Authorities shut down senior citizen poker game

A West Canadian retirement community calls time on “Last Vegas” style home staged penny poker games popular among senior citizens.

A group of Canadian retirees have lost a crucial social lifeline after tough Canadian laws deemed that their home poker games were played for real money and thus represented unlawful gambling.

The group, which was constructed of about 40 players aged between 55 to 95, were meeting three times a week at the Minoru Place Senior's Centre for fun and mentally stimulating card games and were left stunned to find out that local authorities were shutting down their sessions.

Canada’s gambling laws are governed by provinces and these games, based in Richmond, British Columbia, fell foul of British Columbian gambling regulations, the players were informed by letter last week.

Director of communications for the City of Richmond, which co-runs the centre, Ted Townsend offered his account of the opposing view stating; "The provincial gaming authorities made it quite clear that that type of activity is illegal, it's not the type of activity that we could get a license for… We're a public body, we have to do the responsible thing. We can’t make allowances simply because it’s a small amount of money or it’s seniors, the law is the law. It’s the same for everybody" he said.

Controversial decision

Despite the games having been staged for the past decade and only staked at a dime a chip, the clampdown has left the granny and grandad grinders crushed. The seniors now play at private homes, none of which are big enough to accommodate all players.

One member of the outlawed poker set, 88-year old Harry Walters, was once a serving Vancouver police officer who worked as a gaming inspector and believes the clampdown is itself unlawful; “The only time it becomes illegal is when the house, for example, makes some money out of the game” he said.

Controversially, a rival gang are alleged to be playing in underground Mah Jong games in the outdoor car park. Citing unfair favouritism, poker player Marilyn Berger made the claim; “Do you think these guys are not playing for money? Of course they are. They’re just settling up in the parking lot. But no one is saying anything to them”, before adding, “We might as well play solitaire at home”.