Nik Airball, Rampage Invest in Texas' Largest Poker Room
The Lodge Card Club in Texas has two new investors — Nikhil "Nik Airball" Arcot and Ethan "Rampage" Yau — both polarizing figures in poker, Doug Polk disclosed in a YouTube video.
The card room operates two locations, one in the Austin area (Round Rock) and the other in San Antonio. Polk, Andrew Neeme, and Brad Owen are already part of the ownership team in what is the largest card room in Texas, and have been since January 2022. But the investor roster, along with the business, is growing.
Texas Poker Room is Growing
Polk, in his announcement video, referred to his new co-owners as "two of the largest personalities in poker today, and they certainly make things more entertaining." Rampage and Airball have large followings and often attract high viewership when they compete on shows such as Hustler Casino Live.
Airball confirmed to PokerNews that he will compete in high-stakes Poker at the Lodge livestreams more frequently, perhaps monthly. But he remains committed to being a regular on Hustler Casino Live, a show he'll be returning to this Friday following a one-year ban from the casino. Both new partners of The Lodge Card Club have appeared multiple times, including recently, on the livestream at the poker club they now co-own.
"One of the things I respect about both these guys is that they understand how the content game works," Polk said.
Rampage, a ClubWPT Gold ambassador, is a poker vlogger with 328,000 YouTube subscribers. Nik Airball became a regular headliner on Hustler Casino Live after Garrett Adelstein accused Robbi Jade Lew of cheating in September 2022.
Polk continued to praise his new partners on their ability to generate interest in poker. He also credited Rampage as being a part of the card room's growth due to his early days appearances on Poker at the Lodge.
"One of the things I like about (Nik Airball) is that he tries to make the game interesting, and what he brings to poker is compelling," Polk said.
Polk, who is currently undertaking and losing a $100,000 "Code Doug" bankroll challenge on ClubWPT Gold, believes that "having people like (Yau) on board helps The Lodge grow."
The two new owners are investing in a business that operates two card rooms ... at present. But the investment team is currently seeking out additional locations in Texas. Polk and his team attempted to open a room last year in Farmers Branch, a town just outside of Dallas, but the proposal was denied by the city.
