Bally’s Corp. is usually a subject of fun in these pages, so let’s flip the script and congratulate the company on the 45th anniversary of Bally’s Atlantic City. Above you see the buses full of gamblers pulling up at what used to be Park Place Casino and has been through more incarnations subsequently than you can shake a stick at. In Monopoly, Park Place will set you back $350 and is one of the blue-chip properties in the game. In recent years, Bally’s picked up the erstwhile Park Place Casino from Caesars Entertainment for what seemed like only $350 and if it was ever a premium spot on the Boardwalk those days are long gone.
But we’re here to praise Bally’s Atlantic City, not bury it, and our Boardwalk correspondent reports that the anniversary was marked by the debut of a revamped and improved Legends Lounge. And yes, that woman sporting the metal dress frame below gives a new meaning to “hold her liquor.” And finally we have a shot of one of Bally’s first-ever slot machines. No, it’s not representative of current casino inventory: The old gal was trotted out specially for the occasion. Enjoy!
It was a merry month of May for casinos in Ohio, up 4% from last year. Buckeye State casinos grossed $204 million, a 21% improvement on pre-pandemic 2019. Whatever Covid-19 did to us, it certainly sharpened our desire to gamble. Prime beneficiary was red-headed stepchild MGM Northfield Park, well ahead of the pack with $27 million (+4.5%). Only one casino or racino was revenue-negative and that, oddly, was in-season Jack Thistledown, down 2% to $15.5 million. Sister property Jack Cleveland was up 2.5% to $21 million, while Hollywood Cleveland did $23.5 million (+5.5%) and Hollywood Toledo surged 7.5% to $19 million. Hard Rock Cincinnati made $20.5 million (+4.5%). Miami Valley Gaming continues to prosper with $21.5 million (+7%), while Scioto Downs nudged up a point to $20 million. Belterra Park was up 3.5% to $7.5 million. Hollywood Mahoning Valley galloped past Hollywood Dayton, $15 million to $13 million (9.5% to 3%).
Sports betting whipped up handle of $595 million ($204 million for that for DraftKings alone). From that came $66 million, of which $20.5 million went back to players as promotions. Tight 11% hold helped drive the outcome. Despite being nosed by DraftKings in handle, FanDuel was first in revenue with $30.5 million, lagged by DraftKings’ $20 million. Other contenders were Bet365 ($4.5 million), BetMGM ($3.5 million), ESPN Bet ($2.5 million) and Caesars Sportsbook ($1.5 million).