Caesars Entertainment CEO Tom Reeg must have dropped some extra-potent LSD before his last investor call. His comments were summarized by one auditor as, “When we get into a Post-COVID world Pent-Up demand you’re going to see for Gaming And … Las Vegas in Particular Is going to be beyond your Wildest Dreams. Unlike anything that’s happened historically in this Space.” That not only puts Reeg not only out on a limb but in the thinly populated lunatic fringe of gaming executives and Wall Street analysts. It also conveniently allows Reeg to write off present-day reality as an aberration. For example, the drawdown of federal economic stimulus seems to be having a parallel effect on regional gaming. Not even two extra weekend days in October could produce impressive results.
True, there’s always Ohio, no doubt helped by the fact that Detroit casinos are still largely off-limits. The Buckeye State was up 7% to $169 million. MGM Northfield Park and Hollywood Columbus vied for the top spot with $20 million each. But MGM doesn’t have table games so we give it the ‘win.’ Hollywood Columbus was up 10.5% while MGM slipped 5%. Hollywood Toledo continues to outperform, with $18.5 million and a 16% gain. Jack Cleveland won $19 million for a 12% upsurge and Hard Rock Cincinnati kept its footing, up 1.5% to $17 million. Jack Thistledown grossed $14 million, up 16.5%, while Scioto Downs did $17 million (+11%) and Miami Valley Gaming won $14.5 million (+2%). Belterra Park was flat at $7 million, while Hollywood Dayton leapt 13.5% to $11 million and Hollywood Mahoning Valley slipped 2% to $11 million.
