Contributing expert Barry Meadow writes:
You can find betting kiosks (self-service betting machines, either stand-alone or portable) at several properties, including the Wynn (14 in general seating and 4 in the VIP area) and Bally's (which has one; Paris is due to get one, too). These properties operate their own machines, so you have to open an account and make a deposit with the race and sports book. Then you’re free to make your own parimutuel wagers from the comfort of your seat using the machines. Any winnings can be withdrawn from your account at the window and a printout of your account activity is supplied upon request.
Other casinos in town, including the Riviera, Sahara, Silverton, Klondike, Longhorn, and MonteLago, have kiosks owned and operated by Leroy's (which hopes to have kiosks in all their 60 locations statewide by '06 football season). You deposit cash, vouchers, or winning tickets in the machines, then receive vouchers for any winning bets or unused credit, which you take to the window or cage to cash. The first three are fully licensed to take all sports and race bets, so you can wager on any event offered by Leroy's; at the other venues, you can place bets on any sports events, but the only races you can bet on are the Breeders' Cup and Triple Crown. In addition to being able to place bets at the kiosks, they also feature rules, race results, sports schedules, and sports results, all of which are printable, plus you can use them to enter any of Leroy's contests.
At most racebooks, however, you need to bet with a teller. So if you're staying or playing at a racebook in which you need to play with a live person, here's an idea. At the end of the day, bring your tickets to a teller and have him run them through his terminal. If you have any winners, the amount of the win will pop up on his screen. Of course, if you have something like 112 tickets, maybe you could check them in batches throughout the day.
As an interesting aside, a couple of years ago, some minor fanfare surrounded the launch of sports betting kiosks for bars and taverns in southern Nevada. Unlike the kiosks in casino race and sports books, which accept wagers on pari-mutuel events only, these new Sports Bet Xpress (SBX) machines enabled patrons to place bets on football and baseball, etc., just as if they were in an actual sports book, but without having to quit their barstool. In fact, before you could place a bet, you had to physically open an account at the sports book to which the machines were linked (Bally's), where you also had to return in order to cash any winning tickets. And this may well have been a factor in the downfall of the idea, which, instead of taking off like wildfire and spreading to convenience stores and other locations as the companies behind it had hoped, quickly vanished from the scene. Similarly, without significant support from casinos, the idea was pretty much doomed, and there was apparently a feeling that the potential revenue lost by not having patrons walk through the casino door would not be offset by additional sports bets they might make, especially as sports betting is generally the least profitable aspect of the casino.
We know a beta-testing period occurred, where the SBX machines were trialed in various locations, including several Big Dog's taverns, but they are no longer in the field and a call to Bally's race and sports book confirmed that they were withdrawn due to virtually zero usage.
