Taj Mahal starts using online poker-tournament registration

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Taj Mahal starts using online poker-tournament registration

By ELAINE ROSE Staff Writer
Press of Atlantic City
September 26, 2007

ATLANTIC CITY - Scott Siegel, of New York, likes to play in poker tournaments at Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort. But he doesn't like waiting in long lines to register for the bigger contests - or having to reach into his pocket to pull out a huge wad of cash for the entry fee.

Until last week, Siegel had no choice. If he wanted to be in on the action, he had to put up with the inconvenience.

Now Siegel sits down at his computer, and with the few clicks of a mouse, he can register for the tournament and print out a paper with his assigned seat. The cost is billed to his credit card. The few extra dollars he pays for the privilege are well worth it, Siegel said as he sat down to play Tuesday night.

When he entered a tournament Saturday night, the line of registrants stretched halfway across the poker room, "and I didn't have to wait in it," Siegel said. And he made the final table.

He already is registered for another tournament at 11:15 this morning, and plans to waltz into the poker room at 11:14 and take his seat, Siegel said.

The Taj Mahal is the first casino in the country to use what inventor Fabricio Schaffrath of Miami calls "a TicketMaster for poker tournaments" - log onto www.ptseats.com, pick the tournament you want to enter and reserve your spot.

Schaffrath said he came up with the idea while playing in Tuesday-night tournaments at a casino in Florida.

"To get in, you have to be there at least an hour and a half in advance," he said.

That might be fine for professional poker players, but he has a job managing a graphic design studio, Schaffrath said. He either had to leave work early to pay for his seat in the tournament or ask his friends to register for him, and sometimes he arrived at the casino only to find all the seats had been filled.

So, Schaffrath said, he took matters into his own hands and started ptseats.com. He approached casinos with the idea and the Taj Mahal was the first to sign on. Several other Atlantic City properties will be online in a few weeks, with Las Vegas casinos to follow.

Just like buying a concert seat through TicketMaster, there is a convenience charge - from 3 percent to 6 percent of the buy-in for that tournament, Schaffrath said. So far, nearly 100 Atlantic City poker players have signed up for the service.

Poker player Harry White of Hughesville, Pa., said he paid cash to enter Tuesday night's tournament. But he'll check out ptseats.com when he gets home.

"I've waited in line half an hour in some of these places," White said. "It should be modernized. You should be able to come right in."

The service is a boon to both the players and the casino, poker room manager Tom Gitto said. Poker players tend to wait until the last minute to register for a tournament, and the lines get long. With online reservations, people don't have to race 90 mph down the Garden State Parkway to get to the game on time, or come two hours in advance. And for popular tournaments, they don't have to risk driving down a long distance only to find themselves shut out of the action.

The system also makes it easier for private groups to organize their tournaments, Gitto said. Instead of keeping a list of all the names and coming to Atlantic City with the entry money, organizers can just post a message telling people to go to the Web site.

And of course, Taj Mahal owner Donald Trump was eager to join, Gitto said.

"Whenever Mr. Trump gets to be the first or the biggest at anything, he likes to go for it," Gitto said. "I saw it, and it was a home run."