pass enable players to cut down on the amount of time they are in a casino. Two players at the Monday night tournament confessed this was the only event they play in on a regular basis.

'How can you beat it?, one said. 'I mean, the management is just giving away money to show their appreciation to the players.

While I have had an occasional disagreement with management at both Wild Horse Pass and Talking Stick, their chief rival in nearby Scottsdale, I can give an enthused thumbs-up to this tournament. It isn't often that you have the opportunity to parlay $30 into $1,800.

Wild Horse Pass keeps its tournament buy-ins in the low range. Talking Stick generally charges $100 or more per tournament. The lower entry fee is paying off. Wild Horse Pass is drawing more and more players, while Talking Stick is doing its best to hold its own.

I recommend all of my friends to pressure the management of their favorite casino to hold add-on tournaments. Whether the game is poker, slots, dice or some other game, those add-ons will definitely draw the players. From what I have seen at Wild Horse Pass, when the tournament ends, the players hang around for more action. And isn't that what casinos are all about?

Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.

(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter. If you have a unique gambling story to share with him, you may qualify for a cash award. Send your story with all the details to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).