Michigan residents have had a love affair with poker fora long time. With a rich history of live poker in the state and the resultinginflux of new players that came from the online poker boom of the 2000s, thereis a huge base of players to draw from in Michigan. But what happened when theonline poker sites had to go away? This page looks at everything that ishappening in the Michigan poker market and gives an up-to-date look at the newsthat could change the game again.

Charitable gaming, the best use of time and resources for the most profitable outcome, has been all but stalled since the Michigan Gaming Control Board began monitoring the charity events. Michigan Casino & Poker Rentals is the Midwest’s premier all-inclusive casino event provider. As a leader in casino rentals, we know how to make every aspect of your party exciting and memorable. Our trained customer service representatives work with you step-by-step, giving you the best party you can imagine.

Online Poker in Michigan

Charity Poker Lansing Mi Zip

When real money online poker burst onto the scene in theU.S. in the early 2000s, it was evident that it was going to be a juggernaut. Whentelevised poker with hole-card cameras and online qualifiers to major land-basedpoker events were introduced, the landscape would be changed forever. Playersfrom Michigan and all over the U.S. were now able to dream about poker glorywhile attempting to make it to the top of the heap without having to leavetheir homes. This all seemed too good to be true until it was – in 2011, themajor poker sites had to cease operations in the state, throwing the future ofthe game into doubt.

Fast forward to the end of 2019 – after years of onlinepoker drought, the Michigan state government passed comprehensive onlinegambling legislation that would allow for legal, licensed online poker toreturn to the confines of the state. While the details are still being sortedout and there is no official word on a launch date, online poker players inMichigan and rejoice in the fact that it is now a question of “When?” not “If?”online poker will be available.

Land Based Poker in Michigan

Land-based poker has been a favorite of Michiganresidents for ages, and the number of live poker rooms in the state is atestament to how much the game has grown over the years. While many new playerscut their teeth with online poker in Michigan, the result of a new breed isthat there are a many live poker rooms across the state offering multipletables of cash games and tournaments. With the border to Canada, rooms inDetroit and surrounding areas can take advantage of the traffic that comes frompoker-hungry Canadians as well.

Here is a list of all the poker rooms you will find in Michigan:

5 Star Charity Poker Room (Sterling Heights, MI)
Auburn Poker Room (Shelby, MI)
Bay Mills Resort & Casino (Brimley, MI)
Burton Eagles Poker Room (Burton, MI)
Ciccarelli’s Sports Bar (Utica, MI)
FireKeepers Casino (Battle Creek, MI)
Greektown Casino (Detroit, MI)
Gun Lake Casino (Wayland, MI)
Huron Poker Room (Oscoda, MI)
Island Casino (Harris, MI)
Joey Armadillo’s (Niles, MI)
Kewadin Casino Sault Ste. Marie (Sault Sainte Marie, MI)
Krazy Kopz at Vision Lanes (Westland, MI)
Langan’s All-Star Poker Room (Walled Lake, MI)
Legends Poker Place of Metamora (Metamora, MI)
Live-Action Poker Room at Boomers (Allen Park, MI)
MGM Grand Detroit (Detroit, MI)
Momo’s Poker Room (Taylor, MI)
Motor City Casino (Detroit, MI)
Odawa Casino (Petoskey, MI)
Ojibwa Casino Baraga (Baraga, MI)
Ojibwa Casino Marquette (Marquette, MI)
One-Eyed Jacks Poker Lounge (Utica, MI)
Owosso Poker Room (Owosso, MI)
Players Golf & Event Center (Livonia, MI)
Players Golf South (Livonia, MI)
Prime Time Poker at 59 West (Highland, MI)
Rosemack Poker Room (Roseville, MI)
Rounders Poker Room Saginaw (Saginaw, MI)
Roundtree Poker Room (Ypsilanti, MI)
Shark Club Waterford (Waterford, MI)
Soaring Eagle Casino (Mt. Pleasant, MI)
The Event Spot II Poker Room (Lansing, MI)
The Event Spot Poker Room (Lansing, MI)
Thompson Poker Room (Ypsilanti, MI)
Waterford Card Room at 300 Bowl (Waterford, MI)
Wayne Bowl Charity Poker (Wayne, MI)
Winning Hand Poker (Trenton, MI)
Wintergarden Poker Room Chesterfield (New Baltimore, MI)

Social Poker In Michigan

Even with so many available options for real money livepoker games in the state, many Michigan residents still would prefer to playonline. With real money online poker slated to be arriving soon, there is stillan option for those who want to get in some practice time without heading to alive poker room. Social poker sites offer Michigan poker players the chance toplay against thousands from inside the state and around the world in a friendlyenvironment where cash does not change hands. You can buy chip packs if you wantthat will allow you to bypass the lower levels of the game where the gameplaywill be worse, so if you are looking for some proper practice in advance oflegal online poker in the state, these sites can give you that option.

Subscription Poker in Michigan

Another way that Michigan residents to prepare for thereturn of legal real money online poker is to give the sweepstakes sites thatoffer poker tournaments for a subscription fee a try. Even when online pokerreturns in all of its glory, sites like Club WPT offer a great way for playersto practice real-money poker skills in an environment where you only pay aone-time fee per month. Throw in the thousands of dollars worth of great prizesthat can win in these tournaments every day and there is great value for severalMichigan poker players.

Mobile Poker in Michigan

When real money online poker returns to Michigan, thelandscape is going to look very different than when it left back in 2011. Thelargest change may very well be in the way poker players access sites. Withphones and tablets quickly replacing laptops and PCs, many gaming companieshave had to adapt their products for a very different delivery channel thanback in the heydays of online poker.

While some states have struggled to release mobile pokerin a legal environment, the good news for Michigan residents is that very soon,they will be able to download a real money online poker app to their mobiledevice, create an account and start playing wherever they can get an internetconnection. In the meantime, there areplenty of free-play poker apps available which, while the gameplay may not bevery strong, will give Michigan players a chance to get used to playing handsof Texas Hold’em, Omaha, or other games from their devices.

Online Poker in Michigan FAQ

Will I be able to play legal real money poker againstplayers from other states in Michigan?

While the regulations are not yet set, it is very likelythat when the games launch, they will be restricted to players only from Michigan.However, a few states have banded together to create an player-sharkingagreement to grow all the games, and smart money is on Michigan joining thisinterstate alliance. For now, let’s be happy that real money online poker isreturning to Michigan in any form.

Should Michigan players try some of the offshore pokerrooms in the meantime? Wouldn’t that be better for practicing?

We think you should stay away from these sites. With noguarantees that you will have an easy time making a deposit and likely a muchharder time making a withdrawal, you should wait for the real money regulatedsites to return to the market. It won’t be too much longer, so we suggest youstart practicing patience by waiting for the legitimate options.

In what has been a nearly two year battle between state regulators and operators, a second hearing on new proposed regulations for the Michigan charitable poker industry is set for Friday.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board will hold a public hearing on the changes to current regulations in the state regarding charitable poker from 9AM-11AM in Lansing, MI. The Michigan Historical Library and Museum, located at 702 West Kalamazoo Street in Lansing, will host the hearing, but there are methods for submitting written comments for those that cannot make the hearing in person. If someone would like their comments submitted for the record, they can submit them via e-mail to [email protected].

A previous hearing earlier this month drew out a contingent of supporters railing against the proposed changes. More than 140 people – mostly card room owners, charitable organizations and players – testified in this hearing that the new regulations that are under review would essentially kill charitable poker rooms and, as a result, the fundraising mechanism that many charities use to raise needed funds.

The executive director of the MGCB, Rick Kalm, has been aggressively attacking the charitable poker rooms around the state since control of that industry was placed in MGCB hands in 2011. A ban was put in place at that time for new licenses and the MGCB’s oversight has since resulted in only approximately 40 rooms still active (from a high of 65 in 2011). Since June 2013, the MGCB has also suspended 60 charities’ licenses (some temporarily, some permanently) for violations of the current regulations.

Kalm wants to take the regulations even further than what is currently enacted, which has already affected the ability of the rooms and the charities to raise funds. Earlier this year, the MGCB forced rooms to cut the number of charitable events per day to three with chip sales of $45,000. Under the previous laws, charitable poker rooms could host up to six charities per day with chip sales of $90,000. If these proposed new regulations are enacted (the Michigan General Assembly does not have to vote, the approval would come through a committee meeting), then the charities and the poker rooms would be under even more scrutiny.

Kalm’s new proposals would remove the ban against the opening of new poker rooms, but it would be at a heavy price. Those rooms in existence could only host one event daily with maximum chip sales of $15,000. The rooms would only be able to operate 120 days out of the year and charities would have to have a bigger presence at events, including a minimum number of members of the charity monitoring the proceedings, and would have to show they derive at least $2000 of their fundraising from methods other than the “millionaire parties” at the poker rooms, among other new regulations.

Charity Poker Lansing Mi Restaurants

An article from LivingstonDaily.com’s Christopher Behnan points out how certain charities would be affected by the new regulations. The manager of the Howell Shark Club, Mark Merrill, pointed out an instance last year which saw a charity that helps to provide affordable child care use its regulated poker nights (charities can have 16 over a given year) in a three month time span rather than over a 12-month period, which the poker room adapted to by adjusting their schedule. “They might not have survived without charity poker that year,” Merrill commented to Behnan.

Merill also looks at the new regulations as a hindrance to the Shark Club. “You’re cutting us down to three days a week,” Merrill said to Behnan. “Charities will suffer, so will employment. You’ll have more people on the unemployment line.” (According to the U. S. Department of Labor, Michigan’s current unemployment rate is 9%, ranking it 48th in the nation only ahead of Rhode Island, Illinois and Nevada.)

The endgame could be determined soon, but it doesn’t appear that the supporters of Michigan’s charitable poker rooms will be giving up the fight. Poker News Daily will continue to monitor the situation.