The Hawaiian Gardens-based land-casino and poker room, The Gardens Casino, has reportedly entered into an agreement with California’s attorney general’s office to pay $3.15 million in a settlement deal . The AG accepted the payment in exchange for not revoking the poker room’s license, after its owners failed to reveal a previous federal probe and a multi-million-dollar penalty resulting from it.
- Hawaiian Gardens Casino Poker Tournaments
- Hawaiian Gardens Casino Poker Tournament
- Hawaiian Gardens Poker Tournament Sched…
- Gardens Casino Poker
- Hawaiian Gardens Casino Tournament Schedule
- Hawaiian Gardens Casino Tournament Sche…
The Hawaiian Gardens Casino has run afoul of California state gambling regulators. For infractions that involve lying about pending investigations into money laundering, the owners will have to pay a $3.15 million fine. Read on to learn more about what they did wrong and how this may impact the legal gaming scene in the Golden State.
The story began in 2016, when Californian AG Xavier Becerra asked state regulators to revoke the Gardens Casino’s license after it was found that the casino had been handed a $2.8 million by FinCEN (the Federal Crimes Enforcement Network) and had failed to reveal this fact when applying for its state license. The casino owners had reportedly told authorities that they had “always been engaged in honest and frank dialogue with regulators.”
The casino owners met with AG officials behind closed doors and eventually agreed to pay the $3.15m penalty. The California Gambling Commission agreed to the settlement, so long as the casino also underwent a two-year compliance period.
It’s believed that part of the reason that the AG was willing to enter into a settlement was because the Gardens Casino plays such an important part in the tiny Los Angeles County city’s revenue. Hawaiian Gardens, the area’s smallest city with a population of just under 14,500 people, budgets around $13.5 million from casino revenues for its public funds.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, city manager, Ernie Hernandez was quoted as saying: “For better or for worse, if this thing goes bad, we would cease to exist as a city.”
The Gardens Casino is the second-largest card room in the state of California, offering its patrons 225 gaming tables to play at. The card room employs around 2,000 people from the city and surrounding areas. Before the casino was built, Hawaiian Gardens was an impoverished area which was “literally borrowing money to pay for its own police force,” according to Hernandez.
Before:
After:
The new interior is huge, and quite beautifully done. It has a contemporary large timber 'lodge' appearance, with very high ceilings, lots of ambient light, and brand new 50' monitors suspended from the ceiling all over the place. There must be at least 150 poker tables and what appears to be 100 other table games. Perhaps this number is unchanged from before, but because the room is so much bigger and nicer, it feels less crowded. A VIP high-limit area has a walled off area instead of just a partition, and among other amenities, has it's own cashier.
Here is the list of game offerings from their website:
Limit and No Limit Hold 'em
Blackjack
Pan 9
Seven Card Stud
Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo Split
3 Card Poker
EZ Baccarat
Pai Gow Tiles
Joker's Wild Pai Gow Poker
Texas Hold' em
Pai Gow Poker
Omaha Hi-Lo Split
Omaha
Ultimate Texas Hold’em
The times I have been there, the staff was always friendly, and with a joint that big, wait times have typically been short, which I appreciate.
With an NFL team coming to town, and the Super Bowl coming in 2021, other card clubs in the area have invested in their properties. The Bicycle Club up the freeway in Bell, and the largest poker room in the country in Commerce have remodeled and expanded, even adding hotel rooms. Hawaiian Gardens plans to open a hotel as well, so things are looking up for poker in Los Angeles.
Administrator
Hawaiian Gardens Casino Poker Tournaments
I still say anybody is a fool to pay a commission to gamble, unless you also invoke your option to bank as well. I've heard one of the LA casinos doesn't charge commission, which I've been meaning to verify and write about.
... I've heard one of the LA casinos doesn't charge commission, which I've been meaning to verify and write about.
Yes, Crystal Casino (in Compton) advertises no commission (it is actually paid by the corporate banker). I advise caution. While it may not be 'Straight Outta Compton', you can see it from there. The place is very small, like 2 poker and 12 blackjack tables (they did have Free Bet last time I was there) but it is right next to the freeway. Unfortunately, the parking lot is pretty sketchy, so please plan on a daytime visit.
Hawaiian Gardens Casino Poker Tournament
Administrator
Yes, Crystal Casino (in Compton) advertises no commission (it is actually paid by the corporate banker). I advise caution. While it may not be 'Straight Outta Compton', you can see it from there. The place is very small, like 2 poker and 12 blackjack tables (they did have Free Bet last time I was there) but it is right next to the freeway. Unfortunately, the parking lot is pretty sketchy, so please plan on a daytime visit.
Thanks! Do the women in the casino look like the ones on their web site?
Thanks! Do the women in the casino look like the ones on their web site?
Hawaiian Gardens Poker Tournament Sched…
Somehow, I seriously doubt that picture was taken at a casino in Compton.
Also, i bet that for uth, the blind bet psys flush 6 to 5, like in northern CA.
Yes, Crystal Casino (in Compton) advertises no commission (it is actually paid by the corporate banker). I advise caution. While it may not be 'Straight Outta Compton', you can see it from there. The place is very small, like 2 poker and 12 blackjack tables (they did have Free Bet last time I was there) but it is right next to the freeway. Unfortunately, the parking lot is pretty sketchy, so please plan on a daytime visit.
I went at night, bad idea! I was so sketched out walking to the casino from the parking lot. Terrible idea on my part but I was younger and stupider. Oh well I also went to a casino in East St Louis, IL in the middle of the night. Not sure which was a worse idea.
I went at night, bad idea! I was so sketched out walking to the casino from the parking lot. Terrible idea on my part but I was younger and stupider. Oh well I also went to a casino in East St Louis, IL in the middle of the night. Not sure which was a worse idea.
And people think walking between the Detroit casinos at night is bad.
Yes, Crystal Casino (in Compton) advertises no commission (it is actually paid by the corporate banker). I advise caution. While it may not be 'Straight Outta Compton', you can see it from there. The place is very small, like 2 poker and 12 blackjack tables (they did have Free Bet last time I was there) but it is right next to the freeway. Unfortunately, the parking lot is pretty sketchy, so please plan on a daytime visit.
Thanks! Do the women in the casino look like the ones on their web site?
Gardens Casino Poker
Hehe... Depends on the number of C&C's you've put down...Hawaiian Gardens Casino Tournament Schedule
Do they have regular mini-Baccarat, or just all proprietary EZ Baccarat?
Also, i bet that for uth, the blind bet psys flush 6 to 5, like in northern CA.
Hawaiian Gardens Casino Tournament Sche…
I didn't cover the whole floor, but I only recall seeing EZ tables, and I didn't walk through the VIP room. Sorry, but I didn't get any pay tables, even for the BJ tables. I'll make a mental note to collect more details next time I stop by. If anyone else has details, please feel free to comment.