Atlantic City: It could have been worse; Hard Rock changes its tune

OK, so September’s numbers from Atlantic City only represent one month of competition from SugarHouse, in Philadelphia. However, with every other casino in Pennsylvania having enjoyed two full months of table games, a 12% dropoff isn’t as bad as I feared. However, last year only December posted a worse gross than last month’s $296 million and it’s crystal-clear that, as we move forward, simply hitting $300 million in an off-peak month will be a triumph over adversity.

Although everybody was revenue-negative compared to September ’09, Trump Taj Mahal and even Trump Marina were practically flat (less than a percentage point off last year’s pace). While the Marina may have hit bottom, Resorts Atlantic City has not; it fell 21% and into last place. In first place, Borgata was a full $10 million down from 9/09, but it also has more to lose, grossing as much as the bottom four casinos put together. It was hard hit at the tables, holding only 12% for a 39% falloff in revenue — somewhat ameliorated by only a low-single-digit drop in slot winnings. That was far better than the market average for slots (-10% on a comparable falloff of coin-in), if much worse than average (-16%) at the tables.

Carl Icahn‘s Tropicana continues to underperform for a casino of its size, running only slightly ahead of the smaller Showboat ($25 million to $25 million). Harrah’s Entertainment almost had the second tier to itself, as Bally’s, Caesars and Harrah’s Marina all bunched themselves around the $35 million mark, as did the Taj. All other casinos remain on life support are on life support.

No rebound? There’s one in Detroit. Discrete decisions by MGM Resorts International to stay in Motown but evacuate Atlantic City are looking like a win-win. Detroit casinos were up 6% last month, grossing $109 million ($46.5 million at MGM Grand Detroit). Everybody did well, with Greektown Casino halting a steep slide and MotorCity up 4%, while MGM continues to exceed analyst expectations for the quarter.

New focus at Hard Rock: At hotel room at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino may cost you as little as $48 this month, but the casino’s greater focus on local players is reportedly putting a lot of fannies on slot stools — particularly in the extension of the casino floor, which lately resembled a funeral parlor. Logo-merchandise giveaways (a gym bag one week, a hip flask another) are bringing players in, which suggests that the appointment of former M Resort exec Joseph Magliarditi as property CEO is helping operator Morgans Entertainment Group pull its head out of its nether regions.

The latest locals-friendly move is to expand the benefits available to members of the Rockstar Players Club. Starting last Sunday, new goodies for frequent players include qualifying for spa comps, as well as dining ones at Rare 120 and Johnny Smalls. I’ve eaten at both and say you should only go if you’re comped. However, praise to the HRH for realizing that it’s idiosyncratic marketing position — both metaphorically and geographically — demands a more vigorous outreach to Las Vegas proper.