There's no smoking at Big SLC Poker Club, housed in a Sandy warehouse, but a cloud hangs over the collegial crowd nonetheless.

Everyone at the table knows the police could burst through the door at any moment. And the likelihood of that interruption rose dramatically last week when police chiefs and prosecutors throughout Salt Lake County unanimously decided to start cracking down on Texas Hold 'Em poker tournaments.

"We are uniformly, across the county, going to start to prosecute these folks," said Salt Lake County District Attorney David Yocom. "These Texas Hold 'Em games are gambling. The laws will be enforced."

Prosecutors in a private meeting came up with a uniform list of criteria police will use to gather evidence, whether the tournament is in a Sandy club or a Herriman car dealership. Details of the strategy are expected to be announced this week.

But poker's popularity stretches beyond Salt Lake County's boundaries, touching all corners of a state that has outlawed gambling since the 1850s. Three poker houses in as many cities - Orem, Sandy and Layton - are cashing in on Texas Hold 'Em, an old game that cable TV coverage has turned into a national craze.

The newfound popularity has sparked a debate among politicians, city officials and police agencies over the legality of the poker houses. Some city attorneys, and at least one legislator, say the clubs are operating inside the law, but the state's top prosecutor has moved to curtail similar tournaments at universities and bars.

No one else has taken the hard stand Salt Lake County is now proposing, in part because no city has wanted to go it alone.

"It is not going to be helpful if one city says, 'Yeah, you can do it,' and another says, 'No, it is illegal,' " said Orem City Attorney Paul Johnson. "It needs to be a uniform approach. It is either allowed or it is not."

The swift rise in poker's popularity has prodded governments nationwide to react.

Each state has to work with the complexities of its own gambling laws. But it is the simplicity of Utah's statute that has delayed action, some say.

Element of chance: According to Utah law, a game is illegal if:

l A person risks "anything of value" to play.

l The game includes "an element of chance."

l And a person could win "something of value."

Violating the law is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by six months in jail and a $1,000 fine, whether you host the game or just play.

Poker houses employ a two-pronged argument to claim they fall within the statute: Texas Hold 'Em is a game of skill rather than chance and players are not actually paying for a chance to win.

"If it were all skill it would be chess. If it were all luck it would be craps. But there is a reason you see a lot of the same people at the final table," said John Wallen, from Park City, who visited Big SLC Poker recently for the first time.

Poker aficionados equate the game they love to a bowling league or a golf tournament rather than blackjack or roulette.

Utah's clubs require players to pay only for the preliminary table. If they win that game, they can play at the final table for free. The towers of neatly stacked chips don't represent money, only the chance of winning a new barbecue, TV or trip to Las Vegas.

"People who don't understand the game are quick to call it gambling," said Jamin Epperson, part-owner of Layton's Club Full House. "I don't think tournament Texas Hold 'Em is gambling at all."

Luck of the draw: Attorney General Mark Shurtleff is skeptical. He agrees with Salt Lake County prosecutors that most poker tournaments violate the law.

As Assistant Attorney General Thom Roberts explains, Texas Hold 'Em still involves luck.

"Even though skill at the game may increase the chances of winning, victory or defeat can turn on the random draw of a card," Roberts wrote in a letter sent to all of Utah's private clubs in February.

Saying the final table is free doesn't get around the law, either, in Yocom's eyes, as players had to pay to get that far.

Without clearer guidance, cities with a licensed poker club have taken their own positions, varying from acceptance to less-than-subtle hostility.

Layton has welcomed Club Full House. The city attorney agrees poker is a skill game, though the police question that interpretation and have promised to keep watch.

Sandy has attempted to drive away Big SLC Poker with repeated citations for zoning violations. Big SLC has a business license for retail sales, but not to house poker games, according to the city.

Orem had similar zoning concerns but has promised to leave The Flop House and part-owner Dave Hansen alone, at least for now. Johnson has sent a letter to the Attorney General's Office seeking a definitive legal opinion.

"It could be illegal, but I don't have enough to shut them down," Johnson said. "If the AG says it's illegal, Mr. Hansen and I will have another chat."

The Attorney General's Office has not yet responded to Johnson's letter, but Shurtleff hasn't kept quiet on the issue. His office has warned colleges and universities to halt all tournaments. The issue is now in court after Big SLC Poker sued the University of Utah because it canceled a tournament on campus.

Roberts' letter on behalf of the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has curbed most of the Texas Hold 'Em nights, which were a mainstay of many bars and clubs just a few months ago.

But Shurtleff said he would feel more comfortable taking action if the Legislature clarified the statute and some city attorneys are calling for lawmakers to take up the issue next year.

Poker houses are open at least four nights a week in the hometowns of both the House speaker and Senate president, but neither has heard any discussions about taking up Utah's gambling law on Capitol Hill.

Senate President John Valentine, an attorney, said the poker clubs are teetering on the edge of criminality. He says the statute doesn't need a legislative fix, it just needs to be enforced. But Valentine understands the issue is not easy.

"I'm glad I am not the Attorney General's Office making the call on it because it looks pretty close to me," he said.

Within the legal limits: At least one legislator promises to vote against any bills targeting poker houses.

"What I know about those clubs is that you are not gambling," said Rep. Greg Hughes, R-Draper, who has played at Big SLC on three occasions, but is obviously uncomfortable talking about it.

"I enjoy poker. . . . Recreationally, of course. . . . Within the legal limits," he said between long pauses. The clubs "deserve as little government intervention as any other law-abiding club or group."

Former Republican legislator David Zolman plays once a week and ranks in the top 20 at Big SLC Poker. "It is purely for the entertainment value, and sometimes prizes, but no money games are played."

Josh Colledge, who has set up tournaments at businesses from Ogden to Draper each weekend since Oct. 14, said the government should help poker companies find a way to exist legally instead of prosecuting offenders.

"All we have ever wanted is to know what the laws and statutes are, so we can comply and move on," he said. Cheryl Craft doesn't want anyone to interfere with her weekly poker game, which she calls her "stress relief."

The regulars at Orem's Flop House consider Craft - a stay-at-home mom - and her husband, Josh, among the establishment's most formidable players.

The Crafts met at a home poker game about six years ago. They now trade off nights. One of them watches their two toddlers, while the other plays. They have won a flat screen TV, a video game system and surround sound speakers, but Cheryl Craft says she doesn't play for the prizes.

"I just like the adrenaline. I like going heads up against somebody and trying to figure them out," she said.

And she plans to keep playing, even if Utah County follows Salt Lake County's lead and goes after the clubs. Home games, like the one at which she met her husband, are more prevalent now than ever.

With a quick search on the Web, poker fans can find dozens of open-invitation home games every night of the week in cities such as Salt Lake City, Lindon and Park City, not to mention countless private games organized by friends or online games played by thousands.

Odds are against prosecutors and police ever being able to stop all of those.

mcanham@sltrib.com