Any Excuse Will Suffice

In the past, I've never personally needed an excuse to go to Las Vegas. Since getting married though, a somewhat reasonable excuse has become required, but now with the formation of VegasRy.com, I always have a valid excuse. (Honey, I'm on business.) Having said that, Las Vegas has become home to many activity's "championships." This seems like just another excuse to travel to this great city.

These competitions include, but are certainly not limited to the annual Rock Paper Scissors National Championship at Mandalay Bay, Nathan's Famous Las Vegas Hot Dog Eating Championship Contest at NYNY, and the Legends Of Bartending World Championships at the Rio. These are just a few of the many odd events held there. There's no where else on Earth I'd rather be, so I can't fault anyone for needing such an excuse, but these are a bit ridiculous. I knew someone who even played in a video game tournament at the Aladdin last year. As we all know, Vegas isn't a cheap vacation, so if anyone wants to send me there to show off my Golden Tee or napping skills, I'm down for an all-expense paid trip to the city I love.

Dealers: 1, Steve Wynn: 0

Over the weekend the dealers at Wynn Las Vegas voted to unionize, by a fairly significant margin. (444-149)

Now this is just the first step in the organization process, as the Union still has a long way to go before it actually has a contract. Other Strip casinos have passed similar measures, but only one, the lowly Frontier, has actually had a Union contract put in place.

As we have written about previously, this issue stems from Wynn’s practice of including the floor supervisors (pit bosses) in the dealers tip pool, effectively taking money from the dealers, and giving it to their superiors.

Last week, Steve Wynn made a last ditch effort to plead his case to the dealers. Saying he made ‘a mistake’ when implementing the policy and urging a ‘no’ vote during a meeting with the dealers.

From that meeting:

"I did not realize the extent of the mistake I had made until yesterday," Wynn said, explaining his talk with a longtime employee who felt betrayed. "I was more focused on the right thing I did for the bosses, than the wrong thing I did to the dealers."

Fascinating audio of this impassioned speech can be found at TwoWayHardThree.com:
http://media.ratevegas.com/wynn_union_apology.mp3

It’s interesting to listen to Wynn, as he seems to apologize for the WAY he implemented the policy, if not for the policy itself. Now he was not allowed to make promises, due to the pending vote, but it wasn’t clear if he was insinuating that he’d revoke the tip-sharing policy if the union vote fell through or not.

Our extremely uneducated guess would be that this all falls apart during contract negotiations. These are dealers at arguable the nicest casino in the world, and apparently make quite a bit of money, even before the tip-sharing. Our guess is that the union might be able to get the tip-sharing reversed, but in the end, the dealers would be worse off than before the vote to unionize. Either way though, this will be good theater.

Steve Wynn + Labor Unrest = Huge Story. So we will follow this very closely, and are anxious to see what the atmosphere is like at Wynn Las Vegas during our stay there in July.


Wynn Dealers Vote to Unionize

Dealers of the World Unite!

Steve Wynn vs. His Own Dealers

VegasRy Friday Update:

No Gin and Tonic Hour this week, as we have been concentrating on the roll out of our brand new website, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, here are a few stories that have flown under the radar this week:

It's official, Tom Selleck and his mustache will be on NBC's Las Vegas.
-CNN

HBO CEO has resigned after assualting his girlfriend...Ya don't say.
-Washington Post

Jersey Boys will be the latest Broadway show to fail in Las Vegas...this one at the new Palazzo.
-San Diego Union-Tribune

Luxor bombing victim was dating two women. This plot is sure to thicken.
-Las Vegas Sun

This is a decent idea...the Luxor has it's own DING
-Luxor Beam (Via VegasTripping.com)

Harrah's earnings up, miss expectations. Harrah's is in the process of being taken private, and with Casinos all over the country, not Vegas-centric enough to be of much interest.
-Las Vegas Review-Journal

"The Greatest Car Show on Earth" Headed to Vegas?

Now here is something we can see working in Las Vegas.

Every year, they have the Barrett-Jackson car auction here in Scottsdale, which is probably the biggest car aution in the world. As well as being televised on the Speed Channel, last Year it drew 225,000 visitors, and this year it shattered records with a 1966 Shelby Cobra going for 5.5 million dollars.

Anyway, looks like the owners aren't happy with their situation in Scottsdale,and may be looking at other options:

Barrett-Jackson’s $100-million Scottsdale car auction could be scaled back in favor of venues in Las Vegas or Palm Beach, Fla., if plans for a new exposition center at West-World fall through, company president Craig Jackson said Wednesday.

The Barrett-Jackson Auction is a huge event here, drawing many well-heeled bidders, as well as gawkers. I would think that this event would lend itself to Vegas; as Cars, Money and Las Vegas fit together perfectly.


Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction (Wikipedia)

Barrett-Jackson considers scaling back at WestWorld over city decision on building

Las Vegas is Smoke Free

Well, sort of.

In the November elections, Nevada voters passed Question 5, which basically banned smoking in all indoor places, except for Casinos...of course.

From the Review Journal:

QUESTION 5
• Passed by voters in November, Question 5 prohibits smoking in nearly all public places in Nevada, including grocery stores, restaurants and bars that serve food. Casino floors, brothels and smoke parlors are exempt.

The smoking ban is back in the news recently, as the first lawsuit regarding the ban has been filed against a business not in compliance of the new law. A local bar refused to remove ashtrays and matchbooks, claiming that they were exercising their right to advertise. This resulted in a civil lawsuit filed by the Health District.

The anti-smoking legislation is not unique to Vegas, as most states seem to have similar restrictions on smoking in public places. However, this is interesting as it relates to casinos and hotels in Las Vegas. We also ran across the article, regarding the Casino Lobby's stance on the issue:

After years of actively opposing smoking bans, the casino industry's primary lobbying organization is backing off as a wave of states pass indoor smoking prohibitions that include casinos.

Since the mid-1990s, the American Gaming Association has pushed for national building code standards accommodating tobacco smoke, arguing that prohibiting smoking would be bad for business.

But fighting smoking bans "is an uphill battle," says Judy Patterson, executive director of the American Gaming Association.

Even states that exempted casinos from no-smoking laws, such as Colorado and New Jersey, reconsidered those exemptions the following year, she notes.

Lobbying against smoking bans at a national level has become nearly impossible for the association, she said.

Seems like the industry views a national ban as an inevitability, and I imagine they would eventually support a nationwide ban. Instead of having some smoking and some non-smoking casinos, drawing customers towards those where they can smoke, I imagine they would eventually support a nationwide ban, one that would include Indian Casinos, leaving all casinos on an even keel.

So how long until ALL casinos have to be smoke free? Gambling, drinking, smoking...these vices seem to go together. As a non-smoker, I suppose that this is a good thing. But at the same time, it does bother me as it is one more right taken away from individuals and businesses, if a bar wants to allow smoking, that should be it's own decision. When I go to a casino or bar, I know I'm in for a smokey environment...if that bothered me, I'd go somewhere else.


Casino fight goes up in smoke

ENFORCING THE STATE SMOKING BAN: Public health vs. free speech

Great Moments in Race Betting

Here at VegasRy we don't even pretend to know anything about horse racing, our knowledge is limited to looking at the racing form for the coolest name. That and being beat over the head with horse racing coverage once a year during the Kentucky Derby.

However, even we wouldn't use this betting strategy:

According to witnesses, the man entered the parlor around noon and asked how much it would cost to buy every possible trifecta combination (a bettor must pick the first three finishers in exact order) in the 20-horse field. After being told it would cost $13,680, he left — presumably to visit his bank.

He returned shortly thereafter, purchased his tickets and left.

Unfortunately for the hopeful bettor, the 2007 Derby $2 trifecta payoff of $440 was a far cry from 2005 and 2002 returns.

Over 13 grand to win $440, good times. At least he got to cash a ticket...


Encore: Yes for Street Sense; no for Oscar

Fight Weekend

The Floyd Mayweather Jr/ Oscar De La Hoya at the MGM Grand Garden arena was not the only publicized fight in Las Vegas over the weekend. Following Mayweathers' split decision victory late Saturday night, the chairman and CEO of HBO was found sparring outside the MGM Grand casino with his girlfriend. HBO's chief, Chris Albrecht was arrested on suspicion of assault. No word yet on who won this fight.

HBO chairman/CEO accused of assaulting girlfriend

Mayweather wins split decision over De La Hoya

VegasRy Stock Watch: Q1 Results

Losers: MGM, LVS
Winner: Wynn

The 3 major Strip Casino operators recently reported their first quarter earnings, and here is our amateur stock analyst take. While it might not be totally accurate given the massive construction projects undertaken by all 3 companies, or the question mark surrounding Macau, it’s kind of interesting to see where your money is going.

MGM-Mirage fell short of expectations; EPS rose from 49 cents to 57 cents, but missed forecasts of 66 cents. Revenue is up to $1,930 million from $1,770 during the equivalent quarter last year.

Terry Lanni, CEO of MGM-Mirage has harsh words when placing blame on the NBA for earnings shortfalls:

"The gang-bangers and others who came for purposes other than attending the game, they weren't very good for Las Vegas," chief executive Terry Lanni told The Associated Press.

Instead of gambling, many people stayed in their hotel rooms, Lanni said.

Lanni said the weekend soured the company's support for bringing an NBA team to Las Vegas, a move under consideration by commissioner David Stern.

"Mr. Stern can keep his basketball franchises out of Las Vegas as far as I'm concerned," Lanni said.

The company also had lower-than-expected revenue from its Macau operations, as the other US operators in Asia have superior products at this time. Las Vegas Sands failed to meet projections as well, seemingly due to the incredible expenses associated with pending projects, totaling 7.6 billion dollars. Revenue is up, but EPS is down to 26 cents from 34 last year.

Wynn Reports reported the first quarterly profits since its inception, EPS coming in at 54 cents, from a 12 cent loss per share last year. This is also better than analyst’s expectation of around 50 cents a share. Revenue was up to $635 million from $277 million.

Another interesting performance benchmark is Average Daily Rate, or ADR. This is the measure of the room rate per day for the company’s hotel properties. MGM’s ADR was $169, vs. LVS’s $276, given the company’s higher-end market. Wynn Las Vegas came in at an even higher $310.

MGM Mirage 1Q Profit Rises 17 Percent

Expenses drag down LV Sands earnings

Wynn Resorts posts profit, shares jump

Luxor Employee Killed by Backpack Bomb

Breaking News from CNN:

A backpack exploded in a parking garage attached to a Las Vegas hotel early Monday, killing a man who had picked it up and injuring another person, authorities said.

The man had removed the backpack from atop his car when it exploded shortly after 4 a.m. on the second floor of a parking behind the Luxor hotel-casino, said Officer Bill Cassell, a police spokesman.

We will keep you updated on this horrible event.

Exploding backpack kills man on Vegas strip

Lohan Finally Legal

In honor of our nation's birthday, VegasRy.com will be in Las Vegas July 1-4. We recently learned that we won't be alone in celebration as none other than Lindsay Lohan will also be in attendance.

Lohan turns 21 on July 2nd and is having a birthday bash following a dinner in Malibu. This is great news as we are destined to have an inside Vegas scoop on her or one of the many celebrities likely to be in town.

It's funny how we've heard for many years how Lohan has had a drinking problem and now, since entering rehab has been sober. Celebrity life is so much more accelerated. Are we sure she's not turning 31? I'll be on the lookout for her activities as another stint in rehab is almost inevitable.

Stay tuned for more updates on this subject...

Full Story here

MTV and Palms Reunite (again)

According to tmz.com, MTV is set to host their 2007 Video Music Awards at the Palms Hotel and Casino on September 9th. Previously, MTV hosted the Real World Season 12 at the Palms and is currently filming a reunion season there as well.

The weekend of the awards show should be full of celebrities and might be a great weekend to hit up Las Vegas. Book early though because once this hits the mainstream press, prices are certain to skyrocket. All of a sudden, this is a tantalizing weekend for a 4th 2007 trip for VegasRy.com.

MTV's return to the Palms is evidence that a partnership has apparently formed between the media giant and the Las Vegas hot spot. Hopefully, this relationship will provide future Vegas programming. Note to those in charge though..."Sweet 16: Vegas style" is not what we are looking for in terms of programming.

As for the question: MTV + Palms = ??? That hopefully will be fully answered in the months to come. So far they've done right by themselves as opposed to E's airing of "Paradise City," which a bulk of was also filmed in and around the Palms.

MTV's RW Reunited: Remember Me

Caesars Bettes on Midler

We've long speculated about who Celine Dion's successor would be when she inevitably wraps up a long and lucrative run at Caesar's Palace's Coliseum. While Dion is very talented, her style really isn't our forte and hence we've never considered seeing her perform.

On that note, please stay tuned for another concert review you won't read here as we've just learned that the one and only Bette Midler will begin her run in Celine's shoes in 2008. We like that they are catering to adults as opposed to bringing the likes of 'Disney on Ice' to Vegas, but this isn't exactly what we had in mind.

Midler's extensive singing and acting career is detailed on Wikipedia. Time to add another entry.

Internet Gambling Ban to be Lifted?

From MarketWatch:

Gaming Americans would be able to place bets over the Internet under a bill introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank on Thursday.

Frank's bill would roll back a ban on online gambling and enable companies to be licensed to accept bets and wagers online from individuals in the U.S.

The bill would exempt the operators from current restrictions on online gambling and would require licensed companies to have protections in place against underage and compulsive gambling, money laundering and fraud.

Not sure that this bill has much of a chance of passing, but we are in favor of it, as we are in favor of anything that would lessen government regulation, (some would say censorship) especially when it comes to the Internet. In our opinion, Congress is woefully unprepared and unqualified to deal with progressive issues such as this.

The real issue isn't whether or not gambling is bad, it's that the government can't tax it and get it's cut. This bill would allow for increased regulation and, obviously, increased taxation. However, since the vast majority of these companies are offshore, not sure how domestic taxation will apply. Also, not sure how you can develop a foolproof way of verifying age, location, etc.

Internet gambling has always been technically illegal in the US, that's why the companies operated in other countries, mostly the Caribbean. The way companies and gamblers circumvented this was by moving money through a middleman, so credit card companies and banks weren't directly funding gambling. However, due to legislation passed in 2006, it made it illegal for banks to deal with this middlemen, effectively cutting off the flow of cash.

The SAFE Port Act, at least as far as it applies to Internet gambling, is an affront to personal freedoms, along with being hypocritical. Gambling is legal in some form in almost every state, with 2 Casinos within 10 minutes of where I now sit, and off-track betting at countless bars in between. While this wouldn't cause us to gamble online much, if at all, we should have the freedom to do so if we choose.

The House Committee is scheduled to discuss this in June.

Rep. Frank's bill would roll back Net-gambling ban

Stratosphere Sold

From Bloomberg:

Carl Icahn agreed to sell the Stratosphere, three other Nevada casinos and 17 acres on the Las Vegas Strip to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s real estate funds for $1.3 billion.

Goldman's Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds will buy the Arizona Charlie's Decatur and Boulder casinos off the Strip and the Aquarius Casino Resort in Laughlin, Nevada. Icahn's American Real Estate Partners LP will see a gain of $1 billion from the sale of the properties he began buying just eight years ago, the Mount Kisco, New York-based company said today in a statement.

Not sure about selling now, as the North Strip is on the verge of a renaissance of sorts. But a cool billion dollars in just eight years is a pretty good ROI.


Icahn Sells Four Casinos to Goldman for $1.3 Billion

Las Vegas Sands and Macau

We haven’t written much about Macau, because well, Macau isn’t Las Vegas. But its ties to Las Vegas and the companies that operate casinos in both locales are very strong. There are 3 US companies that operate casinos in Macau, Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, and MGM-Mirage. Recently though, one of those operators, Las Vegas Sands, has become the target of multiple lawsuits regarding the securing of its gaming license.

Quick geography lesson, Macau is classified as a Special Administrative Region of China, similar to Hong Kong. Governed by China, it is located about 45 miles west of Hong Kong, as is comprised of only 21 square kilometers of land. The big deal here, though, is that gambling is legal, and it’s proximity to the many Asian gamblers makes it a gold mine, as many companies have already discovered. In fact, recently Macau became bigger than Las Vegas in gaming revenue, for the first time.

Having traveled to China, and studied in detail the way business is conducted there, it’s no surprise that allegations of impropriety would arise. Connections and who you know reign supreme as far as getting deals done in China, with family connections and friends of friends taking precedent over traditional channels, or being able to throw money at a problem. Payoffs and kickbacks are commonplace, and it seems like the LV Sands lawsuits are an example of the difficulties in a foreign company entering a mostly closed market.

From an article in the Las Vegas Business Press:

Three multi-million-dollar lawsuits against Las Vegas Sands and owner Sheldon Adelson have shone a light on events leading up to the company's casino expansion into Macau. Potentially, they expose a grittier side to the company's foreign business practices.

The lawsuits -- two filed in District Court and one in Federal Court -- allege a series of broken promises and possibly questionable business practices by Adelson and top Las Vegas Sands executives in their rush to secure Macau's final casino concession in 2002.

When the gambling monopoly in Macau was lifted, predictably the competition for the few gambling permits was fierce. Allegedly LV Sands entered into a partner ship with a Hong Kong businessman, as well as a Taiwan Corporation, and then reneged on its deal when they obtained the license through alternate channels. Both parties are suing to get their promised cut.

For those of you that don’t know, Sheldon Adelson is currently the 2^nd richest man in America behind Bill Gates, as LV Sands stock has been one of the hottest of the last year. He also has a very public feud with Steve Wynn; call it a clash of very large egos, for these 2 neighbors in Las Vegas. (Adelson’s Venetian is next door to Wynn Las Vegas) Anyway, we have zero inside knowledge on this topic, or of the legal precedents, but this looks like a set of cases that will never make it to court, either by being thrown out, or at the very most, resulting in a settlement.

Gaming isn’t always a clean business, especially coupled with the shady environment in Macau…but it makes for good theater, and we will definitely keep you updated.

A gritty side of Las Vegas Sands

VegasRy Preview: CityCenter

One of the great things about Las Vegas is that it’s always changing. Even if you go every 6 months, there is always something new or changed to see or do. As Las Vegas is in the midst of the umpteenth building boom, there are several projects we are looking forward to, and one of them is MGM-Mirage’s Project CityCenter.

CityCenter is a multi-use project that is going up between the Bellagio and Monte Carlo properties. It will contain several hotel towers, and the requisite casino and retail areas. MGM says that the property will open in November, 2009. Here is a description from the MGM-Mirage press release.

CityCenter is MGM MIRAGE's dazzling vertical city in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and Monte Carlo resorts. The development combines into a single urban core approximately 2,700 private residences, two 400-room non-gaming boutique hotels (one of which will be managed by luxury hotelier Mandarin Oriental), a dramatic 60-story, 4,000-room resort casino, and a 470,000-square-foot retail and entertainment district. CityCenter is a design collaboration between MGM MIRAGE and eight of the world's foremost architects including Foster and Partners, Gensler, Helmut Jahn, KPF Architects, Pelli Clarke Pelli, Rockwell Group, RV Architecture LLC led by Rafael Vinoly and Studio Daniel Libeskind.

Current rendering of CityCenter, note the kooky Veer Towers, the crooked high rises front and center:

Current cost estimates for CC put the price tag at 7.4 billion(!) dollars, making it the most expensive private construction project undertaken in the US. 7 billion is quite a chunk, but MGM claims they will sell about 2.5 billion dollars worth of condos in the meantime, which lowers the net cost considerably. Condos were the flavor of the month for a while, with many projects planned on or near the Strip. Many have failed, but CC seems like the real deal. Another interesting aspect of the project is since these condos will be owned my thousands of individuals, when it comes time to implode the buildings for something new, they need all of those owners’ approval.

Here is a live snapshot of the construction. That is the main hotel tower going up in the foreground.

CityCenter is quite an undertaking, and it will be interesting to see how they pull it off. I can see where they are coming from; they have the area, might as well develop it all at once, and sell off condos and operating rights to hotels to deflate the costs. No one has more experience and resources than MGM-Mirage when it comes to building Las Vegas properties, so we have high hopes. This much is for sure, CityCenter will definitely transform the Las Vegas Skyline.

City Center Home Page

MGM MIRAGE Provides Update on CityCenter Progress

Dealers of the World Unite!

We’ve written about Steve Wynn quite a bit, but as Las Vegas’ most recognizable face, he keeps popping up in the news. This from an article in Saturday’s Las Vegas Sun:

The Transport Workers Union, which primarily represents workers in the airline and railroad industries, has petitioned the National Labor Relations Board for a secret-ballot election to represent Wynn Las Vegas dealers.

The move indicates the level of anger Wynn dealers have sustained eight months into management's decision to include frontline supervisors in the dealers' tip pool. Enough dealers - at least 30 percent - signed the petition, triggering the election process.

Although management says most dealers have made peace with the new tip-sharing program, some dealers say at least 60 percent of the casino's dealers support a union.

Again, this relates to the tip-sharing policy that we’ve discussed here.

This seems to be a bit of a last-ditch effort by some dealers, as their individual lawsuits have been dismissed, and it looks like a bill outlawing the tip-sharing arrangement is a no-go.

This would be a first at major Las Vegas casinos, while the waiters and housekeepers are represented by the Culinary Union at most places, dealers have remained unorganized. While it still remains to be seen if the dealers have the votes to Unionize, with a predictable variance in numbers between the dealers and Wynn representatives, this seems to be an unprecedented first step.

We’re not labor-relations experts, (We’re Gin experts) but this news has to send a shiver down the spine of all the casino operators in Las Vegas. If the union ultimately prevails at Wynn, how long before dealers at other properties organize?

As always, we will keep you updated.

It's not your ordinary union looking at Wynn dealers

Steve Wynn vs. His Own Dealers

Vegas=Good, Poker=Good, Drew Barrymore= I think I'll pass

So I just saw a commercial for a film called Lucky You. It stars Eric Bana(Munich) and Drew Barrymore(Chick Movies) and is apparently set in Vegas. I apologize to Barrymore fans, but she bugs me. I must have been absent that day when they took the vote on whether she was the least bit appealing...

Bana evidently plays a poker player with father issues, relationship issues...to hell with it, I'm not reading any more about it.

However, there are many many Vegas shots in the trailer, so maybe it won't be as bad as I'm figuring it will be. It's directed by Curtis Hanson, (LA Confidential, one of my top 5 favorite movies) and the website also has pictures of the many actual Poker Pros that are in the movie, so it might have some redeeming qualities.

Check out the trailer if you must, but I'll tell you what will happen in the movie; Boy meets girl, boy chooses poker over girl, girl surprises boy and shows up on the rail at the final table and cheers him on to victory. The End.

Lucky You Official Site

(P.S. Bana's character is named Huck Cheever...the best quasi-real name in a movie since Cole Trickle)

Steve Wynn vs. His Own Dealers

Now this is a touchy subject…

On August 21^st, 2006 Steve Wynn announced to Dealers and other table games employees that he would change the tipping structure for dealers. Previously, Dealers were paid an hourly wage, and the bulk of their income came from customer tips, which were counted by a committee of dealers and distributed among other dealers on that shift. Casino supervisors, or pit bosses were paid a salary and therefore ineligible for tips.

After the change, a percentage of the dealer’s tips would go to the supervisors, reducing dealer’s income. Additionally, tip counting duties would be handled by other casino employees, not dealers.

Unsurprisingly, this caused an uproar among Wynn employees, as well as other dealers in town, fearing this precedent might someday affect them. Depending on who you listen to, the Wynn dealers seemingly make between $20k a year, and $530k, it’s that confusing.

Here’s the crux of the issue:

Opponents of this plan say that you are basically stealing money from the dealer’s pockets, which is hard to argue with on the surface. Also, taking away the tip counting duties from the dealers seems like a potential problem area, opening the door for corruption or other shenanigans.

Folks on Wynn’s side point to the fact that Wynn dealers are the best paid on the strip, before and after the change. Paying front-line employees more than their supervisors was wrong, and this leveled the playing field, as there was no desire to advance and grow as an employee.

I think the main sticking point here is the different sides’ discrepancy on how much money actually changes hands. I’ve read anywhere from less than 10% to over 15%, from $10k a year, to over $30k. I’ve also seen contradicting numbers that Wynn Dealers made over $100k a year (with tips of course, dealers make close to minimum wage before tips) prior to the change, and supervisors $60k. After the redistribution, dealers make $90k and supervisors $95k. (These numbers are coming from Wynn)

A few different complaints and lawsuits have been filed by Wynn Dealers, and are either pending or have been thrown out. The legality of the change may be a bit blurry, but Wynn’s influence over the state legislature isn’t.

After the initial uproar, and the resulting lawsuits, not much has been said on this issue, at least nothing that made the news. And everything at Wynn Las Vegas seems to be business as usual, aside from the random protest outside. One reason I’ve read is that most dealers really don’t have much of a choice, it’s either give up seniority and start over somewhere else, or just deal with it.

In a recent interview with In Business Las Vegas Steve Wynn states:

"It is working exactly as we planned," Wynn said. "Tips are increasing, our dealers are still the highest paid - not just in the city, but in the world - and our most experienced dealers are volunteering to work as supervisors."

In fact, Wynn said dealers made just as much in tips in February as they did in February 2006, and he predicted that dealer income would drop by less than the 10 percent to 15 percent he had originally estimated last summer.

Now I’m not exactly sure where I fall on this issue, as I really don’t have a horse in the race, and I don’t own any Wynn Stock (I wish I would have bought 3 years ago though). Personally I hope the above quotes are true. We are generally Wynn fans in the casino design sense, (4 on the Wynn-o-Meter) and love the Wynn Las Vegas property. Granted I’d be mad as hell if someone docked my pay by 15%, but then again I don’t make the money that Wynn dealers supposedly make.

Either way though, it looks like this new policy is going to stick, and we wouldn’t be at all surprised to see this become the norm as opposed to the exception in the near future. We will keep you up to date on any developments.

(An additional thing, one of the leading advocates in the fight against this is David McKee at the Las Vegas Business Press, the same guy we wrote about earlier for running an April Fool’s joke as a legit story…makes it even harder to decide who to believe.)

Wynn Las Vegas Home Page

Wynn Dealers Home Page

Despite tip-sharing, Wynn dealers still best-paid

Too close to Wynn?

Newsflash: Champ Car still boring...even in Vegas

As we’ve mentioned before, we are race fans here at VegasRy, but that race sucked.

Just finished watching the Vegas Grand Prix, (on Tivo, thank god for the 30-second skip) which was won by the polesitter, Australian Will Power. Defending series champ Sebastien Bourdais was hampered by tire problems, and was never a factor. Spotlighted rookie Graham Rahal, son of Bobby Rahal, crashed just past the start/finish line at the drop of the green flag and finished last.

The race was a joke for many reasons; Bourdais had 3(!) flat tires, there were bad pit stops all around, and best of all, 6 of 17 cars finished on the lead lap. Seriously…6, on a 2.4 mile road course!

The stands looked pretty empty, probably due to the race being held on Easter Sunday, but more so the fact that people probably couldn’t be pried away from their slot machines. I wonder if the Champ Car fans were as unruly as the NBA fans…

Las Vegas resident Paul Tracy finished 3rd.

Full story here.