Featured Articles Archive - Page 422

Deal Me In: Sound of silence

Dear Mark: Maybe it's me, but you just don't see or hear jackpots like in the past. But here's the interesting thing. The paybacks of where I play, according to Strictly Slots, which publishes slot returns percentages, are about the same. Any thoughts on this? Gerald C.Taking the slot paybacks reported by your state gaming commission and published by Strictly Slots at face value, consider, Gerald, that you are seeing and hearing fewer jackpots compared to yesteryear because most casinos today operate with ticket system machines...read more

Top-10 secondary casino card games

One of the great aspects of the casino is the variety of games people can play. It's not just poker, craps, blackjack and slots. Here are the top-10 secondary card games at the casino.10. Face-Up 21Face-Up 21 is an intense blackjack variation, with the premise being to beat the dealer without going over 21...read more

Harrah's loses $274 million in second quarter

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Privately held Harrah's Entertainment lost $274 million in the second quarter, blaming weak customer spending for the poor performance. The company's loss reversed a year-ago profit of $2.29 billion, which included a $4.3 billion pretax gain from debt extinguishment. Harrah's revenues for the three months that ended June 30 were $2.22 billion, a decline of 2.2 percent from $2.27 billion in the same quarter a year ago...read more

Station Casinos gets sale approval

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Station Casinos moved one step closer to emerging from bankruptcy intact Friday when a judge approved the sale of 11 casinos, land holdings and American Indian gaming contracts to a group backed by Fertitta Gaming for $772 million. "Today's outcome means that Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, the family that founded the company and grew Station Casinos into the most popular locals' casino company, will remain in control of all of our wholly-owned properties, our tribal gaming partnerships, and our land held for future development," Scott Nielson, executive vice president of Station Casinos, said in a statement. "Everyone at Station Casinos is excited about this outcome and is ready to rededicate themselves to providing the friendly service, great value and overall entertainment experience that made Station Casinos the locals' favorite," Nielson said. The transactions are expected to close early next year. The locals gaming company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection a year ago with about $6 billion in debt. Bankruptcy Judge Gregg Zive did not need to hold a planned auction Friday because the only other qualified bidder that submitted a letter of intent, Boyd Gaming Corp., dropped out of the auction last week, complaining that the auction process was tilted in favor of insiders...read more

Macau is booming and Vegas is glooming

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- So what did this round of quarterly earnings reports tell us about the gaming industry's health? Macau is booming and Atlantic City is dying. The Strip has too many hotel rooms but there are slight signs of recovery...read more

Miami group envisions $2 billion Vegas product

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- The Miami-based Peebles Corp. has acquired a majority stake in a small hotel-casino on Paradise Road that gives the company some 20 acres for future development near the Las Vegas Convention Center.R. Donahue Peebles, the chief executive officer of Peebles Corp., said the site will eventually house the Las Palmas Resort & Casino, a planned $2 billion project.But Peebles, whose business is considered one of the nation's largest African-American real estate development companies, said the project is on hold until the Las Vegas market is ready for new hotel-casinos."We have an extremely positive outlook on this market and are confident in the long-term future of Las Vegas," Peebles said...read more

Everything you really want to know about splitting nines in blackjack

Everything most blackjack buffs want to know about playing pairs of nines can be stated in a single sentence. Split 'em against a dealer's two through six, eight, or nine; otherwise stand. Players with enquiring minds, who want to know, might be interested in delving deeper, however...read more

Boyd Gaming sees second quarter profits plunge

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Boyd Gaming Corp. executives weren't taking the bait. With the Las Vegas-based casino operator dropping out of Friday's planned bankruptcy court auction of several Station Casinos' properties, Wall Street speculated on the next potential acquisition target for the Las Vegas-based casino operator. But company leaders didn't go along. Boyd Gaming had just explained Tuesday how the recession left consumers skittish, causing the company's second-quarter profits to fall 73 percent, when the questions started. Union Gaming Group Principal Bill Lerner asked point blank if Boyd Gaming had participated in a rumored privately held bank-back auction of M Resort...read more

MGM reports $883 million net loss

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- CityCenter continued to be a drain on MGM Resorts International.The Las Vegas-based casino giant said this morning its second quarter net loss was $883 million, or $2 a share, compared to a loss of $212 million, or 60 cents, in the same three-month period a year ago...read more

Massachusetts gambling bill in limbo

BOSTON, Massachusetts -- The debate in Massachusetts over legalizing casinos has turned into an old fashioned game of political football. The state's house and senate approved a bill over the weekend that would allow for three casinos and two slot machine parlors. However, Gov...read more