As the big continue to get bigger, Penn National Gaming is two steps closer to becoming a 20-state, 41-casino mammoth. West Virginia and Pennsylvania‘s regulatory bodies have signed off on its absorption of Pinnacle Entertainment. Penn, however, is not counting its chickens 
before they’re hatched. Among other remaining hurdles there’s the small matter of a Federal Trade Commission request — the second one — for “additional information and documentary materials.” The FTC’s concern is whether Penn’s sale of four casinos to Boyd Gaming was sufficient to dispel potential monopolies. “This was a very complex four-party transaction and we took a look holistically at the deal and what we needed to handle regulatory approval at the state and federal level,” said Penn CEO Timothy Wilmott, alluding to the participation of Gaming & Leisure Properties in what was one of the most convoluted gaming mergers we’ve ever seen.
* Normally, we don’t like to see Louisiana governors butting into parish votes on whether to host a casino or not, but Bayou State Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) hails from Tangipahoa Parish, which wants Diamond Jacks 
casino — as does the governor. “If the election is called, I will vote for it,” he said, putting his franchise where his mouth is. Gov. Edwards isn’t alone. All eight Tangipahoa Parish mayors support the casino as does the sheriff — who happens to be the guv’s brother. In 1996, the parish voted to host riverboat gambling, to no avail, but that’s an encouraging precedent. Diamond Jacks and local politicians believe a casino could peel off some of the $260 million a year that leaves Louisiana, headed for Mississippi casinos. It would also alleviate an “underserved area” on Lake Pontchartrain‘s northern shore. We endorse homeboy Gov. Edwards’ endorsement.
* Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli is rather foxed by Wynn Resorts‘ massive stock sale to Galaxy Entertainment, ostensibly to 
help retire a financial settlement with Universal Entertainment. “On the surface the deal strikes us as a bit odd, given WYNN had roughly $3.1 bn of cash at 4Q end, of which $2.4 bn was in the U.S.,” write Santarelli. “In the 1Q18, WYNN will pay $2.4 bn as part of the UE settlement and an additional $336 mm to close on the LV Strip land purchase [from James Packer]. However, a bridge loan for $800 mm was already in place. Thus, we find the voluntary dilution a bit perplexing.”
* One does not associate the Easter Bunny with Sin City but WalletHub rates Las Vegas as the 15th-best U.S. city in which to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why? Well, it seems we’re fourth-best in both brunch restaurants and chocolate stores per capita, sixth in flower shops, seventh in weather forecasts (I’m actually surprised this number is not higher) and 10th in Easter-egg hunts. But we’re way down — 51st — in children age eight or younger. Procreate, Las Vegans!
* Derek Stevens is two games away from a million-dollar payday at the Golden Nugget. His University of Michigan Wolverines are in the NCAA Final Four, meaning that Stevens is too wins away from taking a big chunk out of Tilman Fertitta‘s wallet. We have to applaud Fertitta’s cojones in taking Stevens’ $25,000, 40-1 wager, which looks like it could pay off handsomely.
How can Fertitta justify giving those odds to Stevens? I checked the pre-tourney lines for all of the available sites downtown (Boyd, William Hill, El Cortez and Golden Nugget) and did not see Michigan anywhere near the mentioned 40-1 odds that Stevens bet. If I would have seen 20-1 I would have a Michigan ticket alive right now, but I do not remember seeing anything over 12-1. That is a huge difference in the risk that Fertitta is accepting for that bet. Not to mention that it does not make the rank and file bettors like me happy since it is just more proof that my money/action does not mean anything to management.