West Virginia May See Poker this Week

West Virginia’s racetrack casinos may be able to start spreading poker games as early as Friday, as long as the test runs this week go smoothly.  Two racetracks, the Wheeling Island Racetrack & Gaming Center and Mountaineer Race Track and Gaming Resort both dealt test games Monday and Tuesday.  For a small charitable donation, players could sidle up to the tables.  If West Virginia Lottery Commission officials deem these trials successful, the poker tables could run for real starting at 7:00am Friday. 

The state’s four racetracks have had slot machines, but it was only earlier this year that the state legislature legalized table games, pending county votes.  Voters in Ohio County (Wheeling Island) and Hancock County (Mountaineer) approved the measure.  Table games other than poker, such as blackjack, were also included in the new law, but the casinos felt that poker was the easiest game with which to start.   

Hundreds of aspiring poker dealers attended community college classes in northern West Virginia to learn the trade. 

Wheeling Island will have 20 tables available for poker, while Mountaineer will have a whopping 37 tables ready to go.  The rake will be 10 percent, up to $5 per hand.