Featured Articles Archive - Page 269

Indiana regulators sign off on Pinnacle-Ameristar deal

LAS VEGAS -- Indiana gaming regulators signed off on Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.’s $2.8 billion buyout of Ameristar Casinos, Inc. on Thursday, putting the deal a step closer to completion.The merger of the two Las Vegas-based regional gaming giants would give Pinnacle ownership of two Indiana casinos; Pinnacle’s Belterra Casino Resort & Spa in Florence and the Ameristar Casino & Hotel, East Chicago, which is located in Indiana but attracts visitors from the Chicagoland area.Completion of the transaction, in which Pinnacle will pay Ameristar stockholders $26.50 per share and assume $1.9 billion of debt, is still subject to additional regulatory approvals and closing conditions.Pinnacle reached an agreement earlier this month with the Federal Trade Commission to sell the company’s Lumiere Place in St...read more

Buying and selling pieces at the WSOP

I knew that most of the professional poker players who planned on playing the $111,111 One Drop High Roller at the World Series of Poker were going to sell some of their action in the tournament.I just didn't think I'd be one of the people buying...read more

Caesars Entertainment cutting ties with Paula Deen Enterprises

Caesars Entertainment Inc. is dropping its relationship with the company operated by troubled celebrity chef and southern food connoisseur Paula Deen.In a statement Wednesday, Caesars said it reached “a mutual agreement” with Paula Deen Enterprises not to renew the two companies’ business relations...read more

Poker tourney at M Resort offers $500,000 prize pool

LAS VEGAS -- The Hollywood Poker Open at the M Resort this weekend is not about competing with the World Series of Poker.The event guarantees participants a prize pool of $500,000 — not much when compared with standards set by World Series of Poker, which is more than halfway through its six-week run at the Rio.For Penn National Gaming, Inc., which is sponsoring the Hollywood tournament, the competition helps solidify the company’s standing in the growing regional casino poker market.The tournament, which runs Friday through Sunday, is named after Penn National’s primary casino brand, Hollywood...read more

One Drop High Roller draws 166 players, increases awareness for charity

LAS VEGAS -- Seth Palansky, the vice president of corporate communications for the World Series of Poker, won't be taking over as the oddsmaker for Caesars' properties sportsbooks anytime soon.An hour before the $111,111 One Drop High Roller was set to begin, Palansky insisted that he would set the over/under line on the tournament field at 100 players."Name one high roller event that's drawn a field that big," Palansky insisted, when others said that number was too low.In the end, the tournament drew 166 players, including professional poker players like last year's $1 million buy-in Big One for One Drop winner Antonio Esfandiari and a number of recreational players with pockets deep enough for the six-figure buy-in.Of course, it's easy to beat expectations when you set the bar low, at least publicly...read more

Caesars exec Batjer leaving for California government post

LAS VEGAS -- A Caesars Entertainment Inc. executive is leaving the casino company to return to government work in California.Marybel Batjer resigned last week as Caesars’ vice president of public policy and corporate social responsibility to become California’s Secretary of Government Operations.Batjer, 58, was named to the position by Gov...read more

Bally Technologies revs up NASCAR slot machines complete with surround sound

LAS VEGAS -- It took a diehard NASCAR fan to create a slot machine based on the popular sport.Now, other fans of the stock car racing circuit can play the slot machines nationwide.Bally Technologies, Inc. is rolling out its NASCAR slot machines throughout the U.S...read more

CFO for Las Vegas Sands leaving, but will remain as consultant

LAS VEGAS -- The chief financial officer for Las Vegas Sands Corp. is leaving the company but will stay on as a consultant over a six-month period until a replacement is named.The casino operator announced the departure of Kenneth Kay in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday...read more

Bally's Las Vegas remodeling rooms, suites

LAS VEGAS -- Bally’s - Las Vegas is remodeling the 756 rooms and suites inside the hotel-casino’s south tower, which will be renamed the Jubilee Tower.The name is a tribute to the long-running Donn Arden’s “Jubilee!” The show has been holding performances since 1981.Caesars Entertainment Inc., whic...read more

Top-10 predictions for the One Drop High Roller

The World Series of Poker's highest buy-in event is taking place this week with the $111,111 One Drop High Roller. Last year's $1 million event, which raised more than $5 million for One Drop, was a big success, hitting the 48-player cap and crowning Antonio Esfandiari as its champion.The lower buy-in and uncapped field make this year's event even more intriguing, and I'm excited that I'll be at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino to report on the action.Here are my top-10 predictions for this year's One Drop High Roller event.10...read more