Could Las Vegas poker rooms be dealing out cards in a matter of weeks? That’s the question being asked after it was revealed that Las Vegas icon Treasure Island is planning to reopen soon.
According to their website, the property is planning to reopen May 15th, though it notes that the date is subject to change. They are, however, currently accepting reservations for arrivals beginning that day.
Treasure Island isn’t a major destination for poker players looking for tournament action or cash games. However, due to its location and often lower-priced room rates, it’s popular for poker players, with many World Series of Poker attendees opting to stay there.
Should Treasure Island open, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that other properties will follow suit, including ones with major poker rooms like Bellagio, Aria, and others.
Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak ordered all nonessential businesses in the state to close until April 30th in order to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. That order included gaming establishments.
According to Sisolak, the state would need to see two weeks of declining COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations before considering lifting the restrictions. Sisolak could very well extend the ban on nonessential businesses, but as of publication time, he has not done so.
While the Governor isn’t keen to reopen the strip until he’s confident the properties can do so safely, Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman recently doubled down on the push to open casinos in an interview with Anderson Cooper on CNN.
In the interview, she told Cooper that Las Vegas workers could be a control group in an experiment to determine the effectiveness of social distancing practices. The comment has faced extreme backlash.
