This week’s gambling news finds tangible evidence that the city of Las Vegas is well on the path to a full, post-pandemic recovery! Also, believe it or not the World Series of Poker has already kicked off their online events. Plus, the rumors are circulating that the Palms Casino in Vegas has been sold to Tribal Gaming interests!
Hello all you beautiful people out there! And thanks so much for tuning in again to find out what the hell is going on This Week in Gambling! We have poker news out of Las Vegas, but up first it’s this week’s gambling news billion dollar big story! We’ve been seeing signs of a Las Vegas recovery for quite a while now, but finally the numbers are in! They confirm that for the first time since the pandemic began, Nevada casinos took in over $1 billion in the month of March!
Coronavirus hit the United States in January of last year, and February of 2020 was the last time that Nevada casinos took in over a billion dollars in a month. So it looks like we are right on schedule for the Governor’s planned 100% reopening on June 1st… unless, God forbid… you know what? I’m not even going to say it!
And speaking of Las Vegas recovery, 50% of casino workers in the state of Nevada have now been inoculated against the Coronavirus! That’s all well and good, except for the fact that less than 40% of state residents have received the vaccine! The Nevada Gaming Control Board says that at a minimum 60% of the state must be vaccinated before they will allow casinos to operate at full capacity.
Additionally, recent gambling news saw the grand opening of Virgin Las Vegas just last month, and the grand opening of Resorts World Las Vegas is scheduled for next month. Now, rumors are flying that the Vegas Palms Casino has been sold! Unconfirmed reports say that the San Manual Band of Mission Indians has purchased the Palms for $660 million. But remember, it’s just a rumor. So if it turns out to be false, don’t come yelling at me! And if it turns out to be true, remember you heard it here first!
Also, believe it or not, the 2021 World Series of Poker has already kicked off! This year’s WSOP online events began this past weekend, but if you missed it don’t worry. You still have plenty of time to get in on the action. Qualifying satellites for the Main Event don’t start until August 1st… if you live in a legal jurisdiction, of course! If for some reason you just can’t wait for the fall and the WSOP $10,000 buy-in Main Event, then the Wynn Millions Poker Tournament might just be for you! That $10,000 buy-in event begins on June 25th at the Wynn Casino, of course.
This week we also have two game reviews to share with, you just in time for Cinco de Mayo! First up it’s Mariachi Fiesta from GameArt, a five reel slot with 10 paylines that features bonus spins, a bonus round, wild and scatter symbols, and expanding wilds. Next it’s the 243 Mexicana slot from Synot. It comes with five reels and 243 paylines, wilds, scatters, bonus spins, and the gamble feature! Both reviews and hundreds more are available on our YouTube channel.
And finally in gambling news this week, to help all my American friends out there get through the Cinco de Mayo holiday, I’m going to share with you my personal favorite three Spanish phrases that will get you through most any situation: Number one: “Mas tequila, por favor”; Number two: “Donde es los banos?”; and Number three: “Lo siento, yo besos tu esposa”. Can’t tell you how many times that saved my ass.
