… Hopefully the new ownership will get rid of the twin failures, casino manager Navegante Group and sportsbook failure Lucky’s Race and Sports Book. Lucky’s is not even in the same league with the former independent book that was at Grand Sierra. Apparently undercapitalized and definitely paranoid, Lucky’s is an embarrassment. I hope the new ownership can get rid of Lucky’s quickly and restore respectability to the sportsbook operation.
After a shaky start, Lucky’s is at least semi-respectable, especially compared to some truly awful sportsbooks like at most of the Harrah’s properties. Reno-based, Lucky’s has now made some inroads into other locations, but not yet into any decent casinos. Sadly for Lucky’s, it is only in failing casinos so far, apparently juiced in by the ubiquitous Navegante Group, management king of failing casinos. Lucky’s recent takeover of the nearly-bankrupt Terrible’s casinos’ books in Las Vegas and Primm is a major improvement over the sorry books that existed under Terrible’s. Lucky’s is at least accepting decent action.
To my knowledge, only two Lucky’s locations have thrown out patrons for using their brains — the Lucky’s at Red Lion in Elko and the Lucky’s in the downtown Las Vegas Plaza. Lucky’s, like Cal-Neva and Harrah’s, offers the player-friendly service of cashing tickets at any of its locations, regardless of where the bet was placed. Leroy’s offers the service also, but limits it to very small tickets of under $1000 total cash — not really much of a “service.”
Overall, with the notable exception of the Grand Sierra Reno and the Plaza Las Vegas sportsbooks, the replacement by Lucky’s of its predecessors has been an improvement. I hope Lucky’s can make enough money to upgrade its equipment and get rid of its antiquated ticket machines. For now, I wish Lucky’s well. May it become a formidable competitor to the Cal-Neva and Leroy’s sportsbook chains. I hope management doesn’t make some stupid decisions that will cause me to change my mind.