Deadwood casino gaming handle up 16.6% year-on-year in August

The South Dakota Commission on Gaming has reported that Deadwood’s casino visitors wagered $166m.

US.- Deadwood’s casinos saw their gaming handle rise in August after two months of decline. The South Dakota Commission on Gaming has reported that visitors wagered $166m, a 16.6 per cent increase compared to August 2021. The handle had fallen by 1.61 per cent and 8 per cent respectively in June and July.

Last month, players gambled $157m on slot machines, $8.9m on table games and $266,673 on sports bets. Taxable adjusted gross revenue was $14.9m.

The slot machine handle increased 17.7 per cent year-on-year on Deadwood’s 2,555 machines. So far for 2022, the slot machine handle is up by 0.51 per cent compared to 2021. The commission’s report shows Deadwood’s 86 table games saw a 2.9 per cent decrease when compared to August 2021. Table games are down by 5.58 per cent year-to-date.

As for sports wagering, the report shows a handle of $266,673 and a statistical win for gamblers of $59,052.08. Most bets in August were placed on Major League Baseball games, followed by National Football League games and college football.

Through the first eight months of 2022, gamblers in Deadwood have spent just over $1bn on wagers and chip purchases, an increase of 0.53 per cent when compared to 2021. So far in 2022, slot machines handled nearly $950m. Table games saw nearly $59m in chip purchases. Sports wagering for the year-to-date is just under $4m.

In March, the House State Affairs Committee voted 10-3 against Senate Joint Resolution 502, which proposed a constitutional amendment to broaden the state’s gambling rules to allow sports wagers to be placed through electronic devices.

Supporters of the legislation argued that South Dakota is missing out on millions of dollars in revenue by continuing to prohibit online sports wagering. Despite the senate committee’s rejection of the proposal, supporters are optimistic about the chances of a citizen-led ballot initiative if lawmakers don’t continue to oppose mobile sports wagering.

Governor Kristi Noem’s administration opposes the proposal as does the Family Heritage Alliance. For now, the city of Deadwood is the only territory in South Dakota to offer legal gambling. Sports betting has been allowed in Deadwood since 2020 but players must be at a Deadwood casino.