Pa Online Poker Launch Date
Online poker in Pennsylvania turned one year with the PGCB publishing detailed results of revenue and interest The Keystone State’s only online poker room, PokerStars, posted $35 million in revenue, of which $5.6 million went to the state PokerStars PA ran tournament series worth $8 million in its first year of operations on the market. Pennsylvania online poker is here, thanks to the launch of PokerStars in November 2019. WHAT TO EXPECT FROM ONLINE POKER ROOMS Regulated poker rooms have partnerships between the major global brands and local casinos: PartyPoker partnered with Valley Forge Casino Resort, 888/WSOP.com with Caesars, and PokerStars with Mount Airy Casino. On Wednesday, Pennsylvania gaming regulators said at a hearing in Harrisburg that the state’s online casino gaming will kick off in 90 days, setting the stage for a July 15, 2019 launch. State lawmakers legalized online gambling in 2017, but the implementation has taken quite some time.
On Monday, the long-awaited launch of online / mobile casino gambling finally arrived for players in Pennsylvania. But as the July 15 date designated by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) back in April came and went, it became clear that Pennsylvania online poker would be late to the party.
Pennsylvania Online Poker Late To Party
Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course and Parx Casino went live with their respective HollywoodCasino.com and ParxOnline.com sites as scheduled Monday afternoon. And while both operators are also licensed to offer online / mobile poker tournaments and cash games, neither site launched with poker capability at the onset.
In an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette timed to coincide with Monday’s launch, PGCB spokesman Doug Harbach told the newspaper that his agency was excited to finally integrate online / mobile casino games within Pennsylvania’s regulated iGaming industry:
“I think most people believe moving these games online is certainly something that fits very well into a younger demographic, who does so much of their business and hobbies online.”
Poker Players in PA Still Waiting for Online / Mobile
Pennsylvania legalized the iGaming industry, including online / mobile casino, sportsbooks, and poker wagering, in October of 2017.
More than a year and a half later, however, and only online / mobile sportsbooks (May 31) and casinos (July 15) have made their debut. Harbach told the newspaper that online / mobile poker’s “peer to peer” nature has created complications ahead of the expected Pennsylvania online poker launch date:
“There’s still some issues to be worked out. It’s a totally different game, because it’s player to player – or peer to peer, as we call it – rather than the player [competing against] the house.”
All told, of the 10 land-based casinos licensed to offer iGaming services, six applied for and received online / mobile poker licenses:
Pennsylvania Casinos Licensed to Offer Online Poker
| Casino | Poker Partner(s) |
| Harrah’s | 888 Poker |
| Hollywood Penn National | IGT |
| Mohegan Sun Pocono | (No Poker License) |
| Mount Airy Resort | PokerStars |
| Parx | GAN, Kambi |
| Presque Isle | (No Poker License) |
| Sands Bethlehem | TBD |
| Stadium Casino | (No Poker License) |
| SugarHouse | Rush Street Interactive |
| Valley Forge | PartyPoker |
PokerStars Still Has Big Plans for Pennsylvania Market
The most prominent online / mobile poker operator planning to enter the Pennsylvania online poker market is PokerStars, which announced its partnership with Mount Airy Casino Resort last August.
PokerStars parent company The Stars Group was approved by the PGCB last November, and at the time, senior vice president of strategy and operations Matt Primeaux issued a statement on the company’s plans for PokerStars PA:
“We’re excited to take this next step as The Stars Group looks to broaden its presence in the United States. In partnership with Mount Airy Casino Resort, we believe we’re well positioned to capitalize on opportunities in the Commonwealth by bringing our world leading offerings to Pennsylvania players.”
In March of 2016, PokerStars launched its first regulated American-facing platform in New Jersey.
The Mount Airy partnership promised a second statewide market for PokerStars in the U.S.. But while most iGaming industry media outlets predicted a July 15 launch to gain first mover advantage, PokerStars has pumped the proverbial brakes.
Speaking to PokerFuse, a representative for The Stars Group offered a vague explanation regarding the site’s conspicuous absence on Monday:
“We’re working with our partners and the authorities to finalize plans and bring our leading brands to PA’s players as soon as possible. There’s a lot to look forward to, so rest assured we’ll be in touch with more details as soon as they’re available.”
And when a local player took to Twitter and asked the PokerStars account about its Pennsylvania launch plans, “Ben Long” received the following reply:
“We will get back to you with a response regarding this subject very soon. Thanks for your patience in the meantime.”
July 23, 2019 5:34 pmPrevious reports that stated online poker would launch in the state of Pennsylvania on July 15 have proven to be wrong.
July 15th came and went last week and no online poker rooms went live in the Keystone State.
Nearly two years have passed since Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf legalized online gambling in the state. Since they it’s been a long and delay-filled waiting game for poker players waiting to step up to the virtual tables.
July 15th wasn’t completely silent for online gamblers in the state. Online casino games did arrive on schedule. A pair of online casinos, Parx Casino and Hollywood Casino, had their soft launch on July 15.
Pa Online Poker Launch Dates
They initially opened for eight-hour period during a three day trial to try and work out any bugs before a full launch. The number of hours live and number of games available is expected to ramp up slowly before all games become available 24/7.
Pa Online Poker Launch Date
Other online casinos in the state are also expected to go live for the first time throughout the month of July.
But what about online poker? Will Pennsylvania poker player finally be able to play online in their own state sometime this summer? Or even sometime this year? There currently is no firm answer to either of those questions.
Douglas Harbach, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board stated last week that setting up online peer-to-peer gambling, like poker, has proved to be more complicated, pushing back the launch date for online poker.
That seems strange considering that kind of peer-to-peer gaming, and online poker itself already exists in New Jersey and Nevada. No matter what the reason, online poker in Pennsylvania remains delayed indefinitely with no target date in sight for launch.