poker in Northern Ireland

belfastlad · 09-09-2008 12:40pm #1

not sure if a thread about this has ever been done before so ill start one. its just in general i was always told by some people that poker was 'banned' in NI. if this is so, how come there is still poker clubs in NI. i can think of 4 clubs alone that are up there and that are very busy with players etc. i remember the NI championships that used to be run and don't anymore so going by that it led me to believe that it was banned but then how do these clubs operate.

smcb · 09-09-2008 12:42pm

dunno what the story is really, plenty of clubs about and not hiding it. Prob just free presbs not wanting anybody to have any form of craic whatsoever. there's an £80 nlhe fo deepstack game in the manor snooker hall this sunday i might pop into

The Little Guy · 09-09-2008 5:49pm

I thinks it's because the clubs that remain open do not offer Roulette, Blackjack etc. Therefor under the radar as far as gambling is concerned

belfastlad · 09-09-2008 5:52pm

The Little Guy wrote: »

I thinks it's because the clubs that remain open do not offer Roulette, Blackjack etc. Therefor under the radar as far as gambling is concerned

1 of them is inside a bingo hall full of slot machines and 1 is in a casino so unless they are turning a blind eye then is must be legal now.

pokerkingsni · 09-09-2008 5:54pm

The Little Guy wrote: »

I thinks it's because the clubs that remain open do not offer Roulette, Blackjack etc. Therefor under the radar as far as gambling is concerned

Not the case. There are clubs running both roulette and blackjack. You'll find any big club owners in the north have met with the local police and have something worked out.

I know of more than one occassion where the police in the north have stopped tournaments running because the prizepool is above a certain amount.

There is a private members club running in Armagh who have met with the local council and have had no problems.

Its just a matter of doing a bit of research and setting the place up right. Aren't the casinos/poker clubs in the south all private members clubs as well?

mocata · 09-09-2008 5:58pm

Whereabouts in Armagh is the club? Might take a trip down to that for a nosey :d

belfastlad · 09-09-2008 6:01pm

mocata wrote: »

Whereabouts in Armagh is the club? Might take a trip down to that for a nosey :d

http://www.red-14.com/

The Little Guy · 10-09-2008 12:36am

pokerkingsni wrote: »

Not the case. There are clubs running both roulette and blackjack. You'll find any big club owners in the north have met with the local police and have something worked out.

I know of more than one occassion where the police in the north have stopped tournaments running because the prizepool is above a certain amount.

There is a private members club running in Armagh who have met with the local council and have had no problems.

Its just a matter of doing a bit of research and setting the place up right. Aren't the casinos/poker clubs in the south all private members clubs as well?

Let me assure you...
There are no casino's or private members clubs in Northern Ireland, and absolutely no plans to licence any.

Bingo halls and machines are a totally different matter as they have to be licenced in any case. its the machines and bingo that are licenced, not the poker end.

I know the guy who runs one of the clubs without the tables and he has been advised not to even update his website.

The tables where the downfall of the Cavendish etc

pokerkingsni · 10-09-2008 12:40am

The club in Armagh is a private members club.

The Little Guy · 10-09-2008 12:44am

pokerkingsni wrote: »

The club in Armagh is a private members club.

is there roulette wheels, blackjack tables in it ?

last time i was in it, wasn't asked for ID, membership card... hmmm wonder how I joined.

BTW, if you know the guy who runs it...
warn him they have been around a coupleof the poker clubs demanding to see entertainment licences.... for the tv etc

pokerkingsni · 10-09-2008 12:47am

Doesnt really matter what you were or weren't asked for. It's a private members club.

bohsman · 10-09-2008 12:51am

Clubs with a bingo license are allowed run poker and gaming tables as part of the license.

The Little Guy · 10-09-2008 12:51am

pokerkingsni wrote: »

Doesnt really matter what you were or weren't asked for. It's a private members club.

LOL..... enough said i think

Conbro · 10-09-2008 1:04am

Doesnt really matter what you were or weren't asked for. It's a private members club

Im quite sure it does matter. Why are you getting so defensive about it?

bohsman · 10-09-2008 1:07am

The club in England that cant be talked about was down as a private members club but on the 3/4 occasions I was in there I was never asked for ID or anything.

mocata · 10-09-2008 9:47am

Thanks for link, looks to be worth a visit

I looked into the licencing issue a few years ago, and tbh it is based entirely on the whim of the local authorities as to whether a club can operate or not. As mentioned, there is no doubt that running gaming tables raises the heckles considerably. It is certainly not the only criteria tho. I ran games in a local pool hall a few years back (£20 rebuy, no tables games or even cash game),and the owner was told that the police would object to their licence renewal if they didnt stop. We duly complied, but a few weeks later, we were sitting for a pint in the same establishment and 5 or 6 cops came running in, standing at doors etc. Turns out that the band advertised for that night was called "Ace of Hearts" and some local holier-than-thou had rang the cops to protest shrilly. They looked round under tables etc then sheepishly slunk out, muttering warnings. Was like the romans in the life of brian :d

smcb · 10-09-2008 9:55am

there's a few cash games in the bingo hall in Dungannon, no tournaments though. There's a few decent tournies in Cookstown, in the Fortune Rooms, think it's the same crowd that run the show in Bangor

pokerkingsni · 10-09-2008 10:47am

Conbro wrote: »

Im quite sure it does matter. Why are you getting so defensive about it?

I wasn't getting defensive. I spoke to the owner of the club a while ago about the legalities of the club and he said that it was a private memebrs club set up for pool players. As long as poker isn't the main activity of the club then its ok with the local council to play poker as a side activity. So if the guy wasn't asked for ID this doesn't maen it isn't a private members club, it just means he wasn't asked for ID.

one ill cat · 10-09-2008 11:41am

From what I know, the main problem with setting up proper 'poker establishments' is a little law called "The Proceeds of Crime Act".

Unfortunately there is still too much illegal money floating about for it to be that easy to set up a gaming club. A casino is one of the easiest places to use as a front for a money-laundering operation. This is mostly the case because of the volumes of cash that come in through the door. It would be very easy for a casino owner/manager to filter money from illegal sources through the books of a casino and pass it off as legitamate income, thereby making the money clean.

There are some clubs in existence, although I imagine it involved extensive research on the PSNI's part before any licence was granted.

poker in Northern Ireland

Comments