Thunder Valley expands poker room: 5 more tables

July 6th, 2011 by Hayley Mather

Thunder Valley expands poker room: 5 more tables

One of the biggest poker rooms in Northern California got even bigger last week, as Thunder Valley Casino Resort added five new poker tables, bringing its total to 21 from 16 and its capacity to 210 from 160.

General Manager C.J. Graham says the expansion makes Thunder Valley’s the biggest dedicated room in the region.

For players like you and me, the news means bigger jackpots and potentially more types of poker from which to choose. (The room, which spreads predominantly NoLimit Texas Hold ‘Em, may offer a regular game of Omaha to appease a growing number of players clamoring for it.) More tables also means waits should be shorter: For the past year or so, wait lists at peak times (Friday and Saturday nights) have kept players away from the felt for up to an hour or more.

“Really it became a question of supply and demand,” Graham says. “On busy nights, people were lining up to play, we didn’t have enough tables to accommodate them. Now that we’ve got plenty of tables, we’ll try to get everyone seated and playing as quickly as possible.”

As part of the expansion, the casino’s new promotion offers up to $10,500 in cash and prizes every week. Dubbed the $200,000 Cruisin’ Poker Giveaway, the promotion runs through Aug. 31 and includes a weekly grand prize cruise to the Western Caribbean, Hawaii or the Mexican Riviera.

Guests can earn entries into the cruise and cash drawings if they score one of the highest hands of the day. Thunder Valley also is giving away $2,500 each week in Monday drawings.

All of these giveaways lead up to the $70,000 grand prize drawing on Aug. 31, during which players will compete for $10,000 cash and a $60,000 custommade Standley hot rod. The 1932 replica bike, custommade by a local builder, will be on display in August.

In addition to this big jackpot, regular promotions in the poker room are ongoing, including a daily $1,000 highhand jackpot (the highest hand of a particular day earns a player $1,000). Floor managers also select a “hot seat” in the room every day (for a small cash award), and “splash the pot” at random with extra money in chips.

Odds junkies might think that more tables diminish their chances of winning a hotseat or splashthepot giveaway. The truth, however, is that more players generate a bigger rake, which means bigger prizes overall. Nobody can complain about that.

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