Poker in Genting Highlands

Playing Poker in Malaysia will not be the first thing that comes to mind for most people but do stay till the end as we show you why it is worth a trip as a poker grinder. Buckle up as we rank them based on our top 5 most crucial factors that will make or break your trip! 

The poker room is located in SkyCasino Level 3 in the Gold Club lounge. To gain access to the Gold Club for poker, simply head to the information counter on level 2 to get a temporary pass or if you possess a Silver Membership Card and above, you can simply take the escalator up and scan your card to enter.

Volume
The poker room has a maximum capacity of 8 tables. On a daily basis, there will be about 1-3 tables running across the smallest stake 10/20 (10) RM with an ante of 10 RM for each player. Occasionally there will be games that run on 25/50 (25) RM but will only be held once every month or two depending on the crowd requests. 

Skill Level

10/20 (10) RM

Most players that patronise the poker room are recreational players and visiting the poker room is probably on the last of their to-do-list which means some of them are there to punt and have fun. Occasionally there might be a couple of grinders but I would not be too worried about them since there are enough action players to go around.

The players on average are inexperienced and not well studied. For any for-profit serious players, they will definitely have a skill edge across the room. The tables are concentrated with players that love to spur actions and see the flop. This means that there are a lot of bluffs going on and it is very common to play ultra-way pots.

With the ante in play for all players coupled with a capped buy-in of 200BB, the NITs are severely punished as they will be constantly bleeding their stack away and over-folding to aggression from the shorter stacks. If you are trying to avoid a nit-fest, this game will be best suited for you.

However, with all that was said, it is crucial to understand how to navigate ultra-way post-flop.

Rake

10/20 (10) RM: 5% (Capped at 7.5BB)

25/50 (25) RM: 5% (Capped at 4BB)

With the room mainly running on 10/20 (10) RM, be prepared to face a higher rake environment than most poker rooms in Asia. The poker room does offer insurance in an all-in situation and because of that, running twice will not be allowed.

The minimum buy-in for 10/20 (10) RM in Genting Highlands is RM1000 (~50BB) while the maximum buy-in is RM4000 (~200BB).

Services

There is no food and beverage service in the poker room but there is a self-service hot beverage dispenser right across the poker room. 

Perks

There are no additional benefits for playing in the poker room.

Additional Information 

• Changing of seats will only be allowed once a day 
• Poker chips are different from the general casino. You will have to exchange from the counter (in the poker room) before starting your game
• Dining while playing is strictly not allowed while you can seat out to grab your meals, you only have the time of 2 orbits (2 missed big blinds and your chips are collected)
• You can WhatsApp/WeChat call the poker room for your name to be pre-listed before heading to the poker room

OUR VERDICT
Volume: ★☆☆☆☆ (Very limited running tables which means waiting time could be long..)
Skill Level: ★★★★★ (One of the softest poker room I have ever played in!)
Rake: ★☆☆☆☆ (Rake structure is considerably high at the most played stakes..)
Service: ☆☆☆☆☆ (Sadly, there are no service in the room..)
Perks: ☆☆☆☆☆ (Sadly, there are no perks for poker players..)

Overall: 1.4/5

At ThePokerExpat, we have rated Genting Highlands 1.4 out of 5. Despite the ratings given, we feel that due to the softness of the game, we highly recommend for-profit grinders to visit the room and take a shot.

Disclaimer: Our opinions are based on experiences during our stay and our competency in the game. This is also not a paid article. Good luck at the tables!