Gambling is illegal in Texas but poker is allowed under state law when it occurs in a private place and no one receives an economic benefit beyond personal winnings, plus the chances of winning or losing are the same except if luck or skill offer an advantage. The house may not keep a percentage of the pot and dealers may not accept tips. The Texas attorney general’s office has not issued any formal opinion on poker rooms. A spokesperson pointed to the state’s gambling law for clarification but a lot depends on how a particular city interprets the law.
For example, on September 7, CJ’s Card Club was raided by Dallas police with a search warrant, alleging the club was a gambling place. The club has closed while the case remains under investigation. Lucky’s Card Room in Fort Worth posted on its website that the club temporarily is closed while it seeks a new location. The website for TopSet Poker Club in Plano said its grand opening has been delayed, most likely due to questions of legality. Plano police also shut down the popular Poker Rooms of Texas which opened late last year in a shopping strip. Its website states it “is working with local authorities to resolve operational issues.”
Also in Plano, Big Texas Poker Club, which opened in late August, closed in September. Owners Fred and Heather Zimmerman said they did their studied the law to make sure their club would be legal and added they were transparent about their club when they sought a city permit to open. After their membership began to grow, the Zimmermans said they receive “threatening letters” from police stating that their business model violated the state’s gambling law. “This is a legitimate business, and it’s better than illegal poker rooms,” Fred Zimmerman said.
Plano City Attorney Paige Mims said certificates of occupancy are about a building’s fitness, not what goes on inside. Plano police spokesman David Tilley said only, “Gambling is illegal in the state of Texas,”
The Zimmermans started a GoFundMe page to help raise money for attorney’s fees while they consult with lawyers about changes that would allow the business to reopen. Meanwhile they renamed the club Big Texas Game Club and added a pool table, an air hockey table and other games. But, Fred Zimmerman said, police have not been telling them what they need to know about what is or is not acceptable.
Ryan Crow, one of the owners of Austin’s Texas Card House, which opened in early 2015 and now has two locations, also said he’s not getting information he needs from police in Dallas, where he wants to open another club.
Texas Card House was the first to use a membership model and charge by the hour to play poker. Most of the poker rooms around the state have used a similar model but it’s actually illegal, Crow said. He said Texas Card House changed its business model a few months ago after he consulted attorneys. He said the club no longer charges an hourly fee for playing, but instead members are charged when they enter they club whether they play poker or not. “It may not sound like a big deal, but in the eyes of the law, it’s pretty material,” Crow said. He noted he’s still pursuing a Dallas location, “but we also don’t want to go where we’re not wanted.”
In McKinney, Jody Wheeler, owner of the one-month-old FTN Poker, said he hired lawyers to make sure his private social club operated within the law and he also has been transparent about it with city officials. “I’m trying to bring poker from the shadows to the light,” he said. FTN Poker charges a monthly membership fee plus an hourly fee that members pay upon entering the club, whether they play poker or not. More than 500 people have joined so far. The club offers nine custom-made tables, plus backgammon, chess and other board games.
Wheeler said McKinney police have not commented on FTN Poker. Police spokeswoman Carla Peritz said authorities had discussed the business with the Collin County district attorney’s office, but no decision has been made. “We are evaluating the legality of that establishment,” Peritz said. Wheeler commented, “I believe we’re doing it the right way. The city has all the power.”
