The Bike Casino Poker

1. The Bicycle Casino Poker Room
2. The Bike Casino Poker
3. The Bike Casino Poker Room
4. The Bicycle Casino Poker Tournaments
5. The Bicycle Casino Poker
6. The Bike Casino Poker Tournaments

Offering millions in guarantees each year, The Bicycle Hotel & Casino hosts poker's premiere tournaments, including the World Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker. Which means anyone can go from casual player to millionaire high roller. For results and the latest up-to-date action, visit the Tournament Blog. The world-famous Bicycle Casino—lovingly nicknamed “the Bike”—is a Los Angeles staple. At first glance, the 100,000-square-foot Bicycle Casino poker room is, indeed, the gold standard when it comes to poker rooms. However, when you read some reviews, people either love the Bike or truly despise it. POKER GAMES One of the largest in the world, the Bicycle Hotel & Casino's 100,000-square-foot poker room is the gold standard for low- to high-stakes poker. After careful consideration, The Bicycle Hotel & Casino has decided to postpone the remainder of our WSOPC tournaments in order to help prevent any possible spread or transmission of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak throughout the country. The suspension of the tournament will be effective Friday, March 13, 2020.

The Bicycle Hotel & Casino (commonly, 'The Bike') is a pokercardroom in California.^[1]

Founded by George Hardie Sr. in 1984, located in Bell Gardens, California, The Bicycle Casino offers a selection of poker games and Asian games, with a wide range of limits. The casino features games including: Blackjack, Texas Hold 'Em, Seven Card Stud, Omaha hold 'em, Mexican Poker, Pai Gow Poker, Three Card Poker and Baccarat (card game).

Financing to build the original Bicycle Club casino was provided by Sam Gilbert, who allegedly used money partially obtained from laundering drug money.^[2] The casino is home to the Legends of Poker, a tournament series established in 1995 that now includes a stop on the World Poker Tour. Prior to the Legends, the casino's main tournament series was called the Diamond Jim Brady.^[3]

Seizure and indictment[edit]

In 1987, Sam Gilbert was the subject of a federal investigation into money laundering and racketeering charges. According to the investigation, a scheme to launder the money received from smuggling marijuana was put together to finance the construction of the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, California.^[2][4] According to one criminal complaint,

'[Sam Gilbert] a wealthy Los Angeles businessman, was the first Gilbert to establish ties with the Kramer family when he befriended Benjamin Kramer's father, Jack Kramer, in 1978. At that time, Jack Kramer and Sam Gilbert came up with the idea of building a legal card club for the purposes of laundering Benjamin Kramer's dirty money. By 1983, Sam Gilbert was in contact with David Pierson, who was himself thinking of building a card club and was looking for legitimate investors. Pierson gave Sam Gilbert a prospectus, Sam liked what he saw, and Sam agreed to arrange the financing for the project in return for a sixty percent share of Pierson's ownership interest in the Club.'^[5]

Gilbert was indicted in Miami 4 days after his death.^[6] His son Michael also was indicted.

The U.S. Government seized the casino in April, 1990, after a jury found that $12 million of the $22 million used in its construction came from Florida drug smugglers.^[7] The club's profits were frozen and placed in a special U.S. Marshals account until the court held a civil hearing to determine which partners knew that the club was built with drug money.

George Hardie and The Park Place Associates ownership were exonerated in 1990, and they regained their 35% stake.^[8]

In July 1991 a Florida federal judge ruled that at least one of the partners, former Los Angeles Westside banker M. Dale Lyon, knew about the club's financing. Eight other partners in the LCP Associates, the partnership named for Lyon, Coyne and Pierson, agreed to forfeit portions of their interest in the club before the civil hearing began. LCP partners Julianne Coyne and former California Assemblyman David C. Pierson settled before the civil hearing. In 1991, they agreed to give up about half of their interest in LCP, which had a 65% stake in the casino.^[7]

By the time it sold its share of the casino in 1996, the US government had made tens of millions of dollars in profit from its share of the casino. As a partner in the club, the government also contributed to political campaigns to defeat the proposal to build a rival card club in Orange County.^[9]

2017 raid[edit]

The casino was again raided by federal authorities citing money laundering as a part of an ongoing investigation into some players using the casino to exchange “dirty money” for chips, then turn cashing those in for “clean money.”^[10]

Live at the Bike[edit]

The Bicycle Hotel & Casino was the first brick and mortar casino to broadcast a live poker cash game over the Internet in a program known as Live at the Bike.^[11] It runs five nights a week, and features poker pros, celebrities and regular cash grinders. The show has always had card graphics and professional commentary making it one of the longest running poker shows ever.

Expansion[edit]

The Bicycle Hotel & Casino underwent a major hotel expansion in the Fall of 2015. The new seven-story, 117,907 square-foot complex now includes live entertainment, gaming, cocktail lounge, brewery, fitness center, sundeck with an outdoor bar, and a number of places to dine.^[12]

In popular media[edit]

The Bicycle Casino was featured in an episode of the TV series Numb3rs dealing with the murder of a successful card-counter, who coincidentally was also heavily into bicycle home repair.^[13]

See also[edit]

The Bicycle Casino Poker Room

References[edit]

1. ^'The Bicycle Hotel & Casino'.
2. ^ ^abGLENN F. BUNTING and TINA GRIEGO - Miami Trial Gives Startling New Portrait of Sam Gilbert. Los Angeles Times, April 23, 1990
3. ^'Bicycle Casino Review - The Bike'.
4. ^GLENN F. BUNTING. Investors Face High-Stakes Battle for Casino Profits. Los Angeles Times, May 29, 1990
5. ^44 F3d 888 United States of America v. Michael Gilbert244 F.3d 888 (11th Cir. 2001)
6. ^WILLIAM OVEREND and WILLIAM NOTTINGHAM - Sports Figure Is Indicted--4 Days After Death. Los Angeles Times, November 26, 1987
7. ^ ^abGriego, Tina. Forfeiture Laws Give U.S. a Piece of a Casino : Narcotics: Government now owns about 30% of Bicycle Club in Bell Gardens, which was built to a large extent with smuggled drug money. Los Angeles Times, August 22, 1990
8. ^Griego, Tina. Court Clears Casino Manager and Partners : George G. Hardie and his financial partners will regain ownership rights to the profitable Bicycle Club in Bell Gardens. Los Angeles Times, October 04, 1990
9. ^U.S. to Sell Share of Bicycle Casino for $25 Million
10. ^KTLA.com: Bicycle Hotel and Casino in Bell Gardens Raided by Federal Authorities
11. ^LA Times: Building a $1-million poker game for 'Live at the Bike'
12. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2015-02-24. Retrieved 2015-03-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
13. ^'Double Down'. 13 January 2006 – via IMDb.

External links[edit]

Coordinates: 33°57′59″N118°09′58″W / 33.966312°N 118.166148°W

Hold'em (or Texas Hold'em) is a poker game where each player receives two cards as his initial hand. There is a round of betting after these cards have been dealt. Then three board cards are turned simultaneously (which is called 'the flop') and are community cards available to all players. Another round of betting takes place. The next two board cards are turned one at a time with a round of betting after each one. After the final round of betting has been completed, a player may use any combination of five cards (one in his hand, four from the board, etc.) to determine his best hand. A player may use all of the board cards - this is called 'playing the board'.

Hold'em uses a flat disc called a Dealer Button to indicate the player, who in theory, deals the cards for that pot. The Button (player with the Dealer Button) is last to receive cards on the initial deal and has the right of last-action on all betting rounds, except the first. On the first round one or more blind bets are used to stimulate action and initiate play. Blinds are posted before a player looks at his cards. Blinds count as part of the player's bet, unless the structure of a specific game or situation requires part or all of a particular blind to be 'dead'. Dead chips are not part of a player's bet.

Blinds are posted by players who sit in consecutive clockwise order from the Button. Action is initiated on the first betting round by the player on the immediate left of the person who posted the furthest blind clockwise from the Button. The blinds act last on the first betting round and are 'live' which means the player is allowed to raise his own blind bet.

A player who has less than half a blind, but at least the smallest chip used in that limit game, may still receive a hand. In this case, the next player will take the blind. The player that has less than half his blind will not be eligible for the dealer position (the Button) and must fulfill all their blind obligations in order to continue to play. Half a blind or more constitutes a full blind.

RULES FOR TEXAS HOLD'EM POKER

Check and raise is permitted.

A bet and three raises are allowed. The third raise 'caps' the action.

There is no limit on raises when only two players are left in a betting round and the action is not yet 'capped'.

String raises are not allowed. To protect your right to raise, you should either declare your intention verbally or place the proper amount of chips into the pot. Putting a full bet plus a half-bet or more into the pot is considered to be the same as announcing a raise, and the raise must be completed. A player putting in less than half of the raise without announcing 'raise' may call only.

A player who puts a single chip into the pot that is larger than the bet to him is assumed to have called the bet, unless he announces 'raise'.

No pot may be awarded until all losing hands have been killed. The winning hand should remain face up until the pot is awarded.

A card found face up in the deck (boxed card) shall be treated as a 'scrap of paper'. A Joker that appears in a game that does not use a Joker is also a 'scrap of paper'.

A card being treated as a scrap of paper is replaced by the next card below it in the deck, when possible. If not possible, it is replaced by the top card of the deck after completion of the round. If a player does not call attention to the Joker among his down cards before acting on his hand, then he has a foul hand and forfeits all rights to the pot and all monies involved.

If a player's hole card is exposed due to a dealer error, he may not keep the exposed card. After completing the deal, the dealer will exchange the exposed card with the top card on the deck and place the exposed card face up on top of the deck. The exposed card will be used as the first burn card after all action before the flop is completed. If two or more cards are exposed on the deal, it is a misdeal.

If a player is dealt more or less cards than the game he is playing in calls for, and it is discovered before two players act on their hands, it is a misdeal. If it is discovered after two players have acted, then all monies, antes and blinds are forfeited by that player.

If the flop has too many cards, it will be taken back and reshuffled, except the burn card will remain burned. No new burn card will be used.

If cards are flopped by the dealer before all the betting is completed, the entire flop is taken back and reshuffled. The burn card will remain and no additional burn card will be used for this flop.

If the dealer turns up the fourth card on the board before the round of betting is completed, the card is not in play. After the completion of the betting, the next card is burned and the fifth card is put in the fourth card's place. After betting is completed, the dealer will reshuffle the deck, including the card that was taken out of play but not the burn card or discards. The dealer will then deal the fifth card without burning.

If the fifth card is turned up before betting is complete, it shall be reshuffled in the same manner as the previous rule.

Playing the Board: Players can no longer declare that they're playing the board. They must keep (maintain) their cards to be eligible to play the board.

The winning hand must show both cards face up on the table; one card up and the other face down is not a valid hand.

An existing player may wait until the button passes and post both blinds or post in between the button and the small blind. He may also buy-the-button in this situation.

A new player entering any Hold'em game has several options. He may: (1) wait for his big blind, (2) wait until the Button passes and then be dealt right in, or (3) be dealt right in.

If a player leaves the table for any reason and a blind passes his position, he may resume play by posting the total amount of the blinds for the game or wait for the big blind. If he chooses to post the total amount of blinds, the small blind goes to the center of the pot while the big blind is live.

The dealer button always moves forward and the blinds are adjusted accordingly.

In limit play, an all-in wager of less than half a bet does not reopen the betting for any player who has already acted and is in the pot for all previous bets. A player facing less than half a bet may fold, call or complete the wager. An all-in wager of a half a bet or more is treated as a full bet, and a player may fold, call or make a full raise.

The Bike Casino Poker

The smallest chip that may be wagered in a game is the smallest chip used in the antes or blinds. Any smaller chips may be played provided they can be combined in quantity to equal the size of a chip used in the game. When going all-in, players must put all chips that play in to that pot.

HOW TO PLAY POT-LIMIT TEXAS HOLD'EM POKER

In a Pot-Limit game, there are designated blinds and a designated minimum opening bet. After these bets, any player may bet or raise the amount of money in the pot. In raising the pot, a player must consider the total amount of called bets, including his own call, as part of the pot.

The Bike Casino Poker Room

Example: The pot has $100. Player A bets $100. Player B calls $100. Player C wishes to make the maximum raise; part of his total bet will be a $100 call. Therefore, in considering his raise, he includes the initial $100 pot plus a $100 bet and two $100 calls. Since the total pot is now $400, he may raise $400, making the total bet to Player D $500.

The Bicycle Casino Poker Tournaments

If the action in pot-limit is two handed, by mutual agreement, either player may bet as much as he likes. The other player has the option of calling the entire bet or merely the size of the pot.

The Bicycle Casino Poker

HOW TO PLAY NO-LIMIT TEXAS HOLD'EM POKER

In a No Limit game, there are designated blinds and/or antes plus a designated opening bet. Beyond this structure, any player may bet any amount of money he has on the table.**

The Bike Casino Poker Tournaments

**Note: All Bicycle Hotel & Casino No-Limit Poker games are table stakes. Players may only bet or call the money they have on the table, going 'all-in'. No player can lose a pot because he does not have enough money to call a bet.

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