TABC Raids The Lodge Card Club as Doug Polk Pledges to Protect Players

The Lodge Card Club was closed to poker players on Tuesday this week as Doug Polk, Brad Owen and Andrew Neeme’s popular Texas cardroom was raided by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC). With almost 70 tables in the club and a World Poker Tour event in action, the immediate shutdown of the club caused chaos, with players told to take their chips home, and Doug Polk calling it a ‘witch hunt’.

Lodge Card Club Thrown into Chaos

“Until this situation is fully understood, The Lodge Card Club is closed.”

Players reacted in shock on Tuesday night as The Lodge Card Club was closed for business immediately as the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) raided the Round Rock venue. The Lone Star State’s biggest poker room was in shock, as agents swarmed the property and told players to take chips home with them.

As the TABC claimed suspecting money laundering and illegal gambling at the venue, Doug Polk – not in the building at the time of closure – maintained there has been no illegal activity and that the raid constituted a ‘witch hunt’. While no arrests have been made, the venue’s immediate shutdown threatens staff livelihoods and events such as the World Poker Tour’s Wacky Weekend Wildcard.

After the controversy, Polk promised to reimburse all players in full, guaranteeing what could be over $1 million in personal compensation. Texas poker rooms exist in something of a muddy territory in terms of gambling law, where a flat membership fee gets around anti-gambling laws.

The Lodge Card Club then put out a statement about the TABC raid and what they understood to be the situation.

“Our attorneys are working to understand the reasons behind the search, but at this time, the situation has not been explained to us,” the statement read. “This is obviously upsetting, and until this situation is fully understood, The Lodge Card Club is closed.”

Tom Dwan Wades into Row

“You still allegedly owe tens of millions.”

After the Lodge made the statement, Polk put out his own words on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I am waiting on some additional information, but I will make an in-depth statement within the next day about what is going on with The Lodge.”

A surprising player got in touch in the public space, as the former Full Tilt Poker legend Tom ‘Durrrr’ Dwan replied to Polk’s words.

“You made a lot of your brand out of going after people in times like this,” said Dwan. “I hope you can take a minute to reflect, and realize the negatives of some of those choices. Hope you do stuff like that less in the future.”

Perhaps understandably, Polk was not in the mood, and shot back an acidic retort.

“I have personally guaranteed that all player funds will be safe as this witch hunt from TABC plays out. You still allegedly owe tens of millions. Shut the f*ck up.”

Brad Owen also stepped in to defend his friend and co-owner Polk.

“I feel compelled to stand up for Doug in this instance because I know how much time and effort he’s put into making the room as good as possible – to look after players, employees, and shareholders, and to ensure a lot of safety measures are in place that plenty of other rooms don’t have. I could give many examples of him going above and beyond, but personally guaranteeing players will get their funds back when it’s likely going to be somewhere in the seven-figure range speaks volumes on its own.”

When Will The Lodge Re-Open for Business?

The question of when and whether The Lodge Card Club will be back open for business is a very difficult one to answer. While charges remain possible, The Lodge will need to rely on its legal team to step in and invalidate the TABC’s claims of wrongdoing at the club. However, legally, the onus is more on TABC to prove not only guilt if the case came to court but evidence to justify the club’s closure.

This is not the first time that Texas authorities have been accused of being heavy-handed in closing popular poker venues. While there have been a number of shootings in the state that have enforced closure, other examples have shone a light on the trigger-happy nature of the local authorities, and angered poker players who believed themselves to be doing nothing wrong.

The Lodge Card Club remains closed for the meantime, but in due course, we would expect Polk, Owen and Neeme to fight this jurisdiction with everything they have. Polk is a ClubWPT Gold ambassador and both Owen and Neeme have previously worn the WPT patch. Being a part of the World Poker Tour’s national circuit of casinos to host WPT events is a prestigious part of The Lodge’s appeal and we would expect wheels to turn quickly in this case as The Lodge looks to clear its name and return to hosting tournaments and cash games in the coming weeks.