If you’re making up your casino budget, you might want to stay away from Atlantic City or New York State, where a dollar has only the buying power of 87 or 88 cents. By contrast, the same dollar spent in Mississippi gets you $1.16 in value. Are casinos down there getting this value proposition out? Other states with above-average buying power include Nevada ($1.03), Michigan ($1.07), Indiana ($1.11), and Missouri and Ohio ($1.12 each). Small wonders that residents of Hawaii prefer to vacation in Las Vegas: Their dollar only stretches to $0.84 at home.
* When betting at a William Hill sports book in Nevada, be sure to read the fine print. Ophthalmologist Steve Friedlander didn’t and it cost him $565,000. A “unique” $40 wager was placed by the good doctor at Tamarack Junction in Reno. Unfortunately for him, it is not one of the six William Hill sites that has no cap on the wagers paid out. Eleven of William Hill’s 17 locations cap payouts at 500/1 on trifecta and 150/1 on exactas. To have reaped the full benefit of his bet, Friedlander would have had to have laid down his wager at Arizona Charlies Decatur (not Boulder), Jerry’s Nugget, M Resort, the Plaza, Silver Sevens Casino or the Stratosphere. He’ll obviously be more careful next time—but will his luck be the same?
* Rapper Meek Mill is a new name to me but I’m sure a lot of people will be hearing about him after he was trespassed from The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Accounts of why Mr. Mill was 86’d varied from the nightclub being at 
capacity (a Vegas nightclub worrying about safety; that’s novel) to, in Mr. Mill’s version, partying while black. For its part, the Cosmo says, “when Marquee Dayclub was contacted in advance of Meek Mill’s arrival, security staff clarified that he would not be granted access because of capacity issues, in accordance with both club and resort policy. Upon his arrival, it was reiterated to Meek Mill and his team for a second time that access to the venue was not permitted.” Mill’s attorney rejoins that Cosmo is one of several Vegas hotels that has a litany of blacklisted rappers. The next stop for this story would appear to be a Clark County courtroom, as Mill is threatening to unleash a diss track in the form of a lawsuit. Stay tuned.
* If you’re willing to venture off the beaten path in search of classic neon signage, venerable Las Vegas motels have much to offer the eyes. “There’s a whole world of cultural tourists out there who go to museums and stay in boutique motels and they’re not into luxury, resort-style traveling,” says local preservationist Jack LeVine and I sure hope he’s right.
* Can you beat the house at blackjack? If you can and are in the Sin City area, Game Show Network‘s Catch 21 is coming to town and would like to test your play—as well as your trivia skills. I don’t know where trivia intersects with blackjack but this could be your opportunity to be a TV star for 15 minutes or so. The top prize is $25K.
In a similar vein, the Golden Gate is about to kick off the first-ever Circa Million Football Contest. “Make five picks against the spread every week for a share of a guaranteed $1.5 million in prizes, with no rake and a 100% payback to players.” Sounds like a ‘george’ offer. Thank you, Derek Stevens.
* The T-Mobile/Sprint merger has just been approved by the feds. The $64,000 question is, what does this mean for the naming rights of MGM Resorts International‘s T-Mobile Arena?
