Online gambling is up and running in Pennsylvania, with two casinos, Parx and Penn National’s Hollywood, leading the way. Wind Creek in Bethlehem and other casinos around the state are expected to join the action soon, offering online poker, slots and other casino-style games on websites and mobile applications.
Pennsylvania is the fourth state to legalize online betting, after Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware. The 2017 law approved by the Legislature requires bettors have established accounts with a casino, be 21 or older, and be in Pennsylvania.
The PA online gambling market is now firing on all cylinders. You have multiple online casinos and PA sports betting sites to choose from. Pennsylvania players can also play legal online poker. If you want to get playing right now, there are plenty of great regulated gambling sites and legal online casino sites in PA. Legal Online Poker Online poker became legal in Pennsylvania in 2018, allowing players across the state to engage in thrilling cash games and tournaments in a safe and regulated environment.
Winning poker is also a science. So, to play poker well, you need to study hard. Studying well means that you know what and why you learned on a single day, and you have plans for how to use this knowledge in the future. It's time to work on the bugs. The secret of poker. State-regulated, real-money online poker is legally available in only a handful of states. As of July 2020, players in New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Delaware enjoy access to legal online poker sites.
As part of the law, airports will be allowed to set up interactive gambling parlors; truck stops will be permitted five video gaming terminals.
Do you expect to try any of the internet gambling options on your PC, tablet or phone? Have a say in our informal, unscientific poll, and feel free to elaborate in the comment section.
There is a mystery in Pennsylvania.
On Monday, July 15, regulated online gaming launched in the state by way of a law that was passed in October 2017. And though online poker was a part of that gaming expansion and is now legal in Pennsylvania, no online poker sites were a part of that launch.
Is Online Poker Legal In Pa
According to state officials, poker operators were not ready for the launch.
However, several of said operators have launched online poker in at least one other state – and have done so successfully with much less time to prepare – and have offered ring-fenced online poker in other parts of the world.
The mystery surrounding online poker in Pennsylvania continues.
It's encouraging to see all the interest in online poker, but we're still a few months away from that launch in Pennsylvania. Sorry. pic.twitter.com/roOPzQjpdr
— OnlinePokerReport (@OPRupdate) July 17, 2019
Online Casino Games Available
Two online casino sites went live on Monday, July 15. Online Poker Report monitored the launches and reported on what Pennsylvania players could see and do on the first days of action.
The first site to launch was Hollywood Casino. Within the first hour of availability, players could sign up for new accounts via all desktops and Android devices, though there were initial problems with iPhone and iPad offerings.
Hollywood Casino offered 40 online slot games, video poker, and baccarat, though it is likely that more games will soon be added as the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) approves individual games.
Hours later, Parx Casino launched its online casino, and it was also available to players on desktops and Android devices but no iOS operations yet.
Parx showed up with 191 online slot games, video poker, a poker variation called PokerBet, and some slot tournaments. There were also a number of table games, such as blackjack and roulette.
Two days later, SugarHouse Casino made its online casino available to the public with 22 slot games online but no video poker or table games.
Where is Online Poker?
There are no direct answers.
Before the July 15 launch, when it remained unclear as to whether online poker would be available with casino games online, Pokerfuse obtained a vague answer. “We’re working with our partners and the authorities to finalize plans and bring our leading brands to PA’s players as soon as possible,” said a Stars Group representative. “There’s a lot to look forward to, so rest assured we’ll be in touch with more details as soon as they’re available.”
Hi Keith — We are not live in PA yet as we are still working with our partners and the authorities to finalize plans to bring our leading brands to PA’s players and will do so as soon as possible. We will be in touch with more details as soon as they’re available.
— PokerStars (@PokerStars) July 20, 2019
When it was clear that poker was not part of the Monday launches, Pokerfuse reached out to the PGCB for answers. As it turns out, they had none.
PGCB Communications Director Doug Harbach was asked about online poker availability and commented, “We cannot predict a timeline on that right now.”
Harbach added, “Poker will be rolled out when operators are prepared to do so.” He also said that online poker sites will be able to launch individually when ready instead of waiting for any type of coordinated launch date.
Hi, unfortunately we don't have an exact date yet
— partypoker (@partypoker) July 20, 2019
Online Casinos in Court
An interesting side note to the online casino part of the new Pennsylvania market is that several sites were available to launch despite being engaged in a legal battle with the state’s lottery operator.
In May 2018, the Pennsylvania Lottery launched scratch-off lottery games available for purchase on the internet. The iLottery was immediately met with anger from casinos, though.
Best Legal Online Poker Sites
In August 2018, a group of seven Pennsylvania casinos headed to court to stop the iLottery program in its entirety, alleging that casinos have exclusive rights to offer any type of slot machine-style games of chance. The list of casinos included Parx, Hollywood, Harrah’s, Stadium, Valley Forge, and Mohegan Sun, all of which have been approved for online gambling.
A coalition of Pennsylvania casinos has filed suit in Commonwealth Court, seeking to stop the Pa. Lottery from offering casino-style online games. The casinos had warned in late June that they would take action if the games weren't stopped https://t.co/ZQkQL5bgvL
— Jon Harris (@ByJonHarris) August 22, 2018
Less than one week before the online casino launch date of July 15, Commonwealth Court Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer ruled against those casinos, denying their preliminary injunction request to shut down the iLottery. In essence, online lottery games and online casinos are now competing for gambling dollars.
The lawsuit continues despite the lack of an injunction, as the group of casinos continue to pursue remedies in the court system.
'Friday's decision in Commonwealth Court is a victory for the state lottery, although the casino owners' 9-month-old lawsuit will continue.' https://t.co/bKaU9h42vK
— Ashley Cafaro (@WENYAshleyC) July 13, 2019