Author Archives: David McKee

About David McKee

Bio

Vegas locals strong, Strip stinks; Economic boom foreseen

Even with $600 extra in their pockets, gamblers could not be lured back to the Las Vegas Strip last month. Strip revenues of $321.5 million represented a 44% implosion from 2020. Statewide, the falloff was 26.5% to $762 million. Once … Continue reading

Posted in AGA, Atlantic City, Boulder Strip, Caesars Entertainment, Carl Icahn, Churchill Downs, Cordish Co., Derek Stevens, Dining, Downtown, Economy, Election, Health, history, Horseracing, Illinois, International, Kentucky, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, Maryland, Mesquite, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, North Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, Reno, Security, Sports, Sports betting, Tennessee, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation, Wall Street, Wendover | 3 Comments

Louisiana better than it looks; Covid checkmates brothels

Casinos in the Pelican State were off 10% in January. However, when one adjusts the numbers to account for the permanent closure of Diamond Jacks in Shreveport and the all-but-permanent shutdown of Isle Grand Palais on Lake Charles, gaming revenues … Continue reading

Posted in Bally, Boyd Gaming, Brothels, Caesars Entertainment, Churchill Downs, CQ Holdings, Economy, Golden Nugget, Health, Louisiana, MGM Resorts International, New York, Penn National, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip | 1 Comment

Mixed signals from Vegas; It’s all good in Atlantic City

Is the new year bringing a Las Vegas comeback? If you set store by anecdotal evidence, things look relatively normal on Fremont Street. God knows Downtown could use a dose of normality, especially after a December devoutly to be forgotten. … Continue reading

Posted in AGA, Architecture, Barstool Sports, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Detroit, Downtown, Economy, Election, Golden Nugget, Hawaii, Health, Horseracing, Illinois, Indiana, International, Internet gambling, Iowa, Kansas, Las Vegas Sands, Lotteries, Louisiana, Macau, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Politics, Problem gambling, Regulation, Sports betting, Technology, The Strip, United Kingdom, Virginia, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 2 Comments

Sign of the times

Metal detector at the entrance of Philadelphia Live. It may be the first but we doubt it’s the last.

Posted in Cordish Co., Current, Pennsylvania, Security | Comments Off on Sign of the times

Boyd better than expected; Marching through Georgia

Boyd Gaming leaked January data, what Wall Street calls “offered an encouraging commentary,” to help put an upbeat spin on its 4Q20 numbers. It worked like a charm. JP Morgan analyst Joseph Greff moved his price target up $8 to … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, Boulder Strip, Boyd Gaming, Cretins, Downtown, Economy, Entertainment, FanDuel, Florida, Foxwoods, Georgia, Hawaii, Health, Illinois, Lotteries, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Politics, Resort fees, South Carolina, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tony Hsieh, Tourism, Virgin Hotels, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Michigan gaming explodes; Massachusetts droops

Online sports betting and Internet gambling have come to Michigan and they’re a smash hit. In the first 10 days of sports betting, handle was $115 million, with revenues of $13 million. FanDuel led market share with 32% of handle, … Continue reading

Posted in Barstool Sports, Detroit, Dining, DraftKings, Entertainment, FanDuel, FoxBet, Health, history, Internet gambling, Las Vegas Raiders, M Resort, MGM Resorts International, New Jersey, New York, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Real Estate, Rush Street Gaming, Sports betting, Taxes, Tennessee, The Strip, Tribal, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Michigan gaming explodes; Massachusetts droops

A.C.: Trump Dump gone, Hard Rock and Ocean going strong

At 9:08 a.m. yesterday, one of the towers of Trump Plaza was finally imploded, an important first step in clearing Atlantic City of its last excrescences of You Know Who. Maybe owner Carl Icahn, having been a “george” donor to … Continue reading

Posted in AGA, Bally, Barstool Sports, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Carl Icahn, Charity, Churchill Downs, Cordish Co., Current, Dining, Donald Trump, DraftKings, Economy, FanDuel, FoxBet, Golden Nugget, Greenwood Racing, Hard Rock International, MGM Resorts International, Missouri, Mohegan Sun, Ocean Resort, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Rush Street Gaming, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tourism, Tribal, TV, Wall Street, William Hill | 3 Comments

No joy in Sin City

What follows was shared with us via Facebook. It shows the (ugly) face of customer interactions in present-day Las Vegas … “I need you to know what people in positions of service are experiencing right now. “Tonight I am working … Continue reading

Posted in Cretins, Current | 2 Comments

F-blue returns from the grave; Caesars socks it to you

The Thing That Wouldn’t Die, aka Fontainebleau, is back again. Former owner Steven Witkoff has sold it to Koch Real Estate Investments for an undisclosed price. Considering that Witkoff bought it from Carl Icahn for $600 million and estimated that … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona, Caesars Entertainment, Carl Icahn, Economy, Eldorado Resorts, Entertainment, Fontainebleau, Harry Reid, history, Horseracing, Illinois, Law enforcement, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, Planet Hollywood, Racinos, Resorts World LV, Steven Witkoff, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation, Tribal, Virgin Hotels, Wall Street | 5 Comments

MGM revisited; Mixed month for Indiana

Today it was Credit Suisse analyst Ben Chaiken‘s turn to weigh in on MGM Resorts International‘s 4Q20 numbers and he found even more to like than did Joseph Greff yesterday. Leading with Macao, Chaiken saw MGM China capturing more of … Continue reading

Posted in Barstool Sports, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Colorado, Dan Lee, Donald Trump, DraftKings, FanDuel, Full House Resorts, Galaxy Entertainment, Genting, Hard Rock International, Illinois, Indiana, Internet gambling, Japan, Jim Murren, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Marketing, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, Movies, New York, Penn National, Regulation, Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, Spectacle Entertainment, Sports betting, Steve Wynn, The Mob, The Strip, Tribal, Wall Street, Washington State, Wynn Resorts | 2 Comments

BetMGM saves company’s bacon; Whither the Palms?

Seesawing between the effects of closures and capacity restrictions, Detroit casinos were down 28% last month. They grossed $87 million, led by MGM Grand Detroit with $34 million (-32%). Breathing down MGM’s neck is MotorCity‘s $33 million haul (-21%), while … Continue reading

Posted in California, Card rooms, Colorado, Conventions, Cordish Co., Detroit, Dining, Economy, Health, Internet gambling, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Michigan, Palms, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Sports betting, Station Casinos, Tennessee, The Strip, Tourism, Wall Street | 2 Comments

Station sitting pretty; Missouri booms; All bets off at MGM

Despite fourth quarter revenues that were 28% off the pace ($122 million) in Las Vegas, analysts on Wall Street are liking Station Casinos these days. Native American management fees in 4Q20 were up 21% ($25.5 million) for one thing. JP … Continue reading

Posted in Bally, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Cretins, Dining, Economy, Harry Reid, history, Law enforcement, MGM Resorts International, Missouri, Penn National, Sports betting, Station Casinos, The Strip, Transportation, Wall Street | 2 Comments

Normality in Ohio, disaster in Illinois; Planet Ho sale mooted

Maybe the ‘skinny stimulus’ helped Ohio. Gross gaming revenues of $153.5 million were only 8.5% off last year’s pace. The gambling houses are still operating at 50% capacity and under a curfew but the number remains impressive. Hollywood Toledo continues … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, Bally, Boyd Gaming, Churchill Downs, Colorado, Dan Gilbert, Detroit, Dining, DraftKings, Economy, Georgia, Hard Rock International, history, Illinois, Jack Entertainment, Las Vegas Sands, Louisiana, Macau, Marketing, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mattress Mack, MGM Resorts International, North Carolina, Ohio, Penn National, Planet Hollywood, South Dakota, Sports betting, Texas, The Strip, Transportation, TV, Virginia, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Welcome to Less Vegas

Caesars Entertainment, aka Eldorado Resorts, has become possessed by the evil spirit of spare-every-expense Columbia Sussex. In one of the most odious of recent cutpurse moves, bartenders have been ordered to short-pour liquor: The ‘new normal’ is .75 ounces per … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, Arizona, Barstool Sports, Caesars Entertainment, California, Canada, Columbia Sussex, Connecticut, Conventions, Cretins, DraftKings, Election, FanDuel, Florida, Health, Kansas, Lotteries, Massachusetts, Maverick Gaming, MGM Resorts International, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Penn National, PointsBet, Politics, Racinos, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tribal, United Kingdom, Wall Street, Washington State | 1 Comment

How do you make … ?

… the best Super Bowl commercial: Two words—Will Ferrell.

Posted in Entertainment, Marketing, Transportation, TV | 1 Comment

Wynn surprises few; Maryland stabilizes, Iowa impresses

It’s earnings-report time for Wynn Resorts and JP Morgan analyst, Joseph Greff, for one, is feeling blasé about the numbers. “Overall, we’d characterize the quarter as in line with investors’ recent expectations, and its earnings conference call outlook commentary as … Continue reading

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, California, China, Churchill Downs, Cordish Co., Dining, DraftKings, Entertainment, FanDuel, Golden Gaming, Health, International, Internet gambling, Iowa, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Marketing, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Michigan, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Rush Street Gaming, Sports, The Strip, Wall Street, West Virginia, William Hill, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Wynn surprises few; Maryland stabilizes, Iowa impresses

Penn survives bad quarter; Summer gaming recover possible

Penn National Gaming reported 4Q20 earnings today and they were down 23% from last year. Many reasons were cited, including lower consumer spending, casino closures in Illinois, Michigan and Pennsylvania, and new restrictions in Ohio and Maine. Oh yes, and … Continue reading

Posted in Barstool Sports, Cretins, Dining, Health, Illinois, Indiana, LVCVA, Maine, Michigan, Movies, New Jersey, Ohio, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Sports, Sports betting | 2 Comments

Quote of the Day

“And, honestly, a group of spider monkeys throwing darts at the 2020 release schedule would have done a better job than the Hollywood Foreign Press Association this time around.”—Boston Globe film critic Ty Burr on the head-scratching Golden Globes nominations.

Posted in Current | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Hawaiians avoid Las Vegas

Pent-up demand, huh? Not in Hawaii, according to KHON-TV in Honolulu. It reveals that Hawaiian Vacations had been planning to resume charter flights to Sin City (Boyd Gaming‘s bread and butter) in December but called it off due to a … Continue reading

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Downtown, Hawaii, Health, Las Vegas Sands, Tourism, Transportation | 1 Comment

Bailout for Tilman; Casinos to the Big Apple; Mega-Jottings

It was a $6.6 billion rescue package that Golden Nugget CEO Tilman Fertitta received, in the form of a merger with FAST Acquisition. Fertitta’s been hard up for cash and forks over a portion of his casino empire in return … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Caesars Entertainment, Colorado, Dining, Economy, Entertainment, Florida, Full House Resorts, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock International, Internet gambling, Las Vegas Sands, Law enforcement, Marketing, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Racinos, Real Estate, Regulation, Sports betting, Tamares Group, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tribal, TV, Wall Street | Comments Off on Bailout for Tilman; Casinos to the Big Apple; Mega-Jottings