Ocala Gainesville Poker to close Saturday ahead of new OBS Ocala Bets card room

Alan Festo, Gainesville Sun
·2 min read
A poker player places a bet at Ocala Gainesville Poker in Orange Lake in April 2017. The card room off Highway 318 will host its final games on Saturday ahead of the planned opening of the new Ocala Bets at 1781 SW 60th Ave., Ocala.
A poker player places a bet at Ocala Gainesville Poker in Orange Lake in April 2017. The card room off Highway 318 will host its final games on Saturday ahead of the planned opening of the new Ocala Bets at 1781 SW 60th Ave., Ocala.

For those who may have put off visiting the cage at Ocala Gainesville Poker after a winning night at the tables, it's time to cash in those chips.

The chips will have no monetary value after the popular card room at 4601 W. County Road 318 in Orange Lake closes Saturday ahead of the opening of the new Ocala Bets across from the Ocala International Airport.

It will be the end of an era for the 60,000-square-foot jai alai fronton and off-track betting facility, which opened 50 years ago in 1973. Jai alai spectators — the place holds about 1,500 people — wagered on the fast-paced game.

As the popularity of jai alai has waned over the years, facilities across the state have turned to cardrooms as a way to stay profitable. Ocala Poker & Jai Alai, with the emphasis on poker, opened under its new name in May 2008.

Ocala Breeders Sales Co., which purchased the 50-acre property in July 2000 for $2.5 million, ultimately took over operation of the business in 2017 after Second Chance Jai Alai defaulted on its rental agreement and other payments.

OBS officially took over management of the facility in February of that year and rebranded it Ocala Gainesville Poker.

Calls to OBS President Tom Ventura regarding the new cardroom and what will happen to the current facility were not returned by press time.

A social media post from 92.5 WIND-FM radio on Tuesday asked people for their memories of Ocala Jai Alai. Many posted about past graduations, concerts and wrestling events.

“Loved going there on sat nights!” wrote one person. “Losing Money but Had a Blast,” wrote another.

Ocala Bets, 1781 SW 60th Ave., Ocala, is expected to hold a soft opening in early November, and features 35 card tables with Las Vegas-style games such as Texas Hold ‘Em, simulcast horse-racing wagering, a full-service restaurant and bar, massage services and more.

OBS' plans to open a cardroom date back to at least 2019, when it applied to the city of Ocala to open a location at its inter-track wagering facility across from the airport.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Ocala Gainesville Poker to close Saturday ahead of Ocala Bets opening