Binion's



Binion's, formerly Binion's Horseshoe, is a legendary casino on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas. It is best known to most of the poker world as the original site of the World Series of Poker. Harrah's bought the Horseshoe trademark, mandating its removal from this site at the end of 2004.

Games
Limit hold 'em: 2/4, 4/8. Will spread 6/12 or 10/20 on request.



No-limit hold 'em: 1/2 blinds 100 min buyin (no max). 2/5 blinds, 200 min buyin.

They also say they will spread Omaha, Omaha/8 and 7-Stud on request, though no games or even interest list were going the week I visited. They do say the games get more varied, and higher, and busier, during the summer when the WSOP is running.

Game Character: Mostly regulars and some starstruck or casual tourists. Binion's is the most popular poker room downtown, and the largest. Their thrice-daily tournaments regularly attract a hundred players or more.

Rake: An unusually-low-for-Vegas rake: 5% rake, max $4. No jackpot rake. No flop, no drop.

Posting: New players need not post.

Shuffling: Five tables have built-in Shufflemaster shuffling machines, remaining tables shuffled by hand.

Wait Time: Can be anywhere from 0 to 60 minutes or more for a seat.

Tournaments

 * every day, 2am NLHE $60+10, only 1 $40 rebuy.
 * every day, 10am NLHE $60+10, only 1 $40 rebuy.
 * every day, 2pm NLHE $60+10, only 1 $40 rebuy.

Their tournaments regularly attract a minimum of 50 players, even the 2am one. The mid-day ones often grab a hundred or so.

Jackpots and Promotions
No jackpots.

Atmosphere
The atmosphere at Binion's can be summed up in one word: history. This poker hall is where the original World Series of Poker got started, and where it was held for decades, until the event got too big to be held in this smallish downtown casino. Even then, until 2005 the WSOP would play down to the final table of the Main Event and then move it, players, press, and all back to Binion's for the final table action.

Binion's is still used to film a number of poker television shows, and large signs around the poker area warn you that you may be filmed if you enter the area, and that you are consenting to the use of your image on TV if you go in.

The poker area at Binion's is quite large, and is broken into two separate sections. The poker area is on the northwest side of the casino, nicely removed from the clang of slot machines and, for that matter, the rest of the casino itself. Only the hotel registration desk is nearby, though you can see an edge of the deli counter from the tables if you know where to look.

The tables are nicely spaced, giving plenty of room. The lighting is nice, the ambience is nice, and in general the poker room is set up as a "place to come play poker". You can tell they've got poker players in mind, and not general entertainment. Televisions, while present, are few. The gallery of famous main event winner photographs is on one wall, highlighted with a spotlight. Overall, this is quite a pleasant place to play poker.

Cell phones are apparently allowed at the tables, as more than one player was constantly on the phone at my table. It could be quite annoying, but the players in question appeared to be "pros". Even while on the phone, they handled their cards quickly and efficiently, as they planned their outing to the movies that night with their family, or whatever.



The hotel at Binion's is probably on par with most downtown hotels: not all that fancy or nice, it's serviceable but inexpensive. Rooms are cramped and worn (slightly peeling wallpaper, etc) but are certainly liveable. The 24-hour restaurant on site is nothing but a coffeeshop.

Neighborhood: At one edge of Fremont Street, one side of the casino opens onto the Fremont Street Experience, all touristy and open. The other side opens onto a dingy back street that doesn't look too hospitable. Go in and out the front. :-)

Parking: A couple of smallish multilevel parking garages connected to the casino; they validate (as do most/all downtown casinos) at the cashier's cage. They can probably host a couple hundred cars.

Tables and Chairs: Standard Vegas 10-player tables with gorgeous green felt and serviceable maroon vinyl armrests. Slide-in cupholders for drinks. Chairs are acceptable fixed-leg chairs with a moderate amount of padding.

Smoking: Not allowed in the room, and since the poker area is so far removed from the rest of the casino, there's not much drift.

Service and Comps
Semi-frequent standard casino cocktail service by waitresses.

Notes and Links

 * Visited by MarkT in Nov 2006.