“We think it’s time for Florida to take it out of the shadows and into the sunshine,” said state Sen. Jeff Brandes (R). He was speaking of sports betting which, like daily fantasy sports, is currently illegal in the Sunshine State. He’s proposing a mix of self-service kiosks 
and online wagering, which would taxed at a painful 50% (who said Democrats are the only party of high taxes?). The proceeds kept by the state would go toward the cost of education. In view of the likelihood of opposition from the well-funded Seminole Tribe, one pundit said of Brandes, “His bill is DOA. A longshot comes through every once in awhile. This bill isn’t getting out of the chute.” The Seminoles aren’t against sports betting. They just think it should be their bailiwick. For that matter, decisions involving gaming were taken out of the Legislature’s hands last election by popular vote.
According to the Sun Sentinel, “Brandes’ bill would allow betting on collegiate and professional sports, as well as Olympic and international contests. Youth and high school sports are omitted. The bill allows in-game betting, and you’d have to be 21 or older to wager.” There was a predictable squeal of outrage from gambling opponent John Sowinski. He howled that—horror of horrors—people would be making prop bets on how long it takes to sing the national anthem. (Is anybody going to stretch it further on the rack than Alicia Keys did?) Sowinski is right about one thing: This is in the hands of the electorate, not the Lege. Besides, the state has to craft a new compact with the Seminoles, who are withholding revenue-sharing until parimutuels stop offering blackjack. Given the amount of money involved in that ($350 million a year), Brandes’ initiative looks like chump change.
* Circus Circus will keep its storied name but Phil Ruffin has some big changes 
planned for the clown house. One is a 2,000-seat theater, already slated to hold Cirque du Soleil‘s The Illusionists. (Cirque couldn’t get an Elvis Presley show right; how is it going to fare with that Las Vegas Strip staple, magic?) The already downsized RV park is going to make way for a wave pool, a la Mandalay Bay. An overhaul of the casino is probably overdue and is on Ruffin’s agenda but please, Phil, leave the coin-in machines in place.
* Speaking of slots, GameCo CEO Blaine Graboyes says his company’s skill-based machines are getting 60% of their handle from players aged 29-41, an age group that tends to shun traditional slots. The average bet is $1.50 and the machines are racking up 30 minutes’ greater time on device, the Holy Grail of slot makers. To put that in context, 
GameCo’s machines have had only a limited rollout and casinos have tended to buy only a couple at a time. But GameCo knows its demographic sweet spot, licensing titles like Star Trek, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, and Mission: Impossible. Millennial-friendly The Linq has done very well for GameCo, while the company is also installing pairs of machines at Park MGM and MGM Grand. Up in Reno, the Atlantis, always a casino willing to try something new, is taking a flyer on GameCo’s slots. “We set out to give casinos products that would monetize a younger Gen X and Millennial audience, and we’re very proud to have the data now after three years that proves that,” Graboyes told Casino.com.
“So, whether we’re at a tribal casino in the rural South, or a commercial casino in Nevada, we are seeing that anywhere between 60-to-80% of play on our games is 49 and under.” Whether GameCo-type machines could sustain a wider rollout remains to be seen but it would be an understatement to call these early results encouraging. What’s up next for Graboyes? How do house banked e-sports grab you?
* After much perseverance, the opening of Desert Diamond Casino is near. The Tohono d’Oodham $400 million tribal casino just erected a 65-foot marquee, visible from 
the highway. “This is a little preview of what’s coming in about 10 weeks from now,” predicted CEO Rudy Prieto. “It’s very significant because it’s the first step in lighting up the future for this magnificent property. It’s the largest sign of any casino in Arizona.” The casino might still be tied up in litigation but give credit to Gov. Doug Ducey (R) for realizing that he was playing a losing hand and folding it with good grace. Let the games begin.
Where did you find the 50% tax number on the Florida sports betting bill?
“Licensees would split their proceeds 50-50 with the state’s share going to fund scholarships and educational services.”