Macau Poker 2+2

PokerStars LIVE Macau is currently looking for a new poker room to call home. Check back here for all the latest updates. In the majority of Macau’s casinos, poker is seen by casino management as taking up space that could be used to house table games. And with poker rake being a mere 5% of a pot, this means that a poker room will earn significantly less money than house games would, hence the casinos generally anti-poker stance.

Want to play poker online? Visit our Online Poker page for recommendations and guides.

Poker is not the longstanding pastime in Macau that it is in Las Vegas. In fact, the first poker room in Macau wasn’t opened until the summer of 2007. Since then, several new poker rooms have opened up, and there are now five casinos offering live-dealer cash games, along with the occasional tournament or two.

If you’re a serious poker player, and you’ve heard a bit about the games in Macau, you probably believe that they’re extremely juicy. See, when the game was new, many rich Chinese patrons gave the game a try, and were willing to play at very high limits. When professional players got wind of this, they showed up and cleaned house against the wild, terrible players who frequented this game and were not afraid of chasing their losses. Before too long, locals made sure that foreigners and professionals weren’t allowed in these games anymore, or at the very least, that their play was severely limited.

Sadly, those days are gone…sort of. While there are still games at limits that will make your head spin – some of which dwarf even the biggest cash games Las Vegas has to offer – the play has improved significantly. Oh, it’s still wild and crazy, but the players are at least competent, leading to some very tough play at the higher limits. A recent visit to the city by some of the world’s greatest professional players (including Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey) became big news on the Internet; the pros made plenty of money, but not without some huge swings. These games featured pots that were often over $10 million in Hong Kong Dollars; they certainly aren’t for the faint of heart!

Of course, lower limit games are available too, so you don’t have to risk your entire life savings to play a little Texas Hold’em while you’re in Macau. While it hasn’t had a boom like in the United States and Europe, poker definitely has a foothold in Macau, and it’s likely to become even more popular over the next few years. Here are our picks for the best (and currently, the only) places to play poker in Macau!

A Quick Note About Poker in Macau

For anyone who’s been to Las Vegas or Atlantic City, it’s important to realise that the experience of poker in Macau is going to be completely different. Poker in Macau is viewed by the casinos as something of a novelty, and I guess most would rather not have any poker at all. On my last visit in December 2013 there were only 3 poker rooms still operating in Macau. Most Asians don’t know how to play poker and for the most part don’t care to learn. They prefer to play baccarat, sic bo and the other table games that are on offer in the casinos.

In the majority of Macau’s casinos, poker is seen by casino management as taking up space that could be used to house table games. And with poker rake being a mere 5% of a pot, this means that a poker room will earn significantly less money than house games would, hence the casinos generally anti-poker stance.

For any non-smokers, it’s important to note that smoking is a massive part of Chinese culture and as such smoking is allowed pretty much everywhere in the casinos (on the gaming floor at least). At the poker tables it’s no different. The player seated beside the dealer cannot smoke, but everywhere else at the table is ok, so be prepared to be playing in a very smoky environment.

Waiting Lists

The majority of the rooms in Macau have a max of 6-7 tables running at a time. At any given time the waiting list can be up 60 or 70 players, sometimes over 100. In terms of waiting time this can be up to 6 hours. On my last visit on a Saturday night in the Venetian there was a 128 player long waiting list for a HK$25/$50 table (roughly $3.50/$7). This was in spite of the fact that only 3 out of the rooms 8 or so tables were in use. If you want to play I’d recommend going early, putting your name on a list and going out to see some of Macau’s sites or grabbing some food, then come back a few hours later. Most rooms will call or text you when you put your name and number on the list.

Anyway without further ado here is my reviews of the rooms currently open for poker in Macau.

Wynn Macau Poker Room

The Wynn is a great poker venue in Las Vegas, so the fact that the game is spread in the Wynn Macau seems only natural. The Wynn has used this expertise to create an excellent poker experience for visiting players; both no-limit Texas Hold’em and pot limit Omaha are played here, which is more variety that you’ll typically see in Macau, where hold’em is normally the only game played. Limits begin at just HKD 25/50, though you can play for much more than that if you’re looking for a bigger game. The game with the most played games is HK $50/$100 (about $7.50/$15). This usually gets 2-4 games alongside 1 HK $25/50 game and a couple of bigger games ranging from HK $100/$200 up to HK $1000-$2000. The rake in the Wynn is 5% up to a max of HK$200.

This is by far the nicest poker room in Macau. It’s very professionally run, the seats and tables are in good nick and well kept and there is good table service for food and drinks. Drinks such as Chinese tea, water and coffee are free, but anything else you’ll need to order off the menu at prices similar to what you’d pay in a Vegas casino. What’s more the staff here are extremely friendly and make you feel welcome unlike some of the other rooms in Macau.

The Wynn is one of the locations where the infamous semi-private nosebleed-stakes games are known to take place, so it also makes a great spot for trying to catch a glance of any big name pros who might be in town. On my last visit Phil Ivey and Andrew Robl were both playing big games in the room and according to the locals various other big name pros can be seen there on a regular basis.

It’s hard to comment on the overall softness of the games due to a small sample size, but I would say based on my limited experience that the $50/$100 game is far softer than any game I’ve played in Vegas. While there are a few decent players the majority are weak tight ABC players who are pretty easy to dominate.

Overall, if you want to play poker in Macau, you’ll want to check out the Wynn while you’re here!

StarWorld Poker Room

Located on the 3rd floor of the StarWorld Casino, this poker room spreads Texas Hold’em (both no-limit and limit) over 11 tables. There’s also baccarat available right in the poker room for your convenience; this is, after all, Macau. Star World is the only room in Macau where I’ve seen sit n gos spread. They offer HKD$1000+$100 sit n gos throughout the day. There are usually more smaller games running here than there are in the Wynn, with the main game being $25/$50. Waiting lists here can be extremely long so plan to do something before you play poker as you’ll more than likely be waiting a long time to get a game.

StarWorld is also known for spreading a fair amount of tournament poker (and they may do even more when they take on the Asian Poker tour branding in the near future), and is also the site for that rotating super-high limit game we’ve talked about so much, which means you might spot a visiting pro or two making their living here. The nosebleeds are usually played here, but we’re told they’ve been going in the Wynn just as much recently.

Macau Poker 2+2 Betting

StarWorld is also professionally run. Though not as nice as the Wynn it’s definitely a long way ahead of the Venetian.

Venetian Macau Poker Room

The Venetian has a poker room, though it’s probably the least welcoming of Macau’s remaining 3 poker rooms. Staff and management are the rudest I’ve ever encountered at any poker room anywhere in the world. The room has 8 or 9 tables, but they rarely open all of these even when waiting lists are massive. Most of the time you’ll be waiting a minimum of 2 hours to get a game.

The poker room is in a small cordoned off area near to the South Lobby. As in most rooms, the game of choice is no-limit Texas Hold’em; most of the time, only HKD25/50 and 50/100 games get going with the occasional 100/200 game being spread. The Venetian has the highest poker rake in the whole of Macau raking 5% up to a max of HK$300, a full 50% more than Star World and the Wynn.

Everyone says the Venetian has the softest games in Macau. I would tend to agree with this; the play at the Venetian is quite loose and passive – a wonderful combination if you’re looking to make a profit. That said the Wynn isn’t massively different in playing standard and if I had the choice of only playing at one room, it would be the Wynn. However, the Venetian is the best place for lower stake games as they usually have 2-3 25/50 games going in the evening times.

Grand Lisboa Poker Room – Update Dec 2012 – Now Closed

The Grand Lisboa is the home to PokerStars Macau, the largest poker room in all of Asia. There are 33 tables here, which spread both cash games and tournaments, which are rarely seen in other Macau locations. Given the relative newness of poker in Macau, the Grand Lisboa’s room features a Learn-to-Play table that can quickly get beginners up to speed on the rules of the game. Games start at limits of HKD 10/20, though they also spread much higher limit games for those who are interested.

If there’s one downside to the Grand Lisboa, it’s that they only spread Texas Hold’em, and don’t have Omaha games like the Wynn has. On the other hand, this is the room where major events (like those on the Asia-Pacific Poker Tour) are held in Macau, so it might have the edge as far as your chances of meeting pros are concerned.

Hard Rock (City of Dreams) Poker Room – Now Closed

The Hard Rock Hotel, located in one of the towers of the City of Dreams, has its own separate casino that contains one of the few poker rooms in Macau. There are seven tables of no-limit Texas Hold’em action here, two of which are reserved for VIP high stakes action. Of course, there’s yet another, more exclusive VIP area that has two more tables; this is usually where the biggest games are played.

Typically, the game ranges from HKD 10/25 to 100/200, though larger games aren’t uncommon. If you like the look and feel of a Hard Rock Cafe, this is a great spot for playing poker in Macau.

Poker in Macau is nothing like poker in Las Vegas and the
United States. You’ll struggle to find Texas holdem poker rooms
at most Macau casinos, although they still do exist in some
parts. The experience on the whole will be a lot different to
the United States and you’ll need to adjust your expectations
when looking for a game.

First and foremost, the waiting lists for cash games in Macau
are crazy. It’s not unheard of to wait up to 6 hours for a spot
at the table. Even though most poker rooms only have a few
tables open, they let lists accumulate up to 60 or 70 people and
won’t even open more tables. Poker is a bit of a spectacle here
and isn’t treated like a table game that should be offered for
players on demand. It’s treated more like a service or amenity
that the casino and hotel offers, much like they offer a valet
service or room service. On top of all of this, the number of
table games a casino offers is strictly regulated by the Chinese
government and the fact is poker just doesn’t make as much money
as a baccarat or blackjack table.

The one exception to this is the Pokerstars Live room in
Macau. This is more of a player’s poker room and is the closest
you’ll find to a United States or Europe style poker room.
Closely following this room is the Wynn and Venetian poker
rooms; they obviously run great poker rooms in Las Vegas.
They’ve had to slightly change it up for the different market
though.

In general, the poker play in Macau is quite tough. When
poker arrived on the scene here in the mid-to-late 2000’s the
games were very juicy. Since then the newcomers to poker have
returned to other games and the players that persevered have
become much more skilled and harder to beat. You can still
certainly find good games at a wide variety of stakes; however,
you won’t get the baccarat players basically giving away their
hard earned cash at the table like you did in 2008.

List of Macau Poker Rooms

Here is our compiled list of all the poker rooms you can find
in the state of Macau:

Pokerstars Live Macau Poker Room

Macau Poker 2+2 Poker

• Location: Level 2, City of Dreams, Macau
• Hours: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
• Tables: 13
• Games: You’ll find a good mix of cash games and
  tournament play at the Pokerstars Live Macau poker room. At
  any given time, you’ll be able to find a no limit Texas
  holdem cash game running, usually with stakes of HK$25 / $50
  and HK$100 / $200 and higher when there’s demand from
  players. In US dollars this is about $3 / $6 and $13 / $26.
  These limits are quite high although everything is like that
  in Macau when it comes to gaming. For the tournament players
  out there you’ll find some major events taking place in this
  poker room including Macau Poker Cup “Red Dragon” series,
  Macau Millions, the PokerStars Championship PSC Macau and
  Asia Championship of Poker ACOP. On top of this they usually
  run a major tournament on Saturday’s and Sunday’s with
  satellite entry tournaments to these running all through the
  week. The standard weekly tournaments range from HK$1000
  US$130 buy in up to HK$4000 US$515. Most tournaments are no
  limit Texas holdem with the odd Omaha one running from time
  to time.
• Ambience: It’s all about the red and black of Pokerstars
  here. The room is huge, open and airy and provides a great
  playing experience. The tables are covered with black felt
  and the black leather chairs clash nicely with the red
  carpet. The room is connected to the rest of the casino so
  some noise and smoke will get through, although it’s pretty
  well ventilated. This is a great place to play poker which
  is no surprise considering Pokerstars is involved.
• Hospitality: You’ll need to request service while
  playing poker in this room, although water, tea and coffee
  will be provided most of the time free of charge. Alcohol
  wise you will struggle to get complimentary drinks here
  although some report when they asked they did receive beer.
  This seems to be hit and miss and the service certainly
  won’t be anything like you would get in Las Vegas.
• Players: The players are quite good and competition
  tough in this poker room. The game has certainly reached a
  maturity point where the remaining regulars are of a higher
  skill than in the boom day in the late 2000s. You can still
  find the odd soft table here and there and during major
  tournaments you’ll find a lot of good action. Generally
  speaking the players in Macau will be friendly. We’ve heard
  reports they have been welcoming and the table and room has
  had a generally fun atmosphere.

Poker King Club Macao

• Location: Venetia Casino, Macau
• Hours: 24 hours, 7 days
• Tables: 10
• Games: Both cash games and tournaments are offers in
  this poker room. Cash game wise you will find no limit Texas
  holdem games running almost always. Stakes offered are HK$25
  / $50, $50 / $100, $100 / $200, $200 / $400, $500 / $1000.
  For tournament players you’ll find a wide range on offer
  usually with buy in’s at the higher stakes. They run Asia
  Poker Tour events here and some World Poker Tour affiliated
  events. They once offered a big game tournament which had a
  prize of $50 million, which is crazy high. It’s safe to say
  this hasn’t happened again and probably won’t anytime soon.
• Ambience: The Venetian is a wonderful casino with bright
  beige filled rooms which are well ventilated and welcoming.
  The poker room is new and is smoke free, which is a major
  bonus considering smoking is almost always permitted in
  poker rooms in this city. The bright blue felt of the table
  contrast well with the beige fittings and plush carpets. The
  chairs in this poker room are leather and comfortable. You
  will also be able to view a TV from most seats at the
  tables, as well as charge your phone via USB charging ports.
• Hospitality: You’ll get around the clock table side food
  and beverage service in the Poker King Club at the Venetian
  casino. This is another rarity in Macau, as poker is almost
  the second class citizen to other more favorable games.
• Players: The players here will be quite tough and the
  games usually at the higher limits. Because of casino
  regulations in China they really need to make some bang for
  their buck and that’s why most limits are a little bit
  higher than you would expect to find in poker rooms in the
  United States. You’ll still be able to find juicy tables in
  the Poker King Club during peak times.

Wynn Macau Casino

Macau Poker 2+2 Game

• Location: Rua Cidade de Sintra, Macao
• Hours: 24 hours, 7 days
• Tables: 11
• Games: The Wynn poker room in Macau offers cash games
  and tournament play. For the ring game players, you will
  find no limit Texas holdem at medium and high stakes as well
  as pot limit Omaha. Stakes range from HK$25 / $50 up to $500
  / $1000. Remember you get about HK$8 for each US$1. The Wynn
  poker room won’t offer many tournaments. However, they do
  run special events on occasion with a range of buy in’s.
• Ambience: The Wynn in Macau is very similar to the Wynn
  in Las Vegas. Steve Wynn won’t allow his brand to diminish
  in value or integrity at all and as such the poker room here
  is very nice with great décor and well maintained seats and
  tables.
• Hospitality: Tea, coffee and water will be free for
  players here. If you want alcohol you may be able to get a
  free beer while you pay, but most drinks must be ordered
  from the menu and will attract a charge. You can also order
  food and eat at the table while you play.
• Players: This is a wildly popular poker room and as a
  result you will sometimes have to wait hours for a table.
  Book a seat many hours before you plan on playing and you
  shouldn’t have a problem. Because of this, the poker is
  tough and you’ll need to be playing very solid poker to do
  well. The vibe is quite serious due to this but also a lot
  of fun at times, particularly on weekend evenings.

Macau Billionaire Poker Room

Macau Poker 2+2 Games

• Location: Babylon Casino, Macau
• Hours: 24 hours, 7 days
• Tables: 5
• Games: This poker room currently offers no limit holdem
  cash games at various stakes. While they are aiming to offer
  higher stakes you will most likely be able to find HK$50 /
  $100 and $100 / $200 games running more frequently. They run
  tournaments on occasion including their Jade series which
  features a HK$2000 buy in event.
• Ambience: This is a nice poker room which features gold
  and beige colors on the wall with ruby and gold carpet. It’s
  a nice place although it is near and on the casino floor so
  can be quite smoky at times. The blue felt tables are basic
  with gold wrapped simple seating. Regardless it’s still a
  decent poker room.
• Hospitality: You will get basic drinks provided
  including water, tea and coffee. If you want anything
  further you will need to request for a server to come and
  take you order and you’ll usually be paying full price off
  the menu.
• Players: The quality of play in this poker room will
  usually be quite good. This is because it’s such a niche
  market now in Macau and as such you won’t get as many
  amateur players trying out poker. That’s not to say you
  can’t do well if you put in a few solid sessions playing
  decent and straight forward poker.

Conclusion

Macau is a different experience for players used to poker
rooms and casinos in the United States. But if you’re planning a
trip you can still find some good Teas holdem games. Just plan
well ahead and be prepared for extended wait times in some
rooms.