Changes in the management of Nevada gaming companies will continue if the Nevada Gaming Commission approves recommendations made by the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
The board on Wednesday unanimously approved a recommendation for William Hill, operated by Caesars Entertainment Inc., to operate the sports book at the Resort at Summerlin, formerly known as the Rampart casino, and Boomer’s Sports Book LLC to take over book operations at the Bonanza Casino in Reno.
The commission is expected to consider the recommendations at its next meeting, on January 29.
William Hill is the largest sportsbook provider in the state with more than 120 stores. If approved by the commission, William Hill would take over operations at the Summerlin resort after the Super Bowl, executives told board members.
The current provider, Gaughan South, run by South Point owner Michael Gaughan, notified the Resort at Summerlin that he planned to stop operating the book there, prompting the casino to look for a new provider to take over the gaming space.
William Hill won an extensive request for proposal process. Caesars CEO Eric Hession told board members that the company plans to deploy “a significant amount of capital to upgrade the playbook” as well as install 20 kiosks in the casino.
Board members also unanimously approved Boomer’s request to open its first business in Reno.
Joe Asher, president and CEO of Boomer’s, said that while the company is one of the smallest sportsbook operators, it is also Nevada’s only independent sportsbook and the fastest growing sports betting operation in the state.
Ryan Sheltra, general manager of Bonanza, told board members he is “excited to be a part of the Boomer family.”
The Reno operation would be the fifth Boomer’s location in the state, with books in place in Henderson, North Las Vegas and Carson City. Asher said the Reno location would open after the Super Bowl and in time for the NCAA “March Madness” basketball tournament.
Asher said he hopes to have a dozen sportsbooks open across the state by fall.
Otherwise, the control board unanimously recommended that Michelle Ditondo be licensed as a manager and director of Resorts World Las Vegas.
Board member George Assad praised Ditondo’s rise in the male-dominated gaming industry, saying he felt she was qualified from the day she was first introduced to him by Resorts World Chairman Jim Murren.
Assad said he believed that if she had been on board with Chief Operations Officer Carlo Castro and Chief Compliance Officer Jennifer Roberts last year, Resorts World could have avoided a $10.5 million fine — the second-highest ever assessed by Nevada gaming regulators — in March.
The disciplinary action involved illegal bookie Mathew Bowyer, who is under consideration for inclusion on Nevada’s list of excluded persons.
Assad said he believes the new group of Resorts World executives would not have condoned Bowyer’s casino behavior and would have banned him before federal authorities began investigating reports of money laundering by Bowyer at the casino as part of his illegal bookmaking business.
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