Hold ‘Em or Fold? : Ventura: The City Council must decide whether a poker club will stay open if its ailing owner dies.

The 31-year-old wife of an elderly professional gambler has petitioned the Ventura City Council to change the law so that the city’s last licensed poker club can remain open after her ailing husband’s death.

Under a 1958 morals code that banned such gambling houses, the Players Poker Club on Ventura Avenue must shut its doors when owner Pinky Donohoo, 85, dies.

On Thursday, a three-member subcommittee of the City Council recommended that the council allow Monica Donohoo to assume ownership of the popular club that has been in business for 52 years. The license would be transferred to her name after her husband’s death, and would expire in 10 years, closing down the club. The seven-member council is expected to make its decision in a few weeks.

“They’ve been a good business in the city for many years, and we’ve never had a problem with them,” said Councilman Gary Tuttle, who heads the committee. Councilman Tom Buford and Mayor Gregory L. Carson are also on the committee.

Tuttle said the subcommittee set a 10-year limit because it wanted to give future city councils the flexibility to close the club if any problems arise in that time. The club is also regulated under state gaming laws.

In an interview before the meeting, Monica Donohoo said her husband of eight years is bed-ridden at home, suffering from throat cancer, and may not recover.

Donohoo said she doesn’t plan to change the club’s operation and has no interest in gambling. “I don’t play cards,” she said.

Owen Cornett, manager of the club, said the couple want to keep the club open because it has a loyal following and employs about 25 people.

“It’s like a family,” said Guillermo Magdaleno, a Santa Paula labor contractor who has been coming to the club for 20 years. “If it closed, I would have to go down south. But I don’t like the L.A. traffic; I don’t like the atmosphere.”

Police say the business has not caused any problems, and neighbors have not complained. The club has only four tables, so only about 40 people can play at once, and coffee is the strongest beverage served.

The club is open 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week and attracts a clientele of mostly male retirees. On Wednesday and Saturdays, when there is no betting limit, the club is full.

“It’s low-key,” said Bob Griff, who comes once a week from Pasadena. “The atmosphere is so relaxed.”

The house makes its money by charging each player $3 every 30 minutes. Bets range from $3 to $20, except on no-limit games. Customers usually play with $1 or $5 chips, and pots over $1,000 are considered high stakes.

“There are no hustlers here,” said Philip Hersh, who has been a dealer at the club for four years.

The club’s regular players include attorneys, some car salesmen, several college students and a few professional gamblers. More women have been coming in recent years too, Hersh said.

Players Poker Club is the only privately owned card club in the city. The Games played are Texas hold ‘em, high-low Omaha and--twice a week--no-limit hold ‘em.

The Ventura Elks Lodge also operates a card club, but its proceeds go toward programs and charities that the nonprofit group funds.

A Ventura native, Donohoo bought the club in 1941 after spending years as a professional gambler frequenting card houses from San Francisco to New Orleans.

Before he got sick over a year ago, Donohoo used to come into the club about once a day, said Owen Cornett, the club’s manager.

In an interview several years ago, Donohoo said he downed two or three martinis before dinner and walked four miles a day to keep healthy. He also is a big-game hunter who has acquired an impressive number of trophies over the years, Cornett said.

Arthur (Pappy) Smith, a professional gambler who has been coming to the club daily since 1975, said he doesn’t think customers will have to worry about an immediate closure.

Smith, 91, took a deep draw on his cigarette and rasped out: “Pinky’s not gonna die. He’s bluffing.”