Card Player – One of the leaders of the firm that saw its subsidiary offer the first fully legal real-money online poker game in the United States has decided to step down.
Station Casinos Executive Vice President Kevin Kelley reportedly resigned last month.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Kelly was an executive at Station Casinos for a decade prior to leaving in 2003. He had stints with Hard Rock Las Vegas and Las Vegas Sands Corp. before returning to Stations in 2008.
In April of this year, Ultimate Poker, an offshoot of Station Casinos, launched real-money online poker in the Silver State. Its first hand was the first ever in a U.S. jurisdiction that licenses and regulates the Internet gambling industry. Ultimate will also be involved with New Jersey.
The site has been going strong since launching. Its most recent seven-day average for cash game players was 154, according to PokerScout.com.
Station Casinos is one of Nevada’s strongest casino developers, with many properties in Las Vegas. The firm is known for catering to locals.
“The company expresses its gratitude to Mr. Kelley for his valuable service to the company,” Station Casinos said in a statement.
The 56-year-old Kelly reportedly left on good terms and just wanted to pursue other options in the business world. It’s unclear what he will do next.
