COLUMBUS, Ohio ― The slots will spin, the cards will fly, and the hand sanitizer will be squirted when Columbus’s Hollywood Casino reopens on Friday, along with Ohio’s three other casinos.

To comply with social distancing rules, blackjack tables have been reduced from seven players to three, baccarat from seven to four, and craps from sixteen to six.

Just like some airlines have blocked off middle seats, Hollywood Casino has temporarily disabled sandwiched slot machines in locations where they are too clustered. That required rearranging the casino floor to prioritize popular games in playable locations— a process that involves the Ohio Casino Control Commission inspecting each machine after relocation.

For now, the state is not allowing casinos to reopen poker, with the exception of some poker-based table games, which can be operated.

Shark Tank Poker Club in Columbus, which operates as a social club, not as a casino, will reopen on Monday, using UV disinfecting wands to clean chips and plexiglass dividers to separate players at its poker tables.

For the most part, Hollywood Casino’s card games will be touch-free to reduce germ spread, which is not a change for games like blackjack, in which touching the cards is generally prohibited.

Guests who play table games will be required to wear masks, while all guests who enter the casino are encouraged to wear them.

“When a guest decides to play table games, our dealers, as well as our supervisors, will be able to greet them with hand sanitizing solution – we have a bottle on every single table,” said Jennifer Miglionico, the casino’s vice president of marketing. "Depending on their game type, it may now be contactless, meaning they may not be offered to be able to touch the cards.”

The chips will be routinely washed in an area of the casino called the “cage,” a secret area so secure that Miglionico has not been able to see the chip-washing process in action herself, as her team lacks the necessary clearance to enter.

Running out of chips should not be a worry, she said. The casino has more than 200,000 in total.

Casinos are capped at operating limits of 50 percent. While Hollywood Casino can reach near capacity on peak days like New Year’s Eve or for special events like car giveaways, Miglionico said they expect to be able to accommodate everyone who wants to play upon reopening.

There may be waits for table games on peak times like Friday nights, she said, given that the dealers are running tables with fewer players.

The casino will still operate 24 hours per day on the weekends, but it will close from 3:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. Monday through Friday for deep cleans. The casino now owns a large disinfecting fog machine which it will use to clean surfaces.

Three of the restaurants in the casino will reopen, while two will remain closed. Tables have been spaced out and one of the restaurants has taken over a larger space in the casino to accommodate more diners despite the table spacing requirements.

Casinos typically attract lots of seniors, who are at greater risk of falling seriously ill from COVID-19. Miglionico assured that Hollywood Casino has made its facility safe for all, with floor markings throughout to space out guests, more than 2500 pieces of social distancing signage, and new measures like contact-free ID verification for guests who are entering the casino.

Miglionico also noted that the casino will designate the first two hours in the morning, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., for seniors, “similar to what you're seeing for retail locations and grocery stores,” she said. All age groups will still be able to use the casino during these morning hours.

“We're thrilled to be able to reopen the doors to our guests, as well as to be able to welcome back team members. Having been closed down for several months, it's very exciting to be able to go through this reopening process.”