Bellagio’s Poker Room Renamed From “Bobby’s Room” to “Legends Room”

One of the most famous high-stakes poker room in the world of poker has just been renamed. The room, which is located in Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip has just changed its name from “Bobby’s Room” to “Legends Room.” The high-stakes private cardroom was named after the Main Event champion and casino executive, Bobby Baldwin.

For decades, some of the best and highly-famous poker players have come in their numbers to play in the famous “Bobby’s room.” “The Big Game,” which is the most coveted high-stakes cash poker game has been hosted in this poker room since its inception. Players like Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, Gus Hansen, Jennifer Harman, e.t.c. have all made appearances at this event where regular buy-ins go up to $200,000+.

The recent for this name change is still unclear, but the poker community is linking it to the fact that it is because the Poker Hall of Famer, whose name is on the door of the room, does not work at MGM Resorts anymore. Bobby Baldwin’s announcement came about a year ago as he is taking up a new position as CEO of The Drew Las Vegas.

Baldwin’s famous win at the 1978 World Series of Poker Main Event is perhaps the main reason for the poker room to be named after him. He was, at the time, the youngest to ever win the Main Event championship at twenty-eight. The Oklahoma-native decided to stick around Las Vegas, and this move proved very beneficial to him. He now has four WSOP bracelets and plays more cash games rather than tournaments.

You can link the start of his corporate career back to his consultancy job with the Golden Nuggets in 1982. Two years later, he became the casino’s president. In 1987, Steve Wynn hired him to be the president of the Mirage. He was also the Chief Financial Officer of Mirage Resorts, which was later known as MGM Resorts after a merger. Baldwin was the president of Bellagio for 18 long years, which started in the year 2000. His departure in October 2018 came as a shock as there was little fanfare as he parted ways with the company. MGM Resorts also barely said anything as to why he is no longer with them. The rumor was that he got forced out of the organization.

Drew Las Vegas announced about a year ago that Bobby Baldwin is the CEO of the casino, which is scheduled to open in 2022. The casino is still under construction as the abandoned Fontainebleu Las Vegas was purchased in 2017 by Witkoff and New Valley and will now be called Drew Las Vegas upon completion.

Fans and players alike have expressed their displeasure with the renaming. Many see it as petty, that is, if the real reason for the name change was because he decided to take up a job elsewhere. Some others are distraught with the name change and are disappointed that nothing is sacred anymore.

The change is still a mystery as nothing was done at the time Baldwin departed MGM. Rumors flew around at the time, but Bellagio put out a statement saying that it would keep the name in recognition of the two-time WSOP bracelet winner. Also, the Covid-19 pandemic took everyone’s attention for the better part of the year. Suddenly, the plaque in front of the door now reads “Legends room.” Bellagio has not commented yet, perhaps, that will help the poker community better understand why the change had to happen.