Vegas introduces private bets
By Lisa Snedeker
Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — For the first time since gambling was legalized in Nevada in 1931, high-stakes gamblers may soon be allowed to place their bets in private.
State regulators yesterday approved the MGM Grand hotel casino's application for Nevada's first private gambling salon for high rollers.
The Gaming Control Board unanimously voted to recommend the application for the resort's owner, MGM Mirage Inc. The salon is expected to open in August if the Nevada Gaming Commission approves the application at its July 25 meeting in Las Vegas.
The private salon would be equipped with high-tech surveillance devices to allow regulators to monitor betting and ensure the games are fair.
Attorney Bob Faiss, representing MGM Mirage, told the board the private gambling areas "will strengthen the ability of Nevada casinos to compete in the high-end market with gambling operations in other jurisdictions."
The private gambling salon license will come up for review in two years, said Gaming Control Board Chairman Dennis Neilander.
"It's brand new, so we don't have any experience with it," he said, referring to the two-year license limit.
Neilander added that the state's tax forms would be revised to keep track of the private salons' revenues.
Bob Moon, marketing chairman for MGM Mirage, said the company would promote the salon to a limited number of foreign gamblers.
"We also anticipate developing some high-end players in the domestic market," he said.
MGM Mirage told the board the company has no intention of opening a private salon at any of its other casinos, but another Las Vegas casino, Caesars Palace, has applied to open a salon.
The Park Place Entertainment Corp. resort last month filed the second application for a salon since the Nevada Legislature approved letting casinos offer private gambling last year.
The salons were legalized to allow privacy-seeking high rollers to wager out of the public eye. Gambling in private previously was forbidden by Nevada law. The new private casinos allow gamblers with at least $500,000 in cash or a credit line. Minimum wagers on private casino slot machines and table games will be $500.
Lawmakers approved the change so Nevada could compete with other gambling locales where private wagering is allowed, including Europe, Asia and one tribal casino in Connecticut.
