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Pinnacle Entertainment Reaffirms Guidance for 2003

13 March 2003

LAS VEGAS – (Press Release) -- Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: PNK) announced that it will be presenting at the Fourth Annual B. Riley & Co. Investor Conference in Los Angeles tomorrow. In accordance with the regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding broad dissemination of relevant information, the Company is reaffirming its guidance for 2003 and providing an update on the financing for its Lake Charles, Louisiana project.

Pinnacle Entertainment's investor presentation will be webcast live on Thursday, March 13, 2003 at 1:55 p.m. ET (10:55 a.m. PT). To listen to the webcast and view the slides, please visit our website at www.pinnacle-entertainment-inc.com at least fifteen minutes prior to the beginning of the scheduled presentation to register, download and install any necessary multimedia steaming software. After the conference, the webcast will be available on the same site for 30 days.

Pinnacle's operations have remained strong, with year-to-date EBITDA through February 28 tracking up over 15% from the prior year period. This is consistent with the Company's guidance for 2003 of EBITDA in the low- to mid- $90 million range, or approximately 10%-15% above the $85 million of EBITDA referenced in the fourth quarter press release as being before approximately $11.5 million of non-recurring expenses.

The recent results were achieved despite unfavorable weather conditions on key weekends in the Ohio River Valley, the primary market for the Company's Belterra Casino Resort, and in Boomtown Bossier City's key Dallas-Fort Worth market.

"Despite the challenging weather, we have been pleased with our results to date," stated Daniel R. Lee, Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.'s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our casino hotels cater primarily to nearby vacationers and locals rather than business travelers and we are fortunate that the travel downturn affecting the national airline and hotel industries does not seem to have adversely impacted our operations."

The Company continues to make progress on the financing for its planned $325 million resort casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Two major banks have agreed to lead a syndicate to expand the Company's existing credit facility from $110 million to $225 million and to extend the bank line maturity date to approximately August 2006. None of the existing credit line is drawn. The Company expects to complete the bank agreement modifications in late March or early April and begin construction of the Lake Charles Resort in May, in accordance with its agreement with, and pending the approval of its construction contracts by, the Louisiana Gaming Control Board.

The Company's discussion of first quarter financial and operating performance is based on preliminary information and is subject to change based on actual financial and operating results for the period.

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