The Mayfair Club was a cardroom in New York City. Originally starting as a bridge and backgammon club, it eventually became "the most touted card club in New York" until its abrupt closing by authorities in 2000. [1] Unlike the other gamehalls in the city, the Mayfair Club kept a low profile in a basement. During the poker era, Mayfair games and tournaments were dealt by the players as opposed to professional dealers in a casino environment. Mayfair Club games were also noted for their high stakes and elite competition. [2]
Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table. Millions of people play bridge worldwide in clubs, tournaments, online and with friends at home, making it one of the world's most popular card games, particularly among seniors. The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is the governing body for international competitive bridge, with numerous other bodies governing bridge at the regional level.
Backgammon is one of the oldest known board games. Its history can be traced back nearly 5,000 years to archeological discoveries in Mesopotamia. It is a two player game where each player has fifteen pieces (checkers) which move between twenty-four triangles (points) according to the roll of two dice. The objective of the game is to be first to bear off, i.e. move all fifteen checkers off the board. Backgammon is a member of the tables family, one of the oldest classes of board games.
A cardroom or card room is a gaming establishment that exclusively offers card games for play by the public. The term poker room is used to describe a dedicated room in casinos that is dedicated to playing poker and in function is similar to a card room.
The Mayfair Club developed a reputation as a training ground for poker players in the mid-eighties as a result of a small group of elite players who played at the club. In the 1987 World Series of Poker (WSOP), Mayfair Club regulars finished very high in the Main Event. Jay Heimowitz finished in 11th place, Mickey Appleman in 8th, Dan Harrington in 6th, and Howard Lederer in 5th. This strong showing was repeated in the 1988 WSOP when Jay Heimowitz finished in 15th place, and Erik Seidel in 2nd place. [3] Heimowitz had previously finished third in the 1980 WSOP Main Event and sixth in the 1981 rendition. As of January 2009, these five former Mayfair Club players have won a total of 22 WSOP bracelets, four World Poker Tour titles, and numerous other poker accolades. In 1995, Dan Harrington won the WSOP Main Event, and he went on to make the final table of the main event in 2003 and 2004, for a total of four WSOP Main Event final table appearances. They have also written numerous books and articles. The Mayfair was also home court for business executive Wendeen Eolis, the first woman to cash in the Main Event, namely the 1986 rendition. Other famous players such as Noli Francisco, Steve Zolotow, Stu Ungar, David Catapano, Howard Lederer, Erik Seidel, Jason Lester and Paul Magriel became club regulars, too, further enhancing the club's reputation as the premier poker club in New York. Later, the Chesterfield Club in the film Rounders was modeled after the Mayfair Club. [4]
Poker is a family of card games that combines gambling, strategy, and skill. All poker variants involve betting as an intrinsic part of play, and determine the winner of each hand according to the combinations of players' cards, at least some of which remain hidden until the end of the hand. Poker games vary in the number of cards dealt, the number of shared or "community" cards, the number of cards that remain hidden, and the betting procedures.
The 1987 World Series of Poker (WSOP) was a series of poker tournaments held at Binion's Horseshoe.
Jay B. Heimowitz is an American poker player from Bethel, New York. Heimowitz was one of the original players to help establish the Mayfair Club as a premier poker house.
In October 2008, TV show Poker After Dark featured "Mayfair Week" with six prominent players who had their beginnings at the Mayfair Club.
Poker After Dark is an hour-long poker television program on NBC. The show made its debut on January 1, 2007, and was canceled on December 3, 2011, following the "Black Friday" criminal case, which involved major sponsor Full Tilt Poker as one of the defendants. For its first two seasons, both of which originally aired in 2007, the show was presented by Shana Hiatt. The host for season 3 was Marianela Pereyra, and Leeann Tweeden took over starting with season 4. All seasons have contained voice-over commentary by Oliver "Ali" Nejad.
As the state of New York considers poker to be a game of chance, it is legal to play, but illegal for the host to garner a profit. [2] In other words, one can legally play and win, but operating a poker club is illegal. [5] For years, the Mayfair Club and other established underground poker clubs, were an "open secret among law enforcement officials". [6] Prior to 2000, whenever a poker club was closed down by the police, it was due to criminal offenses (usually drugs or weapons). [2] In 2000, Mayor Rudy Giuliani's "Quality of Life" campaign led to the closure of the Mayfair Club and other game halls in New York. [2] [7]
Underground poker is poker played in a venue that is not operating in accordance with the gaming laws of its jurisdiction.
Rudolph William Louis Giuliani is an American politician, attorney, businessman, and public speaker who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He currently acts as an attorney to President Donald Trump. Politically a Democrat, then an Independent in the 1970s, and a Republican since the 1980s, Giuliani served as United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 1983. That year he became the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, holding the position until 1989. He prosecuted cases against the American Mafia and against corrupt corporate financiers.
