Poker room reopens at Pa. casino

The poker room at Rivers Casino Philadelphia reopened on Friday.

The casino was closed on March 15 due to COVID-19 and reopened on July 17 but the casino’s poker room remained closed until Friday.

The poker room will operate around the clock and can run up to 14 tables with a maximum capacity of approximately 100 players. Rivers Casino offers a variety of poker games, but will primarily offer No Limit Texas Hold’em cash games.

In addition to the existing casino-wide safety measures, the following precautions are in effect for the poker room:

• Masks must be worn at all times


• Poker dealers will wear both a mask and a face shield


• Each poker table in play will have plexiglass dividers, separating players and the dealer


• A maximum of seven players allowed per table


• Frequent and thorough cleaning of all cards, chips and surfaces


• Only sanitized chips bought from the poker room cage will be used in play


• No food, beverage or smoking is permitted in the poker room or anywhere on the Rivers Casino gaming floor

The casino said that the indoor air quality in the poker room was enhanced as part of the recent upgrade to the casino’s HVAC system. Rivers Casino said it now includes airPhx, a patented technology that says it continuously disinfects indoor air and eliminates coronavirus on surfaces, and it also features AtmosAir, an indoor air quality purification system that aims to neutralize the coronavirus.

Players are encouraged to call the poker room at 215-717-3883 to put their name on the waiting list.

Rivers Casino Philadelphia was previously known as Sugar House Casino and is located at 1001 N. Delaware Ave. in Philadelphia

In the midstate, Hollywood Casino at Penn National in East Hanover Township reopened in June but its poker room remains closed.