Harrah's and Venetian Close Poker Rooms
By Jeff Simpson (GAMING WIRE)

LAS VEGAS, NV -- Harrah's Las Vegas closed its poker room Dec. 13, a move that follows the December 3 closure of The Venetian's, making the pair the latest local megaresorts to shut their card rooms.

Harrah's spokeswoman Madeleine Weekley blamed a lack of customer demand for the decision to close the poker room. The Rio, the company's other Las Vegas casino, closed its poker room several years ago. The MGM Grand closed its poker room in January after losing space in recent years. Treasure Island's room was closed a few years ago, also because of ebbing demand.

"The poker action on the Strip used to be pretty evenly distributed," gaming expert and Huntington Press publisher Anthony Curtis said. "With the emergence of the big, dominant poker rooms, first at The Mirage and now at Bellagio, there's no big action left for the other Strip casinos."

The 27 poker dealers at Harrah's Las Vegas will be offered the chance to apply for other positions with the company. The Venetian offered its 21 poker dealers and supervisors jobs in the resort's table games department before the poker room's Sunday closure.

In addition to The Mirage and Bellagio, other Strip resorts that offer poker include: Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Excalibur, Monte Carlo, Flamingo, Riviera, Stardust, New Frontier, Circus Circus and Stratosphere.

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Harrah's Opens Casino in Lake Charles

LAKE CHARLES, LA - Players Casino in Lake Charles became Harrah's Entertainment's latest incarnation when the hotel-casino reopened under the Harrah's brand name on December 7. Harrah's has spent more than $41 million on capital improvements to Players Lake Charles Casino and has committed another $11 million to hotel renovations. The company has owned the 60,000 square-foot casino since March, when the company completed its acquisition of Players International, Inc. for $425 million. Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. operates 21 casinos in 17 markets in the United States under the Harrah's, Showboat and Rio brand names.

Harrah's Lake Charles features a newly refurbished Star Casino with 900 new slot machines, a new boarding area, a new themed table games area called the Celebrity Room and a new Asian restaurant - Cafe Bong Sen. The facility also introduces Lake Charles customers to Harrah's Total Rewards. Located on Interstate 10, Harrah's Lake Charles Casino is a two-hour drive east of Houston, TX and three hours west of New Orleans, LA. The casino is open 24 hours a day and features 60,000 square feet of gaming space. There are more than 1,500 slot machines at the property, including many that are a part of the statewide MegaJackpot network.

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MOUNT PLEASANT, MI - Mr. Stuart (photo left) had a very special Thanksgiving this year when he won $10,000 on the Triple Cash machine November 20 at Soaring Eagle Resort & Casino.

LAS VEGAS, NV - Jack Rath of Las Vegas hit a royal flush and won $92,286 on a Double Down Stud Nickel keno machine December 10 at The Orleans Hotel & Casino.

VICKSBURG, MS - Evelyn Thomas of Jackson, MS recently won a hot new Chrysler PT Cruiser plus $2,500 in cash at Rainbow Hotel Casino's $220,000 Cash and Cruiser 6th Anniversary Celebration grand prize drawing. (Ms. Thomas standing next to her hot new Chrysler PT Cruiser in photo right.)

UNCASVILLE, CT - A New Haven resident who said she had "nothing better to do," and "almost didn't come" is probably thanking her lucky stars since she won $532,533 at one of Mohegan Sun's $1.00 Wheel Of Fortune machines December 2. The winner, who has chosen to remain anonymous, had hoped the machine would hit the bonus spin symbols. It did, in a very big way. When asked how she felt after winning such a huge amount, she replied, "a little woozy." After winning, she said that her sister-in-law had dreamt about a big win at Mohegan Sun. The New Haven woman plans on using her winnings on her wedding and buying a house.

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