Casino Profiles

Costa Rica - Hold'em Club
By Jan Fisher

The Hold'em Club is located on the second floor of the Hotel Corobici, which is a full-service hotel with a spa and casino. The hotel is located on one of the main drags in San Jose. Humberto Brenes, two-time bracelet winner (pot limit Omaha and limit hold'em) in the 1993 World Series of Poker, is the cardroom owner. It is a comfortable room with an adjoining annex that can be used for tournaments and special events. Food service is friendly and efficient offering menus from both the coffee shop and sushi bar. Drinks are provided from a small bar area in the room, as well as finger foods, homemade soups, and snacks.

The Hold'em Club currently is in the midst of the Costa Rican Classic (November 18-28, 2000). Dr. Mario Zeledon, cardroom manager and popular local dentist, has enlisted the assistance of poker notables Marsha Waggoner and Mel Judah, along with owner Humberto Brenes, to organize and co-host the Classic. They have given their seal of approval on this event and are on hand night and day to act in many a capacity. As everything seems to run so smoothly here, their functions primarily have been that of poker players extraordinaire. They have named Kenna James as tournament director and assembled a good working staff of local dealers, as well as a few from the United States. There are 10 events in progress with buy-ins ranging from $100 with rebuys, to the final event, a $1,000 no-limit hold'em event.

Many situations are unique to this event, especially for Americans assisting in running a tournament in a foreign land. The language barrier is a large factor, but the people of San Jose are so generally laid back and mellow that no one seems to mind the occasional misunderstanding. Adding to the homey atmosphere is the personal touch given by Carmen, one of the hostesses in the cardroom. Nightly, she makes and serves homemade soup to the players. Another tireless worker, without whose help this event may not have come to fruition, is Sonya Miranda. She is one of the general managers for Humberto's properties and has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to insure that everything is ready and set come tournament time. Please see the PokerPages.com results section for event winners and money finishers.

When there is not a special event going on at the Hold'em Club, the room regularly operates on a later schedule than I am certainly used to. Generally, their games commence around suppertime and last until the wee hours. Games usually spread include a mix game of $30-$60 Omaha 8/B, $5-$5 pot limit Omaha, and $5-$10 pot limit hold'em. Oftentimes another smaller game of Omaha, hold'em, or a mix is spread.