November was good for casinos in Ohio and Illinois, both of which posted strong numbers, modestly ahead of last year but—in Ohio’s case—still high heavens above 2019. Fresh off its October dethroning of MGM Northfield Park, rival Hollywood Columbus slipped back into second place with $21 million (+3.5%). MGM’s $23 million, an 8% surge, was again good enough for top honors. Third was Jack Cleveland (pictured), flat and incrementally below $21 million. Other strong achievers were Miami Valley Gaming, up 9% to $18.5 million and Scioto Downs, up 5.5% to $18 million. Hard Rock Cincinnati ceded 2.5%, although it grossed $19.5 million just the same. Hollywood Toledo gained 3% to finish at $17.5 million. The weakest performer was Belterra Park, falling 11% to $7 million. Jack Thistledown was flat at $14 million, Hollywood Dayton gained a point to $11 million and Hollywood Mahoning Valley leapt 8.5% to $12.5 million. All in all, a sweet month for Penn Entertainment.
Illinois casino win hopped 9.5% to $114 million, albeit a bit shy of 2019’s numbers. The gain was driven by increased visitation (up 9%), as customer spending remained flat. Hey, anything that gets players away from slot routes and into casinos is OK by us. Rivers Des Plaines swelled to 40% of total market share and any notions Lori Lightfoot has of toppling it seem as delusional as ever. The Churchill Downs-owned casino banked $45.5 million, a 13.5% jump. If we’re measure performance by percentages rather than dollars then the headline goes to Bally’s Quad Cities, pole-vaulting 35.5% to $4.5 million. For that matter, Hard Rock Rockford galloped +21.5% to $5 million, while Grand Victoria leapt 15.5% to $14 million. The only revenue-negative casinos were Hollywood Joliet (-4%, $7 million), Argosy Alton, down 6% to $2.5 million, and Par-A-Dice, down 2% to $5 million. Caesars Entertainment enjoyed the month, improving 9% at Harrah’s Metropolis (above, $5 million) and 4% at Harrah’s Joliet ($12 million). That leaves Hollywood Aurora (+3%, $8 million) to salvage the month for Penn, while DraftKings Casino Queen nudged +2% to $6.5 million.
So desperate are New York State casinos for employees that they’re all for throwing out the rule book on whom they can hire. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has been presented with a steaming, bipartisan, veto-proof legislative turd in the form of a bill that would permit felons to work in Empire State casinos. Rush Street Gaming is the prime mover behind this dubious idea but it had plenty of accomplices in Albany. Blame in particular falls upon state Sen. Joe Addabbo (D) and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow (D, below), the godfather of New York gambling. A Hochul veto would be only a gesture but sometimes gestures are worth making.
As Pretlow says, there are some safeguards in the bill. If you’ve been convicted of felony theft, fraud, perjury or embezzlement, a casino career is not in your future. However, the hypersensitive New York Post is not being alarmist (for a change) when it asserts that other criminals “from drug peddlers to killers” would be eligible for casino clemency. “That’s just wrong. This is another example of the New York State Legislature imposing a liberal policy in an area they shouldn’t touch,” huffed Conservative Party Chairman Joseph Kassar, conveniently forgetting all the Republican lawmakers who carried Big Gaming’s water on this one.
Responded Pretlow, “People deserve a second chance. They shouldn’t be denied employment because they got a drug felony conviction.” We agree with those specific sentiments but no farther. Pretlow and Addabbo should have drawn the bill with a much finer brush. (A “public integrity” disqualification should keep just about every New York lawmaker out of the gaming biz.) We find it hard to believe that casinos in the Empire State are so hard up for qualified workers that they have to scour the stews and jails to find them.
Bad news for Resorts World Las Vegas: Its tentpole entertainer, Celine Dion, is delaying a raft of concert-tour dates and canceling others. The Canadian songstress has yet to grace the Resorts World stage and the latest news, involving a rare neural condition, makes the odds of her doing so that much longer. While Dion’s Instagram message was tearful, at least the response is proportional to the provocation, not some Adele-style meltdown over her own neuroses. And Dion used her bully pulpit to draw attention to “stiff-person syndrome,” which has an alarming list of effects upon its victims. Dion is working with a sports therapist and we strongly hope she is able to hit the Resorts World concert hall in triumph.
Customer service at Caesars Palace is an oxymoron, according to the Wall Street Journal. One must rely on “Ivy,” a chatbot, which one customer likened to “shouting into the void.” Reports the WSJ, “When Mr. Ellis tried calling the front desk, he says he was redirected to a general call-services center. Meanwhile, the line at reception often snaked around the hotel lobby.” Chalk up another one for El Diablo. A Caesars spokeswoman “said it is Caesars’s goal to exceed guest expectations and the company apologizes to Mr. Ellis for the inconvenience.” How about just providing service? Wouldn’t that keep you out of the papers?
Remember how, a couple of days ago, we foolishly wrote that the Las Vegas Raiders could still “tiptoe into the playoffs”? Then Baker Mayfield happened. If there is a way to lose a sure-thing game, the Silver & Black will find it, as they did against a 3-9 Los Angeles Rams squad that lacked three top playmakers and was led by a quarterback claimed off waivers at the start of the weak, er, week. Maybe it’s just as well that the Raiders killed fans’ faint playoff hopes quickly. They’d get crushed like a tin can in the postseason. Never underestimate QB Derek Carr‘s ability to gift the opposing teams with interceptions in must-score situations (he did it twice last night) or the defense’s urge to commit idiotic penalties—and the Raider secondary couldn’t cover a baby with a blanket. Las Vegas football fans, regarded as some of the best in the league, deserve better. Oh, and congratulations to those of you who took the Rams and the under.
Jottings: Coverage of Churchill Downs was initiated by J.P. Morgan, which had a coolly favorable outlook on the stock. Macroeconomic uncertainties seemed to be the key drivers of analyst Omer Sander‘s caution … The much-abused Mashpee Wampanoags are due $239,726.94 from former chairman Cedric Cromwell and architect David DeQuattro, according to a recommendation from U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins (a rising star of the judiciary), who deemed the tribe more sinned against than sinner. It may be difficult for Cromwell and DeQuattro to pony up the money, as both are under lock and key … While MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park have struggled for sports-book approval in Massachusetts, it was an easy layup for Encore Boston Harbor. The Wynn Resorts property was approved on the first try … Another month in Japan, another casino postponement. MGM Resorts International‘s chimerical Osaka megaresort is now being pushed back to 2030, which sort of speaks for itself. Sheldon Adelson and Rob Goldstein were wise to quite chasing losses in Nippon … Oaklawn casino in Hot Springs is going for a “fun for everyone” image. Simulcasting is out, shuffleboard is in … TPC Scottsdale will soon host a DraftKings-operated sports book. Ground was broken on the venture this week … Are the good times in Las Vegas slowing down? UNLV‘s Center for Business & Economic Research thinks so. Between consumer prices and rising interest rates, the CBER sees more a squeeze coming for discretionary dollars. At least the interest-rate hikes may curb the temptation to go heavily into debt to fund that Sin City spree.