So maybe Wynn Palace made a difference, after all. Macao gambling revenue, which analysts expected to be anywhere from 1% up to 3% down last month, actually grew 1%. 
(Kudos to those analysts who bet the house would win.) With Sands Parisian just days away from its soft opening, we seem to have finally hit bottom in Macao and are likely to see — at least in the near term — some upward momentum. However, the analyst community is cautioning investors not to break out the champagne just yet. After all, the VIP players continue to give Macao a wide berth. One such cautionary note was sounded by Morgan Stanley‘s Praveen Choudhary, who wrote, “We believe it is much more difficult to ramp up a new property in a low growth environment, based on Studio City’s and Galaxy Macau Phase 2’s performances.” But at least there is now a solid basis for hope.
* Going from the sublime to the near-ridiculous, we present Placentia, California (hometown of Olympic swimmer Janet Evans). This tiny Los Angeles suburb hangs for dear life onto the revenue of Hawaiian Gardens card club, which operated until very recently out of tent — for two decades, in fact. Placentia relied on that tent for 70% of the city budget. Both city and club will take a step up now that Hawaiian Gardens has been reincarnated as Gardens Casino, a $90 million, 225-table facility that even includes a lounge where VIP players can shower during heavy sessions of card play (including baccarat). The card room’s sales director was so ashamed of the old tent that he wouldn’t bring his wife to it. No such qualms about Gardens Casino, which is part of a wave of card-room upgrades in the L.A. area. For instance, Bicycle Club Casino has a new fitness center — but does it have two parrots (Lucky and Skittles) gracing its playing floor? ‘Nuff said.
But Gardens Casino has some image repair to do. It’s still under the shadow of a July fine of almst $3 million for failing to have adequate anti-money safeguards in place, not even reporting suspicious activity on the casino floor. Card room founder Irving Moskowitz had, during his lifetime, a reputation for sailing close to the wind, as when Hawaiian Gardens was erected using $4 million in public money, a no-no under California law. A Gardens Casino exec says this year’s FinCEN slapdown was an aberration and the card room will do better going forward. We certainly hope so.
* Donald Trump had Atlantic City. Now Vladimir Putin has Vladivostok. By promoting the city as a future casino hub, the Russian strongman must balance economic dependence with a potential overreliance on China. Said one Sinophobic politician, “The Chinese are coming. They understand that Russia is weakening, that China is strengthening and that they can gradually take control of these territories in 100 or 150 
years.” When you consider that there are less than 2 million people in the greater Vladivostok area versus nearly 66 million Chinese in two neighboring province, you can see how such concerns arise. The region could certainly attract northern Chinese players for whom Macao is inaccessible or too much hassle to visit. Also, as Japan continues to dither over casino gambling, high rollers could look to Vladivostok, just two hours’ flight away. Already Lawrence Ho has seen opportunity and built a casino in the region, $172 million Tigre de Cristal. Others are scheduled to follow. Already, foreign arrivals is Vladivostok are up 22%, as opposed to being 21% down in Russia overall.
According to Bloomberg News, “Companies registered in the zone are entitled to a five-year tax holiday, no tariffs, streamlined customs and, eventually, border-issued visas,” a boon to investment. On the other hand, the surrounding Primorsk region is one of the most crime-ridden in Russia. Even Putin has acknowledged as much. There’s also pervasive, Putin-eque graft, but this does not daunt Chinese investors. Their imperial ancestors may have signed away the land in the mid-19th century but perhaps the Chinese of today can buy it back.
* Several years ago, Caesars Entertainment started pulling Wheel of Fortune slot machines off its Las Vegas casino floors, claiming the game had lost popularity. Tell that to International Game Technology, which is celebrating Wheel of Fortune‘s 20th anniversary. The slot’s newest iteration, Wheel of Fortune Double Diamonds 3D, has recently bowed at Seminole Tribe casinos in Florida. The game’s 7,500-machine installed base speaks for itself.
