We were overly optimistic on when Nevada casinos can reopen. Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) has postponed that move until phase three or four of his four-step plan … which is also contingent on a two-week decline in new Coronavirus cases. If each phase consists of, say, a two-week period, that 
means casino reopenings would not take place until June 15 or July 1. There goes Memorial Day weekend. (Treasure Island is already SOL.) Sorry, Wynn Resorts. Now you can see why MGM Resorts International executives—prescient, it would seem—were modeling for a June resumption of business. For casino workers whose pay runs out May 15 or 31, a month of hardship looms. And even when casinos do reopen, it will be without nightclubs or that petri dish of Covid-19, pool parties. (We recommend reopening those in Phase XXVI or so.) You’ll be able to lounge by the pool, however, provided that you observe social distancing. In other departments, restaurants will have to disperse seating and casino floors will not be permitted to operate at more than 50% of capacity. These are just the minimal standards—which are nonetheless pretty extensive—issued by the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Casinos that wish to go above and beyond the call of duty (like Wynn) are encouraged to do so.
According to reporter Susan Stapleton, “The board also recommends frequent hand washing by staff, cleaning and social distancing at table games and slot machines, hand sanitizer available to visitors, and training 
on COVID-19 safety and disinfection protocols in English and Spanish for staff.” Actually, those are NGCB requirements, although little is said about face masks, something that will evidently be up to the discretion of the individual casino. A new category of jobs will be created: monitors to keep tabs on social distancing (who says there’s no upside to this?), while employees who display Coronavirus symptoms are to be reported and sent home. And if you don’t feel well for any reason, stay the f*** at home. (We paraphrase.) Training in, and sanitization of the property is to be upgraded and emphasized but you probably knew that already.
* One of the benefits of being a sovereign Native American nation is that you can scoff at state rules. That’s the case with Island Resort & Casino in Michigan. It intends to reopen tomorrow. But it’s not doing so heedlessly. Patrons will have their temperature taken upon arrival and anybody running a fever will be ixnayed. Face masks will be offered at the door, although not mandated. Island Casino is holding off on reopening its hotel and golf course, although the latter seems like one of the safer places to be.
Island’s impatience can be perhaps be understood in the larger context of what closing a casino does to tribal income (nothing good). “We’re losing about $5 million a month. It’s a tremendous hit,” said Jason Salsman, a spokesman for the Muscogee Creek Nation. The cutoff of the revenue stream was compounded by tribal gaming being deemed ineligible for the first round of the Paycheck Protection Program. Salsman told ABC News, “Although I feel bad for the industry, when a casino goes down in Las Vegas, it’s different … This is a loss of real services, and real human services, to our people. It’s not only a money issue, it’s a humanitarian issue, and it really hurts.”
Not only are cash-strapped tribes crammed onto reservations that place them at a high risk of Covid-19, they must cope with astronomical rates of hypertension, diabetes and asthma. Take away casino monies and there goes your first line of defense. When 125 tribal casinos qualified for the second round of the PPP they found themselves at the back of the queue, behind everybody who’d missed out on Round One. Said Dante Desiderio, executive director of the Native American Finance Officers Association, “yeah, it’s great that the guidance was changed. But it’s also disappointing that it was ever in doubt in the first place.” “If it’s phased-priority consideration, on a first-come, first-served basis, what’s left? Not much,” adds Vanderbilt University‘s Michael Burcham.
If there’s a silver lining it’s the Trump administration set aside $60 billion expressly for minority-owned small businesses. Observed Desiderio, “It seems from conversations with [the Small Business Administration] that they want to be able to include as many of the minority, disadvantaged communities, or the underserved, in their applicant pool.” National Indian Gaming Association Chairman Ernie Stevens tried to put the current situation in the best possible light, saying, “Indian Country’s been through a lot in our history, and we have persevered. We’re going to get through this.”
* Macao casinos have socked away so much cash ($12 billion) from the good times that they could subsist on zero revenue for at least a few month, some as much as years. A good thing, too, because April revenue 
was justthisclose to zero. Galaxy Entertainment is spending $3 million a month to keep its casinos operational. But because it generally eschews dividends (a lesson for Las Vegas?) it has $5.7 billion on hand. Fiscal discipline is strong, too. Reuters reports that debt-to-equity is 53% on average, not Vegas’ perilous 87%. We’re hoping for Macao to start ramping back up soon but it’s nice to know that its casinos could last six months, minimum, if it doesn’t.
* Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment “despite the unprecedented impact of the pandemic on the gaming sector” says it is fully committed to Inspire Athens, the casino-based megaresort for which it won the bid. And why not? Greece is weathering Covid-19 well, with 2,626 cases and 144 deaths (which speaks volumes about their pandemic response). Hard Rock International is challenging the contract award in court but MGE “is fully committed to turning Greece into a top destination for entertainment and business conferences in Europe,” CEO Mario Kontomerkos told Reuters. Now it’s up to the courts.
* Coronavirus has been good for Internet poker, heretofore a revenue disappointment in the U.S. In New Jersey there’s been a 91% spike in monies won. It’s a great setup for seasoned players, as the influx of 
newbies gives them easy pickings. Also, the more players, the bigger the pot. (With terrestrial poker rooms being limited to four players a table, online play could retain its allure when things return to ‘normal.’) The WSOP.com Super Circuit Series upped its pot to $4 million, so heavily was it subscribed. And, for the first time ever, GCPoker exceeded its $500K guaranteed pot. As poker pro Drew Layton put it, “I wouldn’t say I’m thriving because of the pandemic, but one area of my life has gotten a little better.” Added PocketFives.com editor Donnie Peters, “As unfortunate as a situation as this has been for so many, online poker is an industry that is flourishing right now.” It’s about time.
