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With all the attention focused on Mega Millions, there wasn't much buzz about Saturday’s Powerball Lottery drawing that paid $687.5 million split between two winners, one in New York and the other in Iowa. The winning numbers were 8, 12, 13, 19, and 27, with the Powerball 4. The jackpot was merely the fourth biggest U.S. lottery payout of all time, small potatoes apparently compared to last week’s second biggest.
The big plans for a pool and nightclub space operated by the Tao Group are off. A statement has been issued indicating that the hotly anticipated pairing won’t take place. Work is already in progress on the pool area (which was closed all summer), so something’s gonna happen. It just won’t be with Tao.
Today was the day for the foreclosure auction for the ill-fated, shuttered, and fenced Lucky Dragon Casino-Hotel. Three parties were pre-qualified to bid on the hotel, but none offered up the opening bid of $35 million. Failing to sell, the Lucky Dragon became the property of the main creditor, Snow Covered Capital LLC, which holds a large percentage of the LD's $55 million in debt.
Gambling revenue at MGM Springfield was $27 million in September, the casino’s first full month of operation. The result is being described as disappointing for the Massachusetts casino, given that MGM’s National Harbor in Maryland won almost $42 million during the same period. Slots accounted for two-thirds of the win at Springfield, generated by a 9.5% hold.
Glam band extraordinaire, famous for face paint, costumes, huge hair, and elaborate live performances (plus our favorite, their cover of Argent's "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You"), KISS is embarking on its last tour, "End of the Road," and will play for one night in Las Vegas. The iconic '70s band, which has sold more than 100 million albums, will play T-Mobile Arena on Feb. 15. Tickets start at $29.50 and will go on sale to the general public starting this Friday at 10 a.m. (Pacific Time) at axs.com.
In tonight’s Monday Night Football game, the New England Patriots are -14 favorites over the New York Giants. The total is 44.5.
Criss Angel's Mindfreak Live magic show at Luxor has closed after a 10-year run. From Luxor, Angel moves to the newly renamed Criss Angel Theater at Planet Hollywood with a new show, Criss Angel Mindfreak, that will have a soft opening on December 19 during the traditional slow week before Christmas. The grand opening will be sometime in January.
Both the books and the bettors were impacted yesterday by LA Rams running back Todd Gurley’s decision to stop short of scoring a sure touchdown late in the game against the Green Bay Packers. In a move that virtually assured a 29-27 win for the Rams, opting not to score preserved a win for those betting the Packers (the Rams were -7.5 favorites) and under (the total was 57), as well as affected thousands of DFS entries. While these types of line-affecting plays take place almost every week, much more attention will be paid to them as sports betting is legalized in more states.
The sports book at Tropicana Atlantic City opened last week as Atlantic City’s seventh sports book, joining Bally’s Wild Wild West, Borgata, Golden Nugget, Harrah’s, Ocean resort, and Resorts. It’s operated by William Hill, which also runs the books at Ocean Resort and Monmouth Park. The Tropicana book is temporary pending the completion of a 5,000-square-foot betting facility.
The New Orleans Saints are -2.5 favorites over the Minnesota Vikings in tonight's Sunday Night Football game. The total is 54.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are -150 favorites over the Boston Red Sox in Game 5 of the baseball World Series. The total is 7.5.
The Sunday Bloody Mary deal at Irene’s bar is no more. After raising prices from $1 to $2, then $2.50, BMs are now $7.50 all the time with no discount on Sundays. And that’s not all. Formerly our top go-to for a giant ham & eggs breakfast, the ham portion is now about a quarter of its former size with no reduction in price. (Apologies to "Eileen" for the title.)
A cool story on the Conde Nast website (cntraveler.com), "Where Celebrity Chefs of Las Vegas Eat Late at Night," surveys around a dozen big-name Vegas chefs about their after-hours restaurant-dining favorites. As Charlie Palmer says, “Like most people in our industry, I usually roll in around midnight,” after their shifts in the kitchen end. The late-night scene centers almost exclusively on the Chinatown district, where "the standard closing time is 3 a.m." According to ChinatownReport.com, “Over four dozen restaurants [in Chinatown] are open 24 hours a day. There are more than 150 restaurants, 50 foot spas, and a dozen churches. It’s the most vibrant neighborhood in the city besides the Strip, by far.”
Volkan Oezdemir is a -150 favorite over Anthony Smith in tonight's UFC main event. In the other featured match, Misha Cirkunov is -350 over Patrick Cummins.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are -140 favorites over the Boston Red Sox in Game 4 of the baseball World Series. The total is 8.5.
The 3,400-room Resorts World Las Vegas tower is now more than halfway to being topped off, reaching floor 35 of 60. A construction crew of at least 1,000 is working on the site, less than a third of the full complement planned for mid-2019. After many delays -- due, according to a spokesperson, to a lot of extra time and effort put into the design -- Resorts World is expected to debut sometime in 2020.
The Tropicana has announced that effective yesterday, the hotel-casino will begin charging non-guests for parking when events are taking place in the area, primarily at MGM Grand Garden and T-Mobile arenas. Though the charge will be $15, it's offset by a $10 food-and-drink voucher at Robert Irvine's Public House restaurant. Parking remains free for non-guests at other times. So far.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are -180 favorites over the Boston Red Sox in Game 3 of the baseball World Series. The total is 7.5.
Four new members have been inducted into the Gaming Hall of Fame. Peter Carlino is a long-time casino executive who’s currently the CEO of Gaming and Leisure Properties; Richard Hadrill was a pioneer in the gaming-equipment sector; Philip Hannifin was a Nevada casino regulator considered to be a force in pushing the mob out of the Las Vegas gambling business; and Steven Perskie drafted and sponsored the New Jersey Casino Control Act, which governed Atlantic City’s entry into the industry.
An interesting story on Leafly.com examines the challenges of hiring up to 275 employees at Planet 13, which opens on November 1 as the world's largest cannabis dispensary. Thousands of applications have been received by the company, which operates an existing store at 4850 W. Sunset Rd., but separating the weed from the chaff is a tall order. Initially, the Planet 13 superstore will occupy 40,000 square feet in a 112,000-square-foot building that used to be a Coors warehouse. Dispensaries aren't allowed on the Las Vegas Strip, but Planet 13 is about as close as one can get, right behind the Fashion Show Mall at 2548 W. Desert Inn Road. The company also owns 80 acres of land zoned for up to 2.4 million square feet of cannabis cultivation space 120 miles from Las Vegas in Nye County.
The Houston Texans are -7.5 favorites over the Miami Dolphins in tonight's Thursday Night Football game. The total is 45.
Last night's Powerball came up short of jackpot winners, so the new jackpot for Saturday's drawing has gone up to $750 million (lump-sum cash option of $428.6 million). It's the fourth-largest jackpot in lottery history, and the fifth-largest cash option ever offered. It's also only the fourth time in history that any lottery jackpot has gone higher than $700 million.
And if you're looking for the Halloween activities, check out the Halloween Event round up on Vegas with an Edge.
A single ticket sold in South Carolina won the Mega Millions lottery jackpot on Tuesday and the prize was mighty, but not the mightiest of all time. What was touted as being the biggest lottery jackpot ever turned out to be the second biggest after the counting was done, with the $1.537 billion prize falling short of the record of $1.586 billion. The winning numbers were 5, 28, 62, 65, 70, with Mega Ball 5.
Country trio Lady Antebellum will do a 15-show residency at the Pearl Theater at the Palms next year. “Our Kind of Vegas will include shows in February, May, and August. Reportedly, Lady Antebellum is the first country act ever to headline the concert venue.
The Boston Red Sox are -145 favorites over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the baseball World Series. The total is 8.5.
Wynn Las Vegas has announced that it will discontinue its policy of sharing a percentage of the dealer tip pool with floor supervisors. The policy has been a bone of contention between management and dealers since it was implemented in 2006, with the dealers losing two lawsuits over it. It's estimated that Wynn and Encore dealers will take home around $10,000 more per year when the new policy goes into effect on November 12.
Big Chicken Shaq opens today at 4480 Paradise Road near the Hard Rock Hotel in the space previously occupied by Origin India after an $800,000 makeover. It's owned by former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal and described as "fast-casual," with a full-service bar, late-night hours, and what's called a "backyard-style gaming area," which we'll check out and report back about.
So far this year, 437 Las Vegas residential properties have sold for at least $1 million, up almost 20% over the same period in 2017. the latest is a 16,357-square-foot mansion on 1.4 acres in the exclusive Queensridge subdivision in western Las Vegas, purchased for $10 million by retired superstar boxer Floyd Mayweather. The mansion has five bedrooms and seven baths, plus three garages, gym, outdoor pool with pool house and indoor spa, two guesthouses, wine cellar, elevator between the master bedroom and underground garage, and, of course, a small vineyard. A year ago, DeMarcus Cousins, Golden State Warriors center, bought a 15,816-square-foot place across the street from Mayweather's new digs for $6.5 million. The most expensive house sold in 2018 in Las Vegas went for $13 million.
The Boston Red Sox are -170 favorites over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the baseball World Series. The total is 7.5.
Have you been jones’n to play tonight’s $1.6 billion Mega Millions lottery? If you’re in Las Vegas you can, and with an edge. It’s not that tonight’s biggest-ever drawing is a positive play for its jackpot level – it probably isn’t, due to the likelihood of there being multiple winners – but linking it with a promotion in town tips the scales your way. Downtown’s Plaza is giving out slot free-play reimbursements for up to $25 in tickets purchased between Oct. 21 and 23. The combined equity of the lottery return and the FP exceeds 100%, so even the most disciplined advantage player can participate with a clear conscience. Of course, if you don’t already have your tickets you’ll have to fade the drive to, and the lines at, Primm, which is the location of the nearest lottery-sales outlet. And speaking of lines, there are reports that more than 200 tickets per second are being sold in California alone.
The Plaza has announced downtown Las Vegas’ newest event venue: a permanent outdoor equestrian and multipurpose center. Based on the success of the temporary equestrian facility for last year's National Finals Rodeo, the Plaza is making it permanent after this year's rodeo in December, at which the Plaza will host downtown’s only public live horse sale in its showroom. The equestrian center, which will be adjacent to the hotel-casino, will host 80 equine stalls for year-round use.
Ground was broken yesterday for a new pedestrian bridge that will span the Las Vegas Strip between Park MGM and the Showcase Mall. The bridge, which will cost nearly $17 million, is scheduled for completion next July; between now and then, the Strip will be partially obstructed, but never closed. It's the 17th bridge over the Strip and the first to be built since 2012.
Last Wednesday was the 30th anniversary of the signing into law (by Ronald Reagan) of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, passed by Congress in response to the landmark 1987 court case of California v. Cabazon, in which the Supreme Court upheld the right of Indian tribes to conduct gaming on their lands free from state interference. Arguably, nothing in modern Native American history has brought more economic development and growth to Indian country. Today, gambling on tribal lands constitutes a $34.2 billion industry that funds a long list of Native programs and services -- language preservation, education, health care, and emergency services, to name just a few. "From our experience, IGRA represents one of the most successful federal Indian laws to date," said Jonodev Osceola Chaudhuri, chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission. "Indian gaming is the most successful tool for economic development for many Indian tribes in over two centuries."
In tonight’s Monday Night Football game, the Atlanta Falcons are -4.5 favorites over the New York Giants. The total is 52.5.
The Golden Nugget sports book no longer gives out free-drink tickets for sports wagers. Several sports books have tightened drink-comp policies in recent years, but almost all still have programs that offer some level of complimentaries to sports bettors. The only other we know of with a solid no-comps policy is Jerry’s Nugget. Maybe it has something to do with casinos that have “Nugget” in their names.
There’ve been several changes in the schedule of video poker bonus days in bars around town, most for the bad. The play $500-get-$50 deal at Jackpot Bar now runs all day on Mondays, Thursdays, and Sundays. The $100/$20 deals at No Regrets and Michael T’s have been discontinued, as has the $20/$20 at McMullan’s.
The Kansas City Chiefs are -6 favorites over the Cincinnati Bengals in tonight's Sunday Night Football game. The total is 56.
The Boston Red Sox are -140 favorites over the Los Angeles Dodgers to win baseball's World Series. The Red Sox opened -125 and have been bet up in early action. Game 1 is Tuesday.
No one hit all the winning numbers in yesterday's Powerball drawing, so the grand prize has surged to $620 million. And all six numbers in Friday's Mega Millions drawing eluded the tens of millions of players going for the billion-dollar jackpot, which has jumped to more than $1.6 billion and is now the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history; the immediate cash option is $904 million. All told, more than $2.2 billion is up for grabs. The odds of hitting both jackpots are roughly one in 88 quadrillion (88 followed by 15 zeros). The next drawings are Tuesday night for Mega Millions and Wednesday night for Powerball.
Long-time oddsmaker Johnny Avello has left his position as sports book director at Wynn Las Vegas to oversee sports book operations for DraftKings. Avello is the latest DraftKings hire, joining Frank Kunovic, former director at Caesars Entertainment, and Ed Malinowski, former director at the Stratosphere, as the company prepares to open books in newly legalized jurisdictions.
In tonight’s deciding Game 7 of the National League Championship series, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers are pick ’em. The total is 7.
McCarran International Airport tied Orlando International for first place in J.D. Powers' closely watched North America Airport Satisfaction Study for 2018. McCarran placed third in 2017, but jumped ahead of Detroit Metropolitan to join Orlando at the top. The poll surveys more than 40,000 travelers on airport accessibility, check-in, food and beverage, retail, terminal facilities, and baggage claim. McCarran recently wrapped up a $30 million improvement project in Terminal 1.
Donny Osmond made a surprise announcement on a local morning show late last week that the Donny & Marie Show would end at the close of its 11th year next November. "Our countdown," he said, "has started," even though the superstar siblings just revamped their show. Donny & Marie opened at the Flamingo in 2008 for a six-week run. The 35-year-old Legends in Concert, which has performed in the Donny and Marie Showroom for four years, is also vacating the premises, reopening in the newly named Legends in Concert Showroom at the Tropicana around Valentine's Day next year.
A Nevada Department of Transportation information officer says that Project Neon, the billion-dollar four-mile-long widening of I-15 from US95 to Sahara Avenue is 85% finished. The massive expansion of the Spaghetti Bowl and feeder roads has recorded more than a million man-hours, with 500 workers on site currently to complete the project on schedule next summer. The NDOT's next project is a $200 million makeover of the I-15 and Tropicana interchange. The reconstruction of the overpass and exit ramps was planned before the Raiders announced where their stadium would be built, but since then, it's taken on a higher priority, especially with the heavy existing traffic in and out of T-Mobile for concerts and hockey games.
The Downtown Grand is celebrating its 5th Anniversary with some good $5 deals running through November 5. The best of them is a creative burger-and-drink offer that’s available in Freedom Beat daily from 5 p.m. to 5:55 p.m. only. During that time, an excellent burger & fries that usually sells for $12 is only $5, and for 5 cents more you get a choice of a well drink, Bloody Mary, or beer flight. If you don't want to deal with the hectic 55-minute scene, drinks and appetizers are $5 across the street at Triple George. Among the appetizer selections are seared ahi, steamed mussels, fried calamari, spinach & artichoke dip, and tacos. This offer is available daily during all operating hours.
The Mega Millions jackpot in tonight's drawing will be the largest in the multi-state lottery's history: $970 million. It's also the second largest in overall lottery history. The odds of hitting all six numbers are roughly 303 million to 1, which is like playing a game in which you have to pick the one designated person out of the entire population of the United States.
Amid a parade of dancers, some on floats, fireworks, and video flashing on the Park MGM tower, Britney Spears appeared briefly at Toshiba Plaza where her people announced her second Las Vegas residency, "Britney: Domination," which will begin over Valentine's Day weekend next February and run through select weekends until August at Park Theater. She'll earn $500,000 per show, a guaranteed $16 million for the 32-performance residency. Her first 250-show residency at Planet Hollywood lasted four years. Tickets go on sale a week from today, October 26.
The 27th annual Housekeeping Olympics took place recently at Mandalay Bay Events Center. Fifteen teams from MGM Resorts hotels, plus the Venetian, Cosmopolitan, Waldorf Astoria, and Sam's Town, competed in events such as speed bed making, vacuum race, and toilet-paper toss. Some team members practiced for months in advance; bed makers could complete the task in under a minute and a half. The defending champion team from the Mirage took first place in the overall competition again this year. MGM Grand took second and Aria placed third.
The Denver Broncos are -1 favorites over the Arizona Cardinals in tonight's Thursday Night Football game. The total is 42.5.
The official launch of this year's "Las Vegas Writes" book, Live Through This—An Anthology of Unnatural Disasters, Stories and Essays by Las Vegas Writers, takes place tonight in the theater in the Clark County Library (1401 E. Flamingo). Starting at 7 p.m., editors Scott Dickensheets and Geoff Schumacher will lead a discussion of the book by its 11 authors. There is no charge to attend.
The latest In-N-Out Burger opens today at 3804 East Flamingo Road, near Sandhill Road. It's the popular fast-food chain's 16th location to open in Las Vegas since 1992, when the first one debuted at the corner of Tropicana Avenue and Industrial Road (now Dean Martin Drive).
Nielsen Sports, a division of Nielsen Entertainment, the polling and consumer-behavior company, has released a study projecting hundreds of millions of additional revenues earned by Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association due to sports betting. "Greater fan engagement and viewership could boost the two leagues’ total annual revenue from media rights, sponsorships, merchandise and ticket sales, producing $952 million for MLB and $425 million for the NBA from increased consumption of the leagues’ products." The American Gaming Association has calculated that the National Football League stands to gain $2.3 billion and the National Hockey League $216 million from legal and widely available sports betting.
The Gold Strike Hotel-Casino in Jean, Nevada, 30 miles southwest of Las Vegas on I-15, will be renamed Terrible's on November 1. The Gold Strike sign has already been taken down in preparation. The Herbst family of Terrible Herbst fame has owned the Gold Strike since 2015 and recently opened a mega-convenience store across I-15.
Borgata has filed a motion in U.S. District Court in New Jersey seeking permission to search for assets owned by Phil Ivey in Nevada. In the filing, Borgata claims Ivey has no assets in New Jersey to help settle the casino's $10.1 million judgment in 2016 in the infamous edge-sorting case and Borgata wants a wider net. “Although the extent of Defendant Ivey’s business holdings is unclear," the suit states, "Ivey’s holdings have been estimated at $100 million, and ... these holdings, at least those that are ascertainable, are based in Nevada."
In last night's Mega Millions drawing, no tickets matched all six numbers to win the $667 million jackpot. The Mega Millions jackpot hasn't been hit for three months, since a group of California office workers hit it for $543 million. Friday's Mega Millions drawing for $868 million will be the second-largest lottery prize in U.S. history; the record is $1.6 billion, a Powerball grand prize won in January 2016.
The money and credit website WalletHub has found that Nevada residents are most vulnerable to identity theft out of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. In WalletHub's comparison across 10 key metrics, Nevada's total score was highest at 72.66 out of 100. The Silver State had the second-worst median loss amount due to fraud, the fourth-most fraud complaints per capita, the sixth-most identify-theft complaints per capita, and the seventh-worst average loss amount due to online identity theft; Nevada placed 13th for the number of arrests for fraud per capita. Florida was second on the list, followed by New Jersey, Delaware, and California. Hawaii, South Dakota, and Vermont had the lowest total scores.
Want to fly direct from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara, California? Starting tomorrow, Tennessee-based Contour Airlines will fly five round trips per week in 30-seat regional jets between McCarran International and Santa Barbara Municipal Airport. The flights have a base fare of $118 (the first checked bag is free).
New Mexico became the sixth state to offer sports betting after the Santa Ana Star casino near Albuquerque began taking bets today. The casino is owned by the Tamaya Nation at the Pueblo of Santa Ana and the book is run by USBookmaking out of Las Vegas. See our interactive map for details on this development and the current status of legalized sports betting across the country.
The Ice Rink at Boulevard Pool will be open at the Cosmopolitan from November 21 through January 6 for the seventh year in a row. A number of special events, including simulated snow (every 30 minutes on weekends after dark), Date Skate nights, holiday movies, and fireworks on New Year's Eve, are scheduled.
The Culinary Union has reached an agreement with Treasure Island, the last Las Vegas Strip hotel-casino without a union contract. Terms weren't disclosed and a ratification vote must take place before the contract becomes official. That leaves the D and Golden Gate as the last two Las Vegas casinos without an agreement, but talks are scheduled for today with management of those properties.
A lot of hoopla surrounds Bellagio this week, as it celebrates its 20th anniversary, having opened on October 15, 1998. The Las Vegas Review-Journal's Sunday paper published a six-page retrospective on the hotel-casino's impact on Las Vegas and the TV stations were all over it. A little lost (so far) in the excitement is an even greater anniversary: Circus Circus turns 50 on Thursday, having opened on October 18, 1968. It's the third oldest property on the Strip, behind the Tropicana and Caesars (fourth if you count SLS, which dates back to December 1952 as the Sahara).
Saturday night's Powerball drawing for $314 million again went without a grand-prize winner; the next drawing this Wednesday will be for $345 million (the cash option is $161.1 million). Tomorrow's Mega Millions jackpot drawing is for $654 million (cash option $372 million). So the total of the two is $999 million, not exactly a billion -- but what's a million here or there?
A 148-year-old building on Commercial Row in downtown, the oldest in the area, will be demolished to make room for a $13 million expansion of the newish Whitney Peak Hotel (opened in 2014). The old Reno Mercantile, Masonic Lodge, and Old Reno Casino were found by structural engineers to be too unstable to renovate. The Mercantile building has been vacant for more than 40 years; Old Reno, known for its nickel slots, closed in the 1990s.
In an interview at the G2E trade show last week, Derek Stevens told CDC Gaming's Howard Stutz that he's "getting close to announcing a name, a theme, and a handful of things,” perhaps including an opening date, for his new hotel-casino that will occupy the city block between Fremont and Odgen and Main and 1st Street. We do know that it will be a megaresort by downtown standards, with 777 hotel rooms and a 117,000-square-foot casino. It's also the first downtown casino built from scratch since the old Fitzgeralds opened in 1980; Stevens owns that casino, now called the D.
The New England Patriots are -4 favorites over the Kansas City Chiefs in tonight's Sunday Night Football game. The total is 59.5. Note that this line was posted with the game in progress.
Construction is under way on a massive 750,000-square-foot data center on 64 acres purchased for $19 million last January in Henderson. City and state officials are citing non-disclosure agreements in their refusal to reveal any information at all about the property, around which an air of secrecy has descended. But rumors abound that Google is the developer; the giant tech company has a penchant for stealth about its projects.
A California man hit a $1.4 million jackpot last month on a Wheel of Fortune Double Diamond machine at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. It’s the third jackpot of $1 million+ hit at the Cosmo this year.
In the second semi-final of Bellator's heavyweight championship tournament Fedor Emelianenko is a -250 favorite over Chael Sonnen. In the other featured match, Benson Henderson is -375 over Saad Awad.
Tonight’s final game of the season for the Las Vegas Lights soccer team against the Sacramento Republic will have significance that extends beyond just the game’s result. In a first-of-its-kind “bet-cast,” live in-game wagering options from William Hill will be streamed during the broadcast, with commentary on the propositions offered by VSiN sports betting experts. What may be a glimpse of things to come in sports telecasting will air starting at 7:30 p.m. PST on myLVTV in Las Vegas (Channel 21).
A visitor from Germany was surprised by a seemingly spontaneously celebration when she entered the Mob Museum yesterday morning with her husband. She was the two millionth guest to enter the museum, which opened opened on February 14, 2012. The couple was presented a "key" to museum, along with a lifetime membership and a jar of moonshine.
A Willie Nelson-themed slot machine, unveiled during the G2E convention that just concluded in Las Vegas, features marijuana images on its reels. Nelson is a longtime advocate of legal cannabis who has his own pot-products brand (Willie's Reserve). Gaming regulations don't specifically preclude marijuana images on slots, though the manufacturer also has Willie slots without the pot for squeamish casinos. You should start seeing these machines early next year in select casinos.
Southwest Airlines says it's still on track to begin selling tickets for its first flights from Las Vegas to Hawaii. Southwest announced last year that it would start service from the west coast to the islands, projecting initial ticket sales starting this month and flights beginning sometime before the end of 2018. Southwest predicts flights out of Las Vegas, with one stop in either Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento, or San Diego, will still take off in 2018 or no later than January 2019. Intra-island flights will be introduced in the second phase of service.
In the first semi-final of Bellator's heavyweight championship tournament Ryan Bader is a -320 favorite over Matt Mitrione. In the other featured match, Roy Nelson is -295 over Sergei Kharitonov.
William Hill is taking over sports book operations at Stratosphere and both Arizona Charlie’s in Las Vegas, along with the Aquarius in Laughlin. The move isn’t a surprise, given that WH already works with Golden Entertainment, which is the owner of the referenced casinos, but it’s unwelcome news for serious players in that it eliminates one of Nevada’s independent books. William Hill has also entered into an agreement to manage the sports books at Eldorado Resorts casinos, which has 26 casinos in 13 states.
The ill-fated Lucky Dragon will be sold at a bankruptcy auction on Tuesday October 30. The 2.5-acre property, with 203 hotel rooms, a 27,500-square-foot casino, a full spa, and other amenities, cost $165 million to build. A number of possible buyers include the owner of the nearby SLS, Alex Meruelo, and the operators of Dotty’s slot chain.
In Las Vegas sporting news, Las Vegas Ballpark, the Triple-A baseball stadium being built in Summerlin for the Oakland A's-affiliated Las Vegas 51s, was topped off yesterday with the uppermost steel beam. The stadium is scheduled for completion in time for the 51s 2019 season. LeBron James and the L.A. Lakers played an exhibition game in front of a packed T-Mobile Arena crowd on Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors. James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and others all said they love playing in Vegas and hope the city gets an NBA team soon; Las Vegas-based AP sports columnist Tim Dahlberg quoted an unnamed MGM Resorts official who said he'd like to see a pro basketball team here within five years. And the Vegas Golden Knights lost their third game in a row against the Penguins last night in Pittsburgh; they're now 1-4 for the young season. Read about it in Joe Pane's Knights on Ice blog.
The Philadelphia Eagles are -1.5 favorites over the New York Giants in tonight's Thursday Night Football game. The total is 45.5.
Rumors run rampant. The latest, another by VitalVegas.com's Scott Roeben, floats the possibility that the Rio could be sold, razed, and replaced by a Major League Baseball stadium. Roeben reported last month that Caesars is "hot to sell the property" and might be getting ready to deal it off "by scaling back some of its offerings and laying off some of its employees." Roeben also suggests that it could be a reason Station Casinos has invested so much money in the Palms -- "they know something we don't."
No one hit the Mega Millions $470 million jackpot in last night's drawing. Friday’s drawing for the Mega jackpot will be for $548 million, the third-largest jackpot in Mega Millions history. The last one hit was on July 24 and the odds are 1 in 303 million. Mega Million tickets are sold in 44 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The AirBnB business in the city of Las Vegas has encountered a preliminary roadblock. Yesterday the Las Vegas Planning Commission voted 4-3 to ban new short-term rentals. Rentals already permitted by the city would be grandfathered (until the house is sold), but no new home-shares would be allowed. The moderate position, "a moratorium on issuing new permits while the city takes a closer look at the issue," was defeated. The city started approving short-term permits only a year ago, in July 2017. The Las Vegas City Council makes the final determination, but when hasn't been announced.
Cipriani, a venerable Italian restaurant, will open at the Wynn next month in the Plaza shopping area. Cipriani has four locations in New York (and two in the Middle East). The restaurant company is now run by the great-grandson of Giuseppe Cipriani, who opened the original location in Venice, Italy, in 1931 as Harry's Bar, where carpacio and bellinis were invented.
Nevada state tax revenues on recreational marijuana sales in July set a new record at $7.9 million for the month. It was 11% higher than the $7.1 million that was the highest collected in the best three months of fiscal 2018 and it was a 92% gain year over year; in the first month of legal recreational cannabis sales, $4.1 million in taxes was collected.
Caesars Entertainment's Total Rewards has been named the “Best Players Club” by USA TODAY’s 2018 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards. Total Rewards dates back to 1997 and has 55 million members. The nominees for the 10Best Awards are chosen by a panel of experts, and voting is digital and open to the public.
Among the myriad exhibits at G2E, the Global Gaming Expo now under way in Las Vegas, slot-manufacturer IGT has unveiled two new slot-machine themes: the iconic 62-year-old "The Price Is Right" game show and Adam Levine, the 39-year-old singer and songwriter (Maroon 5) and actor. The Price Is Right slots feature “Showcase Showdown” bonus events, where players spin the Big Wheel for grand prizes, and the show's popular games like Punch A Bunch, Cliff Hangers, and Rat Race. The Adam Levine machines incorporate a jukebox from which players can select songs and a collector guitar giveaway.
According to the money website WalletHub.com, Las Vegas ranks seventh out of 182 U.S. cities for foodie-friendliness. The study, conducted to coincide with World Food Day (October 16), examined 29 key indicators, the cost of groceries, affordability of high-quality restaurants, number of restaurants and food festivals per capita, food freshness, ratio of full-service restaurants to fast-food establishments, and much more. Las Vegas placed first in affordability and accessibility of highly rated restaurants and coffee and tea shops per capita, fourth in restaurants per capita, and seventh in gourmet and specialty-food stores per capita, but 74th in average beer and wine prices. Portland, San Francisco, Miami, New York, L.A., and Orlando placed higher than Las Vegas; Pearl City, HI, Montgomery, AL, and West Valley City, UT, were the bottom three.
In tonight’s Monday Night Football game, the New Orleans Saints are -6 favorites over the Washington Redskins. The total is 51.5.
The Global Gaming Expo (G2E) opens today and runs through Thursday at the Sands Expo and Convention Center. It’s not open to the public, but it’s the biggest convention of the year for the gaming industry, with more than 450 exhibitors and an expected 26,000 attendees.
SLS has begun a $100 million renovation on the north Strip property. All 1,615 rooms and the casino will be upgraded, slot machines will be replaced, and the pool will be redesigned over the next couple of years. Completion of the project is scheduled to coincide with the opening of the The Drew and Resorts World Las Vegas, along with the completion of the Las Vegas Convention Center expansion out to the Strip.
Neither Mega Millions nor Powerball weekend drawings had winning numbers and their combined jackpots now stand at $735 million. Tomorrow's Mega Millions drawing for $470 million is the fifth largest in its history. If hit, the cash option will be $265 million. Powerball's next drawing will be Wednesday for $282 million ($161 million cash option).
The average price of a Las Vegas single-family home climbed to $300,000 last month. It's the highest since June 2006, a year or so before the top of the last real-estate bubble when single-family houses hit the top at $315,000. The $300k was 1.7% higher than August and 13.2% year over year. Condos were up even more, a whopping 21.4% over September 2017 at $170,000.
The Houston Texans are -3.5 favorites over the Dallas Cowboys in tonight's Sunday Night Football game. The total is 45.5.
Our new book, Blackjack Attack—Playing the Pros’ Way is back from the printer and ready to ship. Written by Blackjack Hall of Fame member Don Schlesinger, Blackjack Attack isn’t really new—it’s been around for several years and is considered a must-have book by serious players. However, Huntington Press recently acquired the publishing rights and we’re proud to add it to our list. For a limited time, we’re selling Blackjack Attack at a 50% discount of $15, plus shipping.
We're putting the finishing touches on the 2019 Eating Las Vegas, our seventh edition of Las Vegas' only restaurant guidebook, which will be available in the next month or so. Six of the Essential 52 restaurants either closed or have been removed by author John Curtas, which means six replacements. Three of those are new tapas eateries: Edo, Pamplona, and Mordeo. Pizza, Italian, and French restaurants round out the new six.
Khabib Nurmagomedov is a -200 favorite over Conor McGregor in tonight's UFC main event. In the other featured match, Tony Ferguson is -415 over Anthony Pettis.
A second Taco Bell Cantina—following Las Vegas’ first at the Strip and Harmon—has been announced for downtown. The two-story 6,000-square-foot restaurant will occupy the space that was formerly the El Portal Theatre, with plans to blend the historic El Portal sign into the design. The opening is scheduled for 2019.
In a reaction to customer complaints about the nixing of Gaming Today’s “3 Girl” for a few issues, the magazine has brought the feature back. Sort of. An editor’s note in a recent issue indicates that the renamed “GTgirl” will now appear once a month and apparently not on page 3.
The Pahrump Planning Commission has received documents outlining Silverton's intentions to open Silverton Ranch Hotel-Casino in the town of 40,000 roughly 60 miles west of Las Vegas. The property will consist of a five-story 125-room hotel, a 30,000-square-foot casino and sports book, restaurant and coffee shop, meeting space, pool, and outdoor entertainment area. It will occupy seven and a half acres on the Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, a privately owned members-only racetrack and residential facility. Construction is slated to begin in August 2019 and be completed in September 2020.
Boyd Gaming has submitted permit paperwork to erect a 32-story 509-room hotel tower at the back of the property on Ogden Avenue. Plans also call for a complete overhaul of the existing 447 rooms in the 15-story tower opened in May 1956, at the time the tallest in Nevada. The casino square footage will increase by 22,000 square feet, including a new race and sports book; the parking garage will also be expanded. The entire project is expected to cost $32 million and take 30 months from when it begins; that date will be announced later.
The price of the Bally’s Sterling Brunch has been raised again, this time by $10 to $105. It’s the first Las Vegas buffet to crack the $100 mark. Pricey, yes, but last we checked it included king crab legs, American sturgeon caviar, and unlimited Perrier-Jouët Champagne.
The Vegas Golden Knights are -160 favorites over the Philadelphia Flyers in tonight’s NHL opener at T-Mobile Arena. The total is 6. Joe Pane, author of our book Vegas Golden Knights, is scheduled to appear on tonight’s 5 p.m. segment of the Channel 13 News to comment on the VGK’s prospects after last year’s historic season.
The New England Patriots are -11 favorites over the Indianapolis Colts in tonight's Thursday Night Football game. The total is 50.
It's cooling down here in Vegas and there's plenty of outside activities to choose from this weekend so get out and enjoy the weather.
The United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, a special panel that rules on litigation issues, has turned down MGM Resorts' bid to combine its separate lawsuits stemming from last year's mass shooting into one federal proceeding. MGM's case was based on the specter of thousands of lawsuits filed by victims and their families, but the panel noted that only 38 suits for negligence have been filed, 34 of which have been voluntarily dismissed. The Judicial Panel stated that it doesn't "take into account the mere possibility of future filings." The panel's decision came quickly, less than a week after arguments were presented in San Francisco. MGM can resubmit the request if an avalanche of lawsuits ever occurs.
Late-night talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel is opening a comedy club sometime next spring at the LINQ Promenade. The 300-seat club will host shows every night; Kimmel will appear when his duties at ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" allow. The 50-year-old Kimmel grew up in Las Vegas, attending Clark High School and UNLV.
The New York Yankees are -200 favorites over the Oakland Athletics in today's MLB American League Wild Card playoff game. The total is 8.5.
After compiling a 6-1 record in the preseason, outscoring their opponents 27-14, the odds that the Vegas Golden Knights will win the Stanley Cup have gone from 12-1 before the preseason to 8-1 today. The Knights are tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs at 8-1, right behind the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7-1. The Lightning also top the NHL in regular-season points at 107.5; the VGK are eighth on that list at 100.5. The first game of the 2018-2019 season takes place tomorrow night at T-Mobile against the Philadelphia Flyers, starting at 7 p.m.
According to Las Vegas Review-Journal man about town John Katsilometes, Celine Dion has surpassed the movie Titanic in ticket revenues. In her two Las Vegas residencies, Celine has topped $700 million in sales, while Titanic, the fifth-highest-grossing movie in the U.S. of all time, achieved just under $660 million. (It's the third-highest grosser worldwide at $2.18 billion.) Celine's rendition of "My Heart Will Go On," which she sang in the movie, was her second single and is considered her signature song; with worldwide sales estimated at 18 million copies, it became the second-best-selling single by a female artist in history, and the eighth overall.
How does the saying go—“more money than sense”? Of the 3,123 players in the Westgate SuperContest, 19 didn’t submit picks in the first week. That doesn’t eliminate them and a comeback isn’t out of the question, but starting in an 0-5 hole is a worst-case scenario for an entry that cost $1,500. Even more amazing, of the 128 players who put up $5,000 to enter SuperContest Gold, two were no-shows on week 1.
The Chicago Cubs are -140 favorites over the Colorado Rockies in today's MLB National League Wild Card playoff game. The total is 7.5.
In celebration of its fifth anniversary, the Downtown Grand is rolling out a month-long "5 Years/5 Venues/5 Dollars" promotion beginning this Friday, October 5, at 5 p.m. At Triple George and Furnace bars, get $5 drinks and appetizers. At the pool deck, cabanas are $5 (weather permitting). Wednesdays are good for 5x points at slots and the tables (no video poker). And Freedom Beat is serving $5 burgers, along with five-cent beer flights, Bloody Marys, and well drinks with a purchase from 5 to 5:55 p.m. daily.
The former Dishes Buffet has reopened as the Corner Market Buffet after a major renovation and retooling to the tune of nearly $4 million. The reopening was originally scheduled for June, then August, and it's finally arrived -- in a completely remodeled and greatly expanded room (13,000 square feet), with a larger and much more varied selection than Dishes. Get the prices, hours, and particulars here.
In tonight’s Monday Night Football game, the Kansas City Chiefs are -3.5 favorites over the Denver Broncos. The total is 53.5. Three Las Vegas bars follow Denver and one follows Kansas City. Get details from our complete list of Team Bars.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are -180 favorites over the Colorado Rockies in today’s National League West Division tiebreaker to determine the division champion and the wild card. The total is 7.
Grimaldi’s is selling 16-inch cheese pizzas for $10 on Mondays in October. There are five Grimaldi’s locations in town; call ahead to verify that the deal is offered at the location you want to visit.
The Chicago Cubs are -120 favorites over the Milwaukee Brewers in today’s National League Central Division tiebreaker to determine the division champion and the wild card. The total is 8. Note that this line was put up with the game in progress.