The Lodge poker club in Round Rock, Texas was raided on Tuesday morning by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC).
Agents with the commission entered the property and shut down the club, which boasts several poker pros as co-owners, including Doug Polk, Andrew Neeme, and Brad Owen. The TABC regulates the sale and distribution of alcohol in the Lone Star State.
The property’s website says the cardroom sells alcohol, including beer and cocktails. As of now, it’s unclear what state regulations were violated. The Lodge welcomes players aged 18 and above, and the state’s legal drinking age is 21.
The TABC has not said whether it suspects minors were allowed to drink at the Lodge. The TABC website lists the property as receiving a liquor license in 2022, but that expired on Sept. 15, 2024. It’s unclear if the property later received a license under a different name.
Polk was not on site at the time of the raid. He told PokerNews he wasn’t sure yet why the commission entered the property and is waiting on more information before making an official statement. It’s also unknown if any arrests were made.
Players Ordered To Take Chips Home
During the raid, TABC agents reportedly told players they could cash out chips when the property reopened, according to a thread on Reddit. They were supposedly told to take the chips home and bring them back to the property at a later date.
A user on the Reddit thread said tournament players were told by staff that they would be refunded at a later date.
While the TABC doesn’t regulate gambling in Texas, where there are no legal commercial casinos and no state gaming regulatory body. But the commission generally prohibits illegal gambling at locations licensed to sell alcohol.
The raid came shortly after the property hosted the Lodge Championship Series. Wayne Harmon won the main event for $203,990. The World Poker Tour was set to host a “Wacky Weekend Wildcard” event at the property in the coming days, but that has been canceled.
“The decision was made due to circumstances outside of WPT’s control that impact event operations,” the tour posted on X. “We recognize that many players had planned to attend and appreciate their understanding. Updated dates and additional details will be announced once finalized.”
The @WPT Wildcard event at @LodgePokerClub has been postponed. pic.twitter.com/dtAzfbHvUn
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) March 10, 2026
Operating In ‘Gray Area’
In Texas, poker rooms generally sell memberships or charge other fees rather than take a rake. The similarity to a country club allows them to operate within the law. Texas bans gambling if any person receives any “economic benefit” other than personal winnings.
Some law enforcement officials and gambling experts still believe the state’s poker rooms violate state law or operate in a “gray area” despite general acceptance in recent years. Clubs have been raided by law enforcement on occasion through the years.
Professor I. Nelson Rose is a gaming legal expert and operates the Gambling and the Law blog. He believes clubs face a tenuous existence.
“I think the poker clubs have some severe legal problems,” he has said on the blog. “Arguing that poker, especially poker tournaments, are games of skill – that won’t work in Texas. Gambling is defined as playing or betting for money, ‘at any game played with cards.’
“A person commits the crime of ‘gambling promotion’ if he intentionally or knowingly operates or participates in the earnings of a gambling place. And ‘keeping a gambling place’ is a separate crime.”
Clubs disagree with Rose’s assertion and have won in court at times. In September, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that the city of Dallas must grant Texas Card House Dallas a certificate of occupancy to operate in the city. However, that case didn’t concern whether the poker club fell within state law.
