You’ve got to hand it to the operators of Missouri‘s black-market slot routes. They’ve certainly got nerve. It doesn’t matter that a federal judge ruled the machines to be illegal, nor that state Attorney General Catherine Hanaway ordered the games removed nor that the FBI is lurking in the wings. No, by golly, they’ve got a right to break the law, they say. The brassiest litigant is Tuners Bar & Grill, which is demanding immunity from prosecution if it doesn’t unplug its illicit machines.
Hanaway is to be applauded for her forthright actions. (We’re only sorry she chose to drop pending charges against flagrant offender Torch Electronics, albeit after Torch agreed to pull its unlawful machines from the Show-Me State.) She’s a huge improvement on her two do-nothing predecessors, one of whom was arguably in Torch’s pocket, by dint of campaign donations. As a Hanaway spokesman said, “It is a billion-dollar, unregulated, cash industry.” And Heaven only knows where that cash is going—besides into lawmakers’ pockets. Also suing the state, by the way, is a shadowy group called the Missouri Licensing Advocacy Group, a nervy name for a cabal of unlicensed gambling operators. It goes by the acronym of MOLAG, which sounds like a Dark Ages monster you’d find in the pages of Beowulf.
As the Missouri Independent‘s Jason Hancock reports, “The groups are careful about what they’re arguing. They aren’t leading with a claim that the machines are legal. Their lawsuits are about process: The state, they argue, can’t declare a machine illegal by press release and then threaten criminal charges or loss of liquor licenses.” They want to wear down the state by making it prove that every discrete machine is illegal, gumming up the works with a morass of hair-splitting. It tells you something about how big the money at stake is, if MOLAG is willing to fight to the last machine to hang onto black-market gambling.
The casinos, of course, are rooting for the state. They have licenses which cost them dearly and they pay taxes, like good citizens. They’re basically being taken advantage of by the black marketeers, who answer to no one. On the state’s side are legal precedents as far back as 1913. On MOLAG’s side is sheer gall and an unearned sense of entitlement. Admittedly, “It is fair to ask why Missouri tolerated the machines for so long, whether enforcement lands on operators or the small businesses hosting them, and whether the state treats all gambling with equal seriousness,” as Hancock writes. But’s making a good start.
Without leaving Missouri, let’s turn to some recent gambling grosses. They nudged up 2% last month in the Show-Me State. Ameristar St. Charles easily led the St. Louis market with $26 million, up 4%. River City was a few dollars ahead of sister Hollywood St. Louis, $22 million to $22 million, with the former up 2.5% to the latter’s 3.5%. Horseshoe St. Louis lost badly needed ground, falling 9.5% to $12.5 million. Kansas City was dominated by Ameristar Kansas City and its $17 million (5%). Argosy Riverside ($14 million, 7.5%) was the other gainer. Harrah’s North Kansas City dove 9% to $14 million and Bally’s Kansas City was down 7% to $10 million. Outstate, Century Caruthersville surged 10.5% to $5 million while its sibling, Century Cape Girardeau, hopped 7.5% to $6.5 million. Isle of Capri Boonville was up 8.5% to $8 million, St. Jo Frontier (pictured) gained 6% to $4 million and slots-only Mark Twain Casino leapt 11% to $3 million.
Perhaps the headline coming out of Illinois was the eye-popping, 75% revenue explosion at Hollywood Joliet, as it continues to vastly outdistance its antiquated precursor. It brought in $12 million and helped drive a 9% statewide increase. Understandably, Hollywood Aurora was down 13%, having been out of commission June 10-24 as Penn Entertainment made the transition from an old riverboat to a new, land-based casino. It grossed $7.5 million between the two facilities. Also making an eye-opening showing was Fairmont Park‘s racino, gaining 70.5% better traction and a $2 million gross. Other than Hollywood Joliet, the breakout performer in Chicagoland continued to be Wind Creek Southland (below), leaping 22.5% to $20.5 million.
Having one of its better months was Bally’s Casino downtown, up 8.5% to $11.5 million. Market leader Rivers Des Plaines was unruffled, gaining 9% to $44 million. Third place in the market after Rivers and Wind Creek went to Hard Rock Rockford and its $13 million (6%). Then came Grand Victoria ($12.5 million, 5.5%). Rounding out the market were Harrah’s Joliet, feeling the pinch of competition ($9.5 million, -6.5%) and The Temporary at American Place, up 10% to $11 million. Downstate, Harrah’s Metropolis had an adverse month, down 14% to $4 million. New kids on the block Walker’s Bluff Casino ($3 million, 3%) and Golden Nugget Danville ($3.5 million, 7.5%) had good months, as did Bally’s Quad Cities ($5.5 million). Par-A-Dice was flat at $5 million, Argosy Belle sank 11% to $3 million and DraftKings Casino Queen was down 1.5% to $6.5 million.
Hoosier State revenues subsided a bit, down a point in June. A few casinos took a walloping. Hard Rock Northern Indiana was not one of them. It gained 8.5% to a state-best $34.5 million. Less fortunate was Horseshoe Hammond, plunging 18.5% to $17 million, while Ameristar East Chicago got thwacked 16.5% to $10.5 million. Even Blue Chip (below) ceded 1% to $10 million. Horseshoe Indianapolis was up 6.5% to $25 million and second place, while Harrah’s Hoosier Park kept pace ($19 million, 4%). French Lick Resort was up 6.5% to $6 million and Terre Haute Casino hopped 2.5% to $11.5 million. Along the Ohio River, customers fled Rising Star, sinking it 19% to $3.5 million. Belterra Resort was up 1.5% to $7.5 million, Bally’s Evansville gained 3.5% to $14 million (and first place among Bally’s Corp. casinos) but Hollywood Lawrenceburg slipped 6% to $11 million. Tribal Caesars Southern Indiana was down 2% to $18.5 million, rounding out the picture.
Sports betting showed Indiana to be yet another state where World Cup bettors have been taking it to the house. Winnings plunged 18% to $37 million on handle of $403 million, as books held 9%. It could have been worse. Last week, New York State reported a dismal 5% hold for June and other states have been almost as bad. Awwww, so sad. Only DraftKings held better than 10% but FanDuel still bested it, $12 million to $10 million. Bet365 was a surprise third-place finisher with $4 million, out-wagering BetMGM ($3 million), Fanatics ($2 million), Caesars Sportsbook ($2 million) and theScore Bet ($1 million), while BetRivers got blanked entirely.
Casino winnings continue to slump in Maryland, where they were down 2.5% last month. Flat slot play sort of made up for an 8% sag in table winnings. The only gainer was Ocean Downs, up 4.5% to $9 million. Horseshoe Baltimore was flat at $14 million, which was a victory of sorts for that hard-pressed property. Down a point was MGM National Harbor with its $66.5 million (eschatologists, take note). Maryland Live slid 5% to $56 million while Rocky Gap Resort tumbled 7% to $4.5 million.
How are you going to keep them down on the farm after they’ve seen Petersburg? That’s the operative question in Virginia, where Cordish Gaming is taking big chomps out of the ‘historical horse racing’ market with only a temporary casino in Petersburg. Just imagine what will happen when the permanent one debuts. Churchill Downs better gather those HHR rosebuds while yet it may: The latest number show its Richmond slot parlors toppling 25%, Colonial Downs plunging 24% and Cordish putting a 16.5% hit on nearby Emporia. Once people have access to the full Class III product, Churchill Downs’ HHRs are likely to become a secondary, convenience-gambling offering and no more than that.
If you’ve got a little extra time (say, 17 hours), you can listen to the Dallas Symphony‘s new recording of Richard Wagner‘s epic Der Ring des Nibelungen. Or, if you’re in a hurry, you can read about it. Don’t say we never saved you $115.