Indiana, Missouri, Ohio rebound, Illinois not so much

It was back to business as almost normal in Indiana last month. The Hoosier State was only 5.5% 0ff its July 2019 pace, grossing $171 million. (They’ve been open since June 15.) The relative novelty of table games—$5 million—at Indiana Grand and Hoosier Downs didn’t hurt. Nor did an extra weekend day. A rising tide did not lift all riverboats. For instance, Blue Chip (pictured) slid 30.5% to $9 million. Top performer by far was Horseshoe Hammond ($30 million), down 7.5%. The biggest recovery—27%—was at Ameristar East Chicago, which brought in $21 million. The two Majestic Star boats did quite respectably: $7 million (-11%) at Majestic Star I and $4.5 million (-6.5%) at Majestic Star II. Down at French Lick Resort, receipts were $5.5 million, a 34% tumble.

In the southern tier, Indiana Grand led with $23 million, up 6.5%. Caesars Southern Illinois followed with $18 million, off only 2.5%. Belterra Resort slipped 15% to $8.5 million, Tropicana Evansville was down 13% to $11 million, Rising Star‘s $4 million was a 7% slippage while Hoosier Downs grossed almost $18 million, just 2.5% off the pace. Hoosier sports betting was at its best since March, with $71 million in handle. That’s despite only eight days of major-league sports. Had their been a full month of play, books would easily have met or exceeded the expected $90 million. Revenue came in just under $7 million. DraftKings (Ameristar) led online wagering with $33 million, followed by FanDuel (Blue Chip) with $24 million and everybody else very far behind.