The first installment of the 2009 Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza is in the books. The 25 event tournament series attracted over 7,000 players and generated a total prize pool of nearly $3 million. Despite sagging revenues in Las Vegas, the Venetian has proven that poker remains a staple of gambling on the Strip.
The second tournament series of the year takes place between April 1st and April 26th, ending in a $2,500 buy-in Main Event that begins on April 25th. The casino hosts its major Deep Stack Extravaganza during the World Series of Poker. It takes place from June 1st all the way through July 15th. The final edition runs between November 1st and November 25th.
Keeping the game alive at the Venetian is its Director of Poker Room Operations, Kathy Raymond. The casino veteran sat down with Poker News Daily to discuss the popular Las Vegas tournament series.
Poker News Daily: Tell us about the origins of the Venetian’s Deep Stack Extravaganza.
Raymond: It’s a great event. We started out back in 2007 with our first Deep Stack. We were pretty much the first ones in the industry to go with that concept. It was a result of listening to our players. There are a lot more players now than there were five years ago who are trying to hone their skills. Other tournament structures didn’t allow them to utilize their newfound poker skills, so we created the Deep Stack Extravaganza at the Venetian and it continues to be successful.
The first one kicked off in February of 2007 and was an automatic success. It didn’t take long for players to go into other card rooms and say that they wanted to see deep stack tournaments. Heading into 2009, we’re starting to see the response of other casinos. When people follow your lead, it’s complimentary.
We are constantly looking to enhance poker players’ experiences. Our goal is to make their experience the best it can be.
PND: Talk about running a high-stakes tournament series in the middle of an economic slump.
Raymond: Our events are meant to be affordable. We have 17 events with a $330 buy-in to appeal to those players who may not have deep pockets. We also offer satellites. We’re getting to the point where we’re seeing all kinds of players in these events. With the large fields that we have, the return on investment if you make the money is substantial.
In this economy, players are also looking to score big. If times are hard, they want to be able to have a shot at good prize money for a minimal amount of investment. All of our events are pretty much that way.
PND: Are there any changes planned?
Raymond: We’re sticking with what works. This is what our players wanted. If anything, we’re trying to enhance the experience. During last November’s event, as a thank you to everyone who played in 2008, we offered a free buffet every single day of the event. This wasn’t your average buffet, either.
We’re not looking to change structures and we’re not looking to add more chips. We’ve reached the maximum number of chips that are feasible. If you give out more than that, then you have to adjust the blind structure.
PND: Have there been discussions to feature more non-Hold’em tournaments as part of future Deep Stack Extravaganza schedules?
The main interest of most players is No Limit Hold’em. There are those players who play games like Omaha and HORSE, but the general consensus is No Limit. We’ve gotten to the point where we want to satisfy all segments of the poker playing populace, but generally tournaments in other genres of poker are few and far between in comparison to No Limit.
PND: The Borgata in Atlantic City has announced a major deep stack tournament that begins on March 21st. Talk about their facility.
Raymond: The Borgata has a phenomenal poker room. They have good management and good tournament directors. They’re at a point where they aren’t a monopoly, but they’re dominant in their market. When you look at their competition, they’ve taken the lead in terms of giving players what they want.
