April 25, 2005

Journal Gazette | 04/17/2005 | Businesses betting on poker’s popularity

Journal Gazette | 04/17/2005 | Businesses betting on poker’s popularity:

Forty-three people, most of them in jeans and T-shirts, sit at five green-felt tables in a corner of Strazlo’s Deli and Pub on Coventry Lane.
In front of them are playing cards, black, green and purple chips and beverages of all persuasions. Beer in brown longneck bottles and mixed drinks, soda and water in clear plastic cups.
At least one tobacco smoker is at every nine-seat table, and curls of milky-white vapor lift lazily to a string of banners near the ceiling advertising NASCAR and Miller Lite.
It’s a Monday night, and this is the first stage of a 20-week Texas Hold ’Em poker tournament sponsored by Strazlo’s and four other Fort Wayne bars. Top prize provided by the taverns: $5,000.
The event is perfectly legal, say state excise police. There’s no entry fee, no cash wagering, no drink minimums.