If you've never darkened the doors of the Stardust poker room, you've got only a month left to play some cards there. Officials with Boyd Gaming recently announced that the Stardust, in business since 1958, will close permanently on Nov. 1.
The hotel will be torn down in 2007 to make way for the new $4 billion Echelon Place, a collection of major and boutique hotels, a casino and entertainment, dining and retail outlets. It's been known for at least a year that the Stardust, former home to the likes of the Rat Pack and Wayne Newton, would be torn down, but the date of closure was only recently revealed.
The announcement of the closure has brought out Stardust fans, and apparently the hotel is sold out for its last month in operation.
The casino has a relatively small poker room, but has 10 a.m. tournaments several times a week. If nothing else, go to soak in the history. Earl, one of the dealers there, dealt at the World Series of Poker back in the 1970s and 1980s and shared a treasure trove of stories the last time I played there.
Echelon Place is scheduled to open in 2010.
