WSOP Riverboat undergoes Huge Change

Those who regularly follow World Series of Poker Circuit play will notice that one of the venues for it has undergone a big change; Caesars Indiana has been completely remodeled and the name of the riverboat casino complex has been changed to Horseshoe Southern Indiana. The name of the actual riverboat – “Glory of Rome” – has also been changed to “The Legend” and the 750 pound statue of Caesar was removed too.

With the remodeling of the riverboat casino complex completed, the Horseshoe Southern Indiana will now feature 7 restaurants, a golf course, two parking decks, a showroom, and a hotel. The World Series of Poker Room has also been redone and the area will hold over 30 tables and has been billed as “one of the largest poker rooms between Las Vegas and Atlantic City.” The Legend riverboat itself is now known as the largest riverboat casino in the world as well as the largest riverboat of any kind in the United States.

Still owned by Harrah’s Entertainment, the Horseshoe Southern Indiana is currently playing host to its 2008/2009 WSOP Circuit event. Samuel Oberlin leads the Championship Event with 229,000 chips and has the best poker odds to win at the final table; play will conclude later today. Wilbur Futhey won the Caesars Indiana Championship Event earlier this year on April 18th when he beat out Steve Merrifield to claim the prize of $180,289 for first place.

This is the fourth year that the World Series of Poker has used the Horseshoe Southern Indiana/Caesars Indiana location as a circuit event venue. The first event that the riverboat hosted was held on November 2nd of 2005, when Vinny Vihn outlasted Men Nguyen to win the Championship Event and he also claimed the first place prize of $437,760.

The Horseshoe Southern Indiana is located on the Ohio River just outside of Elizabeth, Indiana and across from Louisville, Kentucky. The riverboat casino was opened by Harrah’s in 1998 and has served as a big gambling destination for an area where few land-based casinos are allowed to operate. With the remodeling that has been done, Harrah’s Entertainment hopes to attract even more people to its newly anointed Horseshoe Southern Indiana location. Harrah’s Entertainment operates many land-based businesses throughout the world that include casinos, hotels, and golf courses.