Inside Asian Gaming

November 2009 | INSIDE ASIAN GAMING Chiu-Yi, who also happens to be one of the daughters of Dr Stanley Ho, the leading Macau casino entrepreneur and former monopoly concessionaire in the city. The Hong Kong and international film industries are no strangers to the Macau casino sector. Hollywood crossover actor and Hong Kong native Jackie Chan was named as a minority shareholder in Macau’s Grand Emperor Hotel & Casino when it opened in January 2006. And Albert Yeung, the founder and chairman of Emperor Group, was a minority backer of the controversial Oliver Stone film ‘W.’ about the life of former US president George W. Bush, released last year. Poker King the movie—known to local audiences in China as Pou Hark Wong — echoes the title of a 2004 Australian documentary Poker Kings . The latter fly- on-the-wall style production charted the ups and downs of life of players (including Phil Hellmuth Jr, the 11-time WSOP champion) on the professional poker circuit. It became something of a cult hit in the industry and beyond. New look Suncity has relocated the poker room to level three of StarWorld, with 11 Texas Hold’em poker tables supplemented by a selection of more traditional Macau table games such as baccarat and the dice game sic bo , in order to draw in ethnic Chinese players to the zone and help create an extra ‘buzz’—an important element for many local table games aficionados. In another clever marketing move, the room promoters have signed Johnny Chan to give tutorial sessions in Texas Hold’em at the Poker King Club during November. Mr Chan, known as The Orient Express, promises to teach beginners some of the techniques used by professionals. Perhaps equally importantly, in a gaming market that prizes fairness in games above almost anything else, Suncity is also offering what it says are Macau’s first limited betting poker tables aimed specifically at new players, as well as no- limit tables for more experienced ones. Suncity Group operates six VIP clubs in five-star hotels and resorts in Asia, including the Suncity VIP Club in StarWorld. Another of its high roller operations is at Paradise Walker-Hill casino in South Korea. Poker More scenes from Poker King A celebrity turnout for the opening of Suncity’s Poker King Club 17