In the past two weeks three players have combined to take home over $250,000 in winnings from Nevada casinos.
The most recent was Larry Cooper, a Sparks resident who won $51,770 in the Lucky’s Sports Book Progressive Football Contest at John Ascuaga’s Nugget.
"I love to bet on football and I’ve been coming here (Nugget Lucky’s Sports Book) to bet every week since 2007," Cooper told Nugget officials.
Cooper is a retired postal worker who moved to Sparks from San Jose (CA) with his wife, Karen, in 2006. He purchased a $5 ticket and correctly selected all 16 games.
This is the biggest jackpot Lucky’s Sports Book has ever paid during the football progressive promotion.
At the Suncoast in Las Vegas, Wayne Grussmeyer won $100,000 after capturing the top prize in Boyd Gaming’s annual "Spin Your Way to $100,000 slot tournament.
A total of 149 B Connected members from 13 Boyd Gaming properties earned berths into this year’s competition through qualifying tournaments across the country.
The next 19 top finishers received cash prizes ranging from $25,000 to $1,000 each.
"It still doesn’t seem real. All I know right now is that my wife and I are going on a cruise," Grussmeyer said.
Second place and $25,000 went to Sam’s Town Tunica player Judy Rainwater, while Orleans customer Greg Mellor took home $20,000 with a third-place finish. Fourth-place winner Rudy Dickens, from Sam’s Town won $15,000, while Vicky Hendrix of Sam’s Town Tunica received a $10,000 fifth-place prize.
And finally at Palace Station, a player who wished to be identified as "Hector" hit a video keno progressive jackpot for over $100,000.
Hector says he plans to buy a house with the winnings.
GamingToday’s Micah Roberts went right back to the Oracle for a new Preakness pick and Jay Rood came up with his selection once he knew Union Rags was not headed to Pimlico.
An Internet gambling bill being considered by New Jersey lawmakers could allow Atlantic City’s casinos to take bets from people in other states or countries, although key details remain to be worked out.
The nation’s commercial casinos continued their slow-but-steady comeback from the recession last year, with revenues up 3 percent nationwide and jobs holding nearly steady, according to a report released Wednesday.
Revel, the $2.4 billion casino resort widely seen as Atlantic City’s best hope of survival, trailed most of its competition in its first month of operation, placing 8th out of the city’s 12 casinos.
New signs are up to direct visitors, the sidewalks have been power-washed, crosswalks have been freshly painted and 1,600 people have been hired to inaugurate the Horseshoe Casino Cleveland on Monday.
