Chris Moneymaker is giving it another try, opening a poker room in Kentucky, this time in Louisville.
Moneymaker Social Louisville opened Saturday, becoming the second operating brick-and-mortar card room in the state. The other one, a slightly bigger room, is located just down the street, about 15-20 minutes from the University of Louisville campus.
Opening night “went well,” poker room manager Christine Russell told PokerNews. As with any new business, there “were some kinks to work out.” But as Russell said, players were impressed with the initial experience.
Legal Issues in Kentucky?
Moneymaker, the 2003 World Series of Poker (WSOP) champion credited by many as the person most responsible for poker’s 2000s growth, opened another poker club in Paducah, Kentucky in the fall of 2022. By early 2023, he was forced to close it due to legal threats from local authorities.
Much like in Texas where gambling is illegal, Moneymaker Social operates as a club instead of a traditional card room. Collecting rake out of pots would be illegal, so membership and seat fees are charged in replacement. According to Russell, players pay $80 per month or $10 daily to access the club, and then $7 per half hour for the seat fee.
According to the poker room manager, Moneymaker believes his second attempt at a Kentucky poker room will go differently.
“We have extensively done research,” Russell explained. “The District Attorney is excited to have us here.”
Having the DA on their side differs greatly from the Paducah launch where local authorities weren’t pro-poker. If all goes well in Louisville, Moneymaker plans to open a second room in Lexington, home to the University of Kentucky Wildcats.
Moneymaker Social Louisville has eight card tables and operates out of a standalone building. There is room for expansion, and if that happens, the club could begin adding a tournament poker tour, most likely the Moneymaker Tour, of course.
On opening night, six tables were running, including $1/$3 no-limit hold’em and $5/$5 pot-limit Omaha. Moneymaker is in attendance for opening weekend at his new card room.
Facing Potential Criminal Charges, Chris Moneymaker Closes Kentucky Poker Room