Georgetown Edition | October 2023

Business

BY BIANCA MORENOPAZ

John Montgomery opened Georgetown Poker Club in 2018 to create a place to play the game.

COURTESY JOHN MONTGOMERY

3010 Williams Drive, Ste. 206, Georgetown www.georgetownpokerclub.com

Georgetown Poker Club hosts weekly and monthly tournaments, and introduces new players to the game through one-day academies taught by professional players.

COURTESY GEORGETOWN POKER CLUB

Georgetown Poker Club brings new players to Texas Hold ‘em John Montgomery was already an avid poker player and local businessperson before he consid- ered getting into the business of poker. “I had played poker for over 20 years and was really interested in [opening a poker club],” Montgomery said. “But I was hesitant because of the way Texas laws are written. So I waited, and

and the business had to pivot, instead focusing on charity games and sweepstakes, Montgomery said. How it’s going To reach new audiences, the club now does livestreams on YouTube. Montgomery said the club adheres to state gambling laws by only charging a room access fee. This diers from casinos, where patrons are charged a percentage of every pot, known as a rake, which Texas law does not allow. “With the possibility of casinos in the future, I do not know where the poker industry is going to go, but right now I am just keeping my options open for dierent opportunities,” he said.

nothing happened, and more poker clubs opened up, and there was a demand for it in Georgetown.” How it started Montgomery said demand was driven largely by Georgetown’s senior population and retirement community. Since 2018, the Georgetown Poker Club’s clientele has grown to also include those outside the senior community. It has provided opportunities for those wanting to learn to play poker or brush up on their skills, bringing in professional poker players to teach one-day academies as well as running weekly and monthly tournaments with a variety of cash prizes. However, the pandemic changed everything,

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