Poker Rooms Near Myrtle Beach
If you live in the Palmetto State, your options are limited when it comes to
Texas holdem poker, or any other form of gambling for that matter. This state
has a hard-line stance on gambling and as such there are only a few forms that
are accepted.
So, unless you live near the border, or have a load of frequent flyer miles
saved up, you’ll need to take up another hobby that has no connection to
gambling or wagering whatsoever. At least that is if you wish to stay in South
Carolina.
Lottery
The only forms of gambling that are permitted in the state are lottery and
charity bingo games. Aside from this you can’t bet on anything legally, and if
you do so you could be in a lot of trouble with the authorities.
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Even holding a poker home game will land you in hot water if you get caught.
This was dragged through the courts for all to see in the last few years. A
group of people who were running a home game were charged and convicted, only
for this to be overturned on appeal.
They argued that poker was a game of skill and thus exempt from the game of
chance laws that prohibit gambling. The state then appealed this decision again
and won, with the original convictions being upheld. The fact that the state
went to all this trouble to ensure that those who were running home games were
charged and convicted paints a very clear picture for how gambling is treated in
this particular state.
Poker Rooms Near Myrtle Beach Area
As we touched on above, you can gamble in South Carolina on the lottery, and
also in charity bingo games. The hypocrisy is amazing, but the fact is the state
takes in a massive amount of revenue from the lottery that they can then
appropriate to other causes.
In South Carolina, the lottery raises money for education in the state with
almost $5 billion raised since inception in 2002. This is an amazing amount of
money and really goes a long way towards improving education. This money goes
towards high school programs, maintenance and upkeep of schools and higher
education support and scholarships.
It’s a win-win situation for the state as they can allow lottery gambling to
occur while bringing in a decent amount of money to benefit the state in the
long term. It does scream of hypocrisy though, especially considering that
lottery is so badly stacked against the player and no skill is involved at all,
unlike in poker.
So, if you wish to play lottery you’ll be able to participate in the big
draws like Powerball and Mega Millions. They also offer a number of smaller
games and scratch cards and pull tabs. These are really your only options in
relation to lottery games in the state as it’s all state controlled and
regulated.
Bingo
Bingo is permitted to raise money for charities and you’ll mostly find this
in churches and other community organizations. This has been allowed from 1976,
with stronger regulation coming in the 80s. In 2004 they also started permitting
electronic bingo machines. For a game to take place the organization running it
must be registered as a not for profit entity. This ensures that no money is
being made for profit and it is going towards a charity.
Your Only Poker Option
If you love Texas holdem poker there’s one option for you in South Carolina,
but it only applies if you live near Myrtle Beach. The Big M casino cruise is
the only way you can gamble in the state, and even on this you’ll have to travel
out into international waters to do so, or at least waters that aren’t
considered state owned.
On one of their ships they offer a $2 / $5 no limit Texas holdem cash table
and even have a bad beat jackpot. You’ll only be able to play for up to five
hours each time. Even though this is quite limiting and doesn’t give you the
flexibility you have with a real land based casino poker room, it should be able
to scratch that itch you get without having to travel to New Jersey or Las
Vegas.
This ship also offers a range of other casino games including blackjack,
craps, roulette, 3 card poker, and Let It Ride. They also have slots if you
really want to try to luck out and make back some of those bad beat losses at
the poker table.
Finally, the Big M casino cruise also offers video poker games if you want to
go it solo for a while, and as we all know the pay back percentages on these
machines are quite good.
If you want land based poker action and you’re willing to drive, you’ll have
to go a fair way to find a casino and poker room. The closest is probably in
Jacksonville, Florida, depending on where you are in the state.
After this you’ll have to do some even more serious travel to West Virginia
which offers five poker rooms, or all the way up to Maryland for some even
larger rooms and decent action.
In these cases, you’ll probably be driving for longer than a flight to Las
Vegas or New Jersey so you may as well take the latter option and really go all
out for some awesome Teas holdem poker action.
Online Poker
Now we’ll turn our attention to the online world and try to provide you with
some advice in relation to gambling online when you’re in South Carolina.
Firstly, there are no direct laws that prohibit residents of this state from
gambling online, although this is a bit of a grey area and the lack of law
doesn’t always mean you are safe to do so.
Some states apply an interpretation to gambling law which suggests that land
based laws apply to the online world as if playing online would be the same as
playing in a land based casino. Even if they do this, your chances of getting in
trouble with the law if you were to play online poker or other casinos at an
off-shore site are very low. But you still could land in hot water, so we
suggest always taking a cautious approach in this respect and we wouldn’t
recommend that you play via an online offshore casino or card room.
The state of South Carolina is highly unlikely to regulate online poker soon.
We’ve really covered earlier why this is the case but with such a negative and
restrictive viewpoint in relation to all gambling it’s very unlikely they would
buck this and implement regulations to allow for online poker organizations to
operate within the state.
It may happen one day but it will be a long way off, and only maybe when
people can really start to challenge the hypocrisy in allowing some forms of
gaming and not others. Also, the challenge to the fact that poker is a game of
skill and not luck, could well result in the game being legalized in the state
soon. But this is probably a fair way off.
Native Indian Gaming
Native Indian tribes in South Carolina have been fighting for years to build
casinos and offer gambling, but this has always been rejected by the government.
It’s safe to say that this will continue to be the case at least for a few more
generations. In 20 to 30 years however, when gaming and gambling begins to open
up around the rest of the country South Carolina may well follow suit.
The simple fact is that the state is almost completely land locked by other
states that also restrict gaming, so the close neighbor argument won’t work here
until other states change.
Conclusion
If you love Texas holdem poker and live in South Carolina, you’ll need to
move to a better state to be able to play regularly. You just won’t have enough
options to keep you covered, unless you only want to play for a few hours every
week or two.
This just isn’t enough for most players so you may need to make the big move
south to Florida to get all the poker action you need. You’ll find a huge number
of poker rooms in this state and a great community where people truly love the
game and are able to play whenever they like. Florida residents and visitors are
able to enjoy the relaxed state laws and the sheer volume of poker tables that
exist everywhere in this sunny and warm state.
The future isn’t bright for Teas holdem in the state of South Carolina, so if
you have plans to ride it out and wait, you could be waiting a long time. In the
meantime, you’ll need to head out on a cruise or buy a ticket in the Powerball
or Mega Millions to get any kind of poker or gambling buzz.
Like its nearest neighbors Georgia and North Carolina, South Carolina has adopted a very conservative stance towards real money gambling expansion. In fact, the Palmetto State is so traditional that just the mention of state regulated real cash Texas Hold’em poker and other Internet gambling games would probably be enough to set its officials into a tizzy.
No, the prospects of legit iGaming and real money Internet poker ever being regulated under SC law are pretty dim. Now, that doesn’t mean Internet gambling and betting games like Texas Hold’em poker online will never reach the citizens of Columbia, Charleston and Myrtle Beach. It’s just that several factors will have to line up perfectly before any progress is made with regard to lawful online gambling on real money poker websites.
As of today, it is our opinion that South Carolina is currently one of the five U.S states least likely to regulate online poker and other legal Internet betting games in the foreseeable future.
Finding a real money US poker site can be a challenge if you’re in The Palmetto State. Lucky for you, we’ve found the best poker websites for South Carolina gamblers.
The South Carolina Gambling Poll of 2013
Quick Jump
- 5 The Facts
Unfortunately, Republican Governor Nikki Haley is morally opposed to the idea. So much so, that her personal objections supersede her willingness to create 10,000 new jobs via the construction of a brick and mortar casino. That’s a shame, especially considering that since the end of 2013, South Carolina’s unemployment rate has been higher than the national average [2].
Can Players from South Carolina Play Online Poker?
Yes! Despite the state’s vehement stance against regulated gambling, SC residents should have no trouble creating an account and depositing funds onto any of the US poker rooms on our homepage in order to enjoy some exciting Internet poker gambling for real cash. However, players should be warned that South Carolina’s leniency towards online poker betting may change at some point in the future. Our guidelines will be updated to reflect any noteworthy changes.
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Is Online Poker Legal in South Carolina?
There is no state legislature that specifically addresses the legality of online gambling and playing games like Texas Hold’em poker. So, while iGaming will probably never be regulated by the State, it may never be directly outlawed either. With that said, South Carolina’s gambling statues are among the strictest we’ve come across.
Currently, due to the state’s outdated gambling statues, the legality of real money online poker and betting on Internet websites resides in a murky gray area, and can be interpreted a number of different ways. Of course, it’s always best to seek professional advice regarding sensitive legal matters, and we encourage you to do so before playing any gambling games online.
In the meantime, we have taken the liberty to dissect SC’s existing gambling laws, as listed below:
- South Carolina’s gambling statues do not provide a definition of gambling. However, they do explicitly state that any game involving cards of dice (such as Texas Hold’em poker or craps), or any gaming table, in so long as the game takes place at any tavern, inn, store for the retailing of spirituous liquors or in any house used as a place of gaming is unlawful, regardless of whether any wagering takes place. The penalties for participating in unlawful games and betting are imprisonment for a period of not over thirty days and a fine of not over one hundred dollars.
- The owner of the tavern, inn, retail store, public place or house used as a place of gaming is subject to much harsher penalties, including twelve months in prison and a two thousand dollar fine. Section 16-19-40.
- In keeping with its Bible belt traditions, South Carolina’s gambling laws ban any game from being played on the Sabbath (Sunday). The penalty for breaking the law is fifty dollars. Section 16-19-70.
- Betting on elections is considered a misdemeanor. Upon being convicted, guilty parties shall be fined a sum not exceeding five hundred dollars and be imprisoned not exceeding one month. Section 16-19-90.
- Merely keeping a gaming table for playing Texas Hold’em Poker or any other betting game at one’s home is worthy of a $200 – $500 fine.
- All sums of money staked, betted or pending on the event of any game can be seized by state officials. Section 16-19-80
- There is no mention of the words, Internet, computer or online anywhere in South Carolina’s gambling laws.
As clearly evident, SC, at least in theory, takes the issue of gambling very seriously. However, it also seems as though the statues haven’t been updated in decades, and are probably not a reflection of the SC State’s current stance.
To read more about South Carolina’s gambling laws [3], refer to the “References” section.
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The Facts
The History of Gambling in South Carolina
Accounts of gambling in the Palmetto State date back to the late 1700s. During the state’s early days, its inhabitants would actively gamble on the results of dog fights, wrestling, boxing, horse races and other competitive sports. Laws were enforced to prevent such activities in the 1800s, but it wasn’t until the mid 20th century that law enforcements agencies really began to crack down on gambling activities, particularly games like Texas Hold’em and other variants of poker.
In the 1970s and 1980s, establishments began installing video slot machines. Owners cleverly circumvented the law by paying winners out directly with real cash, as opposed to the machines. A 1991 Supreme Court ruling deemed that businesses that conducted gambling affairs in this manner did not break the law.
However, by 2000 the Supreme Court found all video gambling machines unconstitutional. Shortly thereafter, nearly 33,000 gambling machines such as video poker machines were removed or disabled.
Ironically, that same year, South Carolina voters elected to support a statewide lottery. The first lottery ticket was sold a year later, and the lottery remains a staple of South Carolina’s lawful betting and gambling culture to this day.
In 2011, law enforcement agencies seized over $2 million from two companies accused of transferring funds to online real cash poker players. The companies in question were also accused of money laundering, fraud and for violating the UIGEA.
Regulated Gambling Options in South Carolina
There aren’t many. South Carolina does not permit any form of poker games or gambling outside of the legal state lottery and charitable bingo. Indian and commercial casinos are prohibited, as is any form of pari-mutuel betting.
Playing poker in a home, even if no real money or rake is involved, is considered illegal. Horseracing, casino nights and slot machines are also banned.
The Future of Regulated Online Gambling in South Carolina
Considering that South Carolina’s powers have just begun to play with the idea of legalized gambling, it’s safe to assume that online wagering and Internet poker will not be regulated by the state any time soon, especially if anti-gambling proponent Nikki Haley remains in a position of power.
If you’re a poker player in South Carolina, you’ll have a solid choice of quality online poker rooms from which to choose.
Other South Carolina Gambling News
In early 2012, a proposal to open a resort casino in Hardeeville, SC, was brought before state legislators. Fearing that a casino would negatively impact tourism to Hilton Head, most state officials opposed the idea.
Leading the anti-casino charge was Governor Nikki Haley, who ever since her election in 2010 made it very clear that she will not support the construction of a casino. Without her approval, it’s very unlikely that the resort will be permitted until at least early 2015 [4].
Poker Rooms Near Myrtle Beach Nc
In other news, the state’s only federally recognized Indian tribe, the Catawba, has been fighting to open a gambling facility within its York County reservation. However, to date, they’ve had little luck securing approval from government officials.
Fun Fact
In a surprise turn of events, South Carolinian officials approved a bill that would allow local governments to regulate casino cruise ships. The bill was passed in 2005, and since that time, thousands of South Carolina’s residents have set sail from one of the state’s many docks to play Las Vegas-style real money gambling games such as Blackjack, Roulette and Craps [5].
The Bottom Line
South Carolina’s repressive gambling laws are beginning to come under fire. In 2012, the state’s Supreme Court ruled that poker (Texas Hold’em, etc.) was a game of skill [6]. Furthermore, the video gaming machines that were banned in 2000 are making a comeback, this time as sweepstakes machines. Given enough pressure, state officials may be forced to lighten their anti-gambling position, maybe even enough to finally approve an Indian or commercial casino that would be able to offer games like legal real cash poker and other casino games.
While this still doesn’t mean iGaming and playing poker on Internet websites will be regulated by the state any time soon, it does provide citizens with a spark of hope – but only a spark. The reality is that until the Federal government steps in and passes a bill that regulates online poker betting throughout the United States, it’s unlikely that South Carolina will even address the matter.
References
[1] ↑SC Gambling Poll in the Field
[2] ↑Bureau of Labor Statistic – South Carolina
[3] ↑South Carolina Gambling Laws
[4] ↑Deck still stacked against Hardeeville casino project
[5] ↑South Carolina Bill Narrowly Approved
[6] ↑South Carolina Supreme Court Opinion No. 27197 – Filed November 21, 2012
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