VLTs in Ohio are still being litigated but MTR Gaming is rushing in where major operators fear to tread. It’s already begun conversion of Scioto Downs Casino & Racetrack to a 2,100-machine racino. The nomenclature is a bit premature but MTR has installed former Isle of Capri Casinos executive Troy J. Buswell as GM of the Columbus-area property, which is going to have some not-inconsiderable competition from Penn National Gaming. On the other hand, casinos tend to fare better in clusters than when isolated. Between the critical mass that could be engendered in the Columbus market and the veteran hand of COO Joe Billhimer on the reins, MTR might make it out of the minor leagues yet.
This just in … not! You and I knew about it the week before last. The New York Times reported it two Sundays ago. But Don Johnson‘s wipeout of the Tropicana Atlantic City is a shocking new development to Yahoo! News, which files it under “News of the Odd.” “News of the Old” would be more like it. I can’t speak to Johnson’s wins at Borgata and Caesars Atlantic City, but Tropicana Entertainment execs’ reckless relaxation of blackjack rules left them — and only them — to blame when he ran the table. As for card-counting, even if Johnson was doing it, it’s not the least bit illegal and in New Jersey (thank God!), you can’t get 86’d for it … unlike the State of Nevada, which routinely turns a blind eye to the harassment of advantage players.
Rumor du jour: Now that Men of X has joined The Dirty Joke Show, “topless review [sic] Raack ‘n Roll and Purple Reign as evictees from Hooters, it’s a likely candidate to wind up at Plaza Las Vegas, where Dirty Joke Show has already landed. That’s the word from those in the know. Tamares Group has been making noises about putting as many as six productions in its main showroom and Avant Garde just bit the dust yesterday. Since Anthony Santo has already proven his willingness to take Hooters’ rejects (part of his Faustian pact with Anthony Cools), I’d say a Hooters-to-Plaza transfer is not so much plausible as inevitable.
