Golden Gates Casino Review
Golden Gates Casino is one of 18 gaming houses in Black Hawk’s historic casino district.
Golden Gates is owned and operated by national gambling enterprise Twin River Worldwide Holdings Inc. Based out of Lincoln, Rhode Island, Twin River owns and operates eight racetrack and casino operations across their home state as well as Delaware, Mississippi and Colorado.
Golden Gates is one of three Twin River casinos in Black Hawk, along with Mardi Gras and Golden Gulch. The sister casinos are located within walking distance of one another along the historic mining town’s half-mile gambling strip. In fact, Golden Gates and Mardi Gras are attached to one another via an enclosed skyway bridge.
The three neighboring locations feature a combined 36,000 square feet of gaming space, four bars and three restaurants. Between the three, patrons can enjoy 33 live-action tables and over 650 slot machines.
With legalized sports betting coming into play in Colorado as of May 1, Golden Gates Casino is expanding its gaming operations even further. The casino has partnered with a sportsbook to offer a new outlet for sports gambling enthusiasts.
Golden Gates Casino
• Address: 261 Main St., Black Hawk, CO
• Owner / Operator: Twin River Worldwide Holdings Inc.
• Hours: 24 hours / 7 days a week
• Casino games: approximately 650 slots, blackjack, craps, roulette, video poker
• Sportsbook: FanDuel’s Colorado Sportsbook launched the mobile sports betting app on May 1.
• Poker: Poker room with 17 poker tables
Golden Gates Sportsbook
Twin River Worldwide Holdings is already making the most of its three Colorado sports betting licenses. It signed on to an early partnerships with the two leaders in online sports betting, DraftKings and FanDuel.
FanDuel is a New York-based sports-tech entertainment company and Colorado is the fifth state to offer the company’s innovative online and mobile platform to gamblers. The company has changed the way sports fans interact with their favorite teams.
Gold Gates Casino will offer FanDuel as its online and mobile sportsbook. There should be a retail sportsbook at the property eventually.
CEO of FanDuel Group Matt King spoke on the company’s entry into Colorado:
“Colorado has a sensible framework for sports betting, and we are excited to partner with a renowned gaming company like Twin River to bring our market-leading online sports betting experience to Colorado sports fans.”
Golden Gates Casino floor
Golden Gates, Golden Gulch and Mardi Gras casinos boast more than 650 of the most popular video poker and slot machines in the city as well as a nice range of table games to choose from. Options range from penny bets up to $25 machines in the high-limit area.
Colorado maintains restrictions on what table games casinos are allowed to offer. Still, Golden Gates and its sister casinos have made do, offering 33 live-action tables that include craps, blackjack, roulette and several poker-based games.
Golden Gates poker room
Golden Gates is best known for its lively poker scene. The casino’s state-of-the-art Poker Parlour features 17 tables offering games like Omaha and Hold’em.
Although the poker room is the largest in Black Hawk, it also reserves a five-table overflow room to accommodate customers during tournaments. Golden Gates offers several options for poker enthusiasts. Casino goers may compete for cash and other prizes in daily tournaments or in cash games.
The Poker Parlour hosts poker tournaments on a regular basis and is home to the esteemed Colorado Poker Championship, which is a tournament that features a $500,000 prize pool.
Golden Gates also brings popular poker tours to its facility, including the Heartland Poker Tour and the Mid-States Poker Tour. These Golden Gates Casino events have resulted in tens of millions of dollars being awarded to participants.
Golden Gates rakeback program
Golden Gates Casino also offers poker players the chance to earn cash through gameplay. The rakeback program determines rewards based on hours of gameplay per week.
- 20 hours per week: $100 in cash
- 30 hours per week: $150 in cash
- 40 hours per week: $200 in cash
Poker players must cash out before the end of the following week or earning will be forfeited. Much like the casino’s loyalty program, which we discuss below, the rakeback program is affiliated with the A-Play Club and may be subject to change under Twin River ownership.
Golden Gates Casino loyalty program
As Golden Gates Casino’s ownership has recently changed hands, its loyalty program is transitioning from Affinity Gaming’s A-Play Club to Twin River Players Club. Under Affinity Gaming’s four-tiered system, gamblers could accumulate points for play at any of Affinity’s casinos in Colorado, Missouri, Iowa or Nevada locations.
With Twin Rivers Play Club’s three-tiered program, gamblers can earn and use points at any Twin River’s casinos in Rhode Island, Delaware, Mississippi and Colorado. The program starts with Premier, followed by Elite and then Club 100. Members can work their way up the tiers to earn specialty rewards and higher compensations.
Members can start earning rewards the day they sign up. Rewards are based on play and tier, the more you play the more rewards you will earn. Twin River rewards start with free slot play and extend to more luxurious rewards such as cruises and access to a VIP Lounge and Butler Suite.
To be more specific, each tier offers the below:
- Exclusive email and mail offers
- Free play
- Free valet and VIP parking
- Invites to exclusive parties and events
The above rewards cover all that is included with the Premier Club. However, higher tiers offer more rewards and higher compensations in addition to the above perks.
Once members move into the Elite Club, rewards include:
- Discounted lodging
- VIP Lounge access
- Priority valet
- VIP entertainment seating
- Priority ticket pick-up
- VIP entrance for events
- Priority restaurant reservation
- Expedited gift pick-up
- Same-day compensations
- Trip to Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
- Cruise giveaway
- Eligibility for trips to casino destinations
- Retail shopping discounts and more
Although the Elite Club offers great discounts and compensations to Play Club members, Club 100 is the Play Club’s highest and most exclusive tier.
In addition to the above rewards, Club 100 also includes:
- Cash advance reimbursement
- Gated parking area
- Ground transportation
- Butler Suite
- Check cashing
- VIP Lounge priority seating
Becoming a member is free and with the many amenities offered at Golden Gates and its sister casinos, there is no end to the options for gaming enthusiasts.
Golden Gates eateries and bars
Full House Café is conveniently located on the first floor of Golden Gates, right next to the gambling action. The café offers a modern selection of salads, burgers, wings and nachos.
Customers can also quench their thirst at the Gold Bar, which is located on the first floor of the Golden Gates Casino. The Gold Bar features a large selection of wine, draft beers and cocktails. The casino’s staff offers casino customers an enriched experience by providing machine-side and table-side cocktail services. Customers can also enjoy watching their favorite sports team on one of the many TV’s surrounding the Gold Bar.
History of Golden Gates Casino
When Colorado legalized casino gambling in 1991, Golden Gates Casino was one of the first gambling establishments to lay down its roots in Black Hawk. After its opening, the casino quickly established itself as a local watering hole by regularly offering live music and exciting poker tournaments.
Since its opening, Golden Gates has changed hands a few times. Before Twin River Holdings, Golden Gaming ran the three Black Hawk sister properties between 2005 and 2011. Affinity Gaming took over the trio in 2012, and the three casinos changed hands again just this year.
In January 2020, Twin River Worldwide Holdings Inc. purchased the trio of casinos with a hefty price tag of $51 million. In addition to the hotels, restaurants and gaming floors, Twin Rivers received the rights to three Colorado sports betting licenses in the acquisition.