New Jersey Governor disappoints poker players with abrupt reopening cancellation

Poker players will have to wait even longer to ante up at Borgata. After the New Jersey Governor announced a ban on eating, drinking, and smoking inside Atlantic City casinos on Monday evening, the MGM property confirmed that they were no longer planning to open in time for the July 4th long weekend.

The Borgata had initially planned to reopen its doors on Monday, July 6th. But in a statement issued by MGM, the company confirmed it was putting its opening on hold.

“Our guests expect a special experience when they come to our property and if we cannot provide that level of hospitality, we feel it best that we remain closed.”

The cancelled plans comes on the heels of Monday evening’s announcement, in which Governor Phil Murphy put the brakes on allowing indoor dining within the Garden State. Up until last night, restaurants, including a number of establishments located inside of Atlantic City’s nine casinos, were planning to reopen while meeting the 25% capacity restriction.

But not all casinos are following in Borgata’s footsteps. As of publication time, Hard Rock International was still planning to reopen its Atlantic City casino on Thursday

Many casinos are well-situated to offer outdoor dining options. For example, with its prime location on the Atlantic City boardwalk, Resorts Casino features oceanside dining options at Landshark Bar & Grill, which is on the sand side of the boardwalk, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

Murphy’s abrupt indoor dining cancelation policy comes on the heels of increased COVID-19 numbers in a number of other states. New Jersey is taking a more cautious approach to reopening in hopes of avoiding having to close down the state when infection numbers spike.

All New Jersey casinos, including their poker rooms and sportsbooks, can reopen on July 2nd with a maximum occupancy of 25%. Contrast that with Nevada, which is capped at 50%, and it’s clear that New Jersey would rather be safe than sorry.