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Florida will Re-Invent Poker
Poker and the Law
by I. Nelson Rose
Florida is about to become the nursery for the birth of new poker games.
Cardrooms there have already had to become inventive, to get around the most ridiculous limits imposed by any state's law. But those new games did not take off, because the stakes were so small.
In 1989, the Legislature decided that the government should not be wasting its time going after small-stakes games. In fact, the law literally called the games "Pennyante" defined as "a game or series of games of poker, pinochle, bridge, rummy, canasta, hearts, dominoes, or mahjongg in which the winnings of any player in a single round, hand, or game do not exceed $10 in value."
Over the years, penny-ante games were allowed to be played not only in people's homes, but also in mobile home parks and publicly-owned community centers.
So, in 1996, the Legislature passed a law that beginning January 1, 1997, licensed pari-mutuel facilities could open commercial cardrooms.
Great idea, with just one hitch: cardrooms were stuck with the same penny-ante limits: "The winnings of any player in a single round, hand, or game may not exceed $10 in value.
The fee charged by the cardroom for participation in the game shall not be included in the calculation of the limitation on the pot size provided in this paragraph."
Notice the club can charge a fee, which was a good thing, considering it had to supply not only the facilities but also a non-playing dealer.
Imagine what those game were like. The total pot could not be more than $10. Operators said if they had five players at a table, everyone would chip in $2.00 and that was it. To get around the low limit, operators tried to expand the definition of "poker." I testified as an expert witness on behalf of the State that a game where each player got two cards and tried to get closer to 21 than his opponent was not poker.
We won, but even the State attorney thought the $10 limit on pots was silly.
The Legislature finally passed a bill to raise the stakes, and Gov. Jeb Bush (R.) announced that he would not veto it. His reason for letting the bill become law was, according to TheLedger.com, "It is changing, kind of, the rules of a poker game, taking away one thing and adding another and that really doesn't expand gambling."
Was he correct?
The bill, HB 1059, eliminates the $10 pot limit. But it replaces it with these new limits: "The cardroom operator may limit the amount wagered in any game or series of games, but the maximum bet may not exceed $2 in value. There may not be more than three raises in any round of betting."
It will certainly change what was nothing more than a lottery into something resembling true, low stakes poker. But will it greatly expand the games?
My guess is yes.
Although there is a limit on bets and the number of raises per round, there is no limit on the number of rounds. Games like 7-Card Stud can get pretty expensive, but there is now every incentive to be inventive. The rules of Texas Hold'em, for example, could be changed to have a round of betting after the first down card and after each individual up card. And it is a sure thing that even better variations will be invented.
It is ironic that we will have the President's brother to thank for a whole new universe of poker games.
 Professor I. Nelson Rose is recognized as one of the world's leading authorities on gambling law. A Harvard Law School graduate, he is a tenured full Professor at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa, California. He is the author of more than 500 published works, is an internationally known public speaker and has served as an expert witness and consultant to governments and industry. Web Site: www.GamblingAndTheLaw.com.
This story was published in the Sep 9th 2003 edition of Poker Player.
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