Written by Tim Lavalli
 LAS VEGAS/Thursday, 20 September 2007

The Las Vegas Hilton has announced its intention to close their Poker Room. This will be the first poker room to close in Las Vegas in over five years. The first room to close since the poker boom officially hit. While other casinos are planning to expand their poker rooms, it is apparent that the Hilton sees the profitability of poker in a completely different light.

There have been rumors that several other properties are considering closing their poker rooms and no one can deny that there are more poker tables in Las Vegas these days than there are poker players but the same can be said for Blackjack tables. Whether this begins a pullback by casinos from the poker craze remains to be seen but the move by the Hilton is worth watching.

In all honesty the Hilton poker room was never a big success. The Hilton itself is not on the Las Vegas Strip, although it is just a short walk from it. The Hilton is right next to the Las Vegas Convention Center is the generally full of customers who are attending the events at the Convention Center. In addition, the Hilton is the only casino/hotel in all of Las Vegas that has the monorail actually stop at the front door. This means that Hilton guests have easy access to the entire Strip via the monorail.

If you are in town for a four day convention and you are going to get only one or two opportunities to play poker. Are you likely to pop down to the slow and quiet Hilton poker room or hop the monorail to the Bellagio, Wynn, Caesar’s Palace, Mirage, MGM… well you get the picture. The rest of the casino at the Hilton does quite well but a craps pit is the same everywhere, a poker room is unique and if I were in town for just one or two games; I would want to play in one of the famous rooms.