Unidentified Player Wins $5.8 million dollars Blackjack Jackpot at Tropicana Casino and Resort

Tropicana Casino and Resort's high-stakes casino table games campaign failed in April 2011, with one high-roller player taking home a record breaking $5.8 million dollars in blackjack winnings. As a direct result, the facility was the weakest performer among the eleven casino hotels in Atlantic City in April 2011-a month that saw casino gaming revenue dropped by seven percent for the whole casino market. It was the thirty-second straight month of lower gaming revenue for 2nd biggest casino market in the US. Overall, the casino facilities in Atlantic City (AC) posted $289.4 million dollars in earnings from casino table games and slot machines, compared to $311.5 million dollars in 2010, according to the report of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released on May 10th, 2011, Tuesday. Slot machine winnings dropped by 3% to $208.6 million dollars, while casino table games dropped by fifteen percent to $80.9 million dollars. Just recently, Tropicana has been relying on high-stakes casino table games as the centerpiece of their casino gaming operations. Tropicana had achieved higher casino table games revenue in the past six months but its good fortune ended in April 2011. Tropicana Casino's outgoing CEO (Chief Executive Officer), Mark Giannantonio, said that they are very unlucky for the month of April. Giannantonio said that a single blackjack gamer won the $5.8 million dollars jackpot but he refused to divulge the name of the player for security reasons. Giannantonio said that if not for the single-biggest blackjack in their history, they would have an excellent month. He denied that the risky high-stakes casino table games strategy had cost him his position. Just last week, parent organization Tropicana Entertainment Inc. announced that Giannantonio will be replace by veteran gambling official Tony Rodio on June 1st, 2011. Tropicana's casino table games earnings dropped by 54% in April 2011 to $3.2 million dollars. In April 2010, the gaming facility earned $7 million dollars from casino table games, which means that the single blackjack player affected Tropicana's results for 2011. A dismal performance at the casino tables pulled Tropicana Casino's overall revenue in April 2011 by twenty percent, the largest revenue drop in the Atlantic City casino industry. Tropicana was not the only gaming establishment that got hit at the casino gaming tables. Both the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino and the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa incurred a 33% drop in casino table games revenue. Atlantic City Hilton and Harrah's Resort dropped more than 20% at the casino table games. Resorts Casino Hotel also suffered at the casino table games. The Chief Executive of Resorts Casino Hotel, Dennis Gomes, said that a pair of high-roller won about one million dollars in one day in their facility. Aside from that, Resorts Casino had a seven percent improvement in slot machine winnings to increase its total earnings by four percent for the month. Caesars Atlantic City was the only other gaming facility to post a bigger profit in April 2011, up by nearly six percent. Resorts Casino has posted bigger gaming revenue for three consecutive months, a clear sign that the oldest casino in Atlantic City is beginning to recover under the leadership of Dennis Gomes and New York real estate magnate Morris Bailey. Gomes said that he will not be completely content until Resorts Casino becomes stable. Despite three consecutive months of improvements in gross gaming revenue, the gaming facility has not yet fully recovered from bankruptcy. Gomes said that he does not want to call it a complete recovery not until they are making profit. Bailey and Gomes acquired Resorts Casino in December 2010 for $31.5 million dollars, a price that shows the troubled condition of the casino market in Atlantic City. Casinos in the city continue to experience the effects of the economic crisis and increasing competition from casinos in Pennsylvania. August 2009 was the last time that Atlantic City casinos had bigger casino gaming revenue. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has modified the state's gambling regulations and started a new state-managed Tourism District in hopes of reviving the Atlantic City casino industry. Gov. Christie's efforts were praised by Caesars Entertainment Corporation, the owner of Caesars, Bally's, Showboat and Harrah's casinos in the city. Caesars Entertainment Chief Executive Officer Gary Loveman said that they are very happy by the determination of the New Jersey government to make the city more attractive to visitors and they are seeing some signs that the gaming market in Atlantic City is slowly recovering.

 

31 2011