“It’s much better than Charles Town where at 10-person tables, maybe eight of the players were pros,” he said of the West Virginia’s Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. The new poker room is a great place to earn easy money because many players aren’t as experienced, said North Potomac resident and semi-professional poker player Mikey Stotz. But the spread of online poker and the emergence of casino poker rooms in 36 states has given professionals a chance to establish a base of operations elsewhere.Īnd professionals who hail from Maryland said the new 52-table Maryland Live poker room, which opened in August, has made it easier to earn a living close to home. once required residing in Las Vegas or Atlantic City. Working as a professional poker player in the U.S. “It’s awesome that’s there’s a casino in our backyard.” “Maryland players have been waiting to call somewhere home,” said Baltimore resident and professional player Matthew Pecker. COLLEGE PARK – The new poker room at Maryland Live, one of the East Coast’s largest, is allowing more local poker pros to find high-stakes games close to home, contributing to the development of a strong poker scene in the state.