The result, at least for the past 48 hours - nobody wants to play without the lures of big money. Turner said it has been the same thing at the other 20-plus parlors up and down S.C. 29. Every parlor on this road was busy all the time. It was common practice for poker parlors to pay off the jackpot price that had built up on a machine, even though it wasn't legal to do it. It's just now the state of South Carolina has decided to enforce it.
Players know the chance for big money is gone, and now the players are gone, too.
The money that built up on each machine used to be displayed at the top, in big bold numbers for the players to see. But Mrs. Ringer said there is now the possibility of criminal charges against poker parlor operators who break the law and make hefty payouts. South Carolina Law Enforcement Divsion officers used to have to catch the exchange in person to arrest someone for illegal payments, but no more. Mrs. Ringer said now an officer can issue a citation just by seeing a display advertising a payout. The effects across the line from Grover were immediate.