Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 44

Gaming and Tourism Monday, August 28, 1995 Reno Gazette-Journal 2F Old-time faro could be game of the future INSIDE warn card showing, called a "soda," is a no-action card. Suits are irrelevant in this game; the only thing that matters is the number or value of the card. The first card drawn is the "loser," and the card remaining face-up in the box is the If a card you bet to be a winner remains in the box, you are paid even money. If you bet it to be a winner and it winds up in the loser pile, you lose. However, let's say you bet on the queen, either as a winner or a loser, but a queen is drawn as the loser and a second queen remains in the box.

The house then wins half your bet. This situation, called a "split," is where the house advantage comes in. During initial play, the house advantage is about 4.46 percent, Finley said. When the dealer gets to where there are four cards left in the box, only three cards are left to play since the top card was part of the previous hand. The case keeps track of cards played, so you know what the three cards left are.

Players can then make a 4-to-l bet to predict what order the last three cards are in, which again creates a house advantage, since the odds are 5-to-l that you'll make the right prediction. The house can also make money by charging a "vig" or percentage for allowing players to exceed the table betting limits. But Finley said he hasn't had much luck yet convincing Nevada casinos to revive the game. Carl Geer, general manager of the Peppermill Hotel Casino, admitted he knew relatively nothing about the game, but he also said he never rules out any ideas to innovate his casino pit. "Sometimes the greatest innovations are old games," he said, noting how some casinos have revived the children's card game War as a casino game.

Gary Carano, general manager of Silver Legacy Resort Casino, said the game might easily fit in with his casino's theme, which is a tribute to Nevada's rich mining past. "We always have to be open to marketing new games," he said, but there is a bottom line to consider if none of his customers wants to play faro. One of the most recent innovations in the casino pit, he explained, is Let It Ride by Shufflemaster. While the game seems to have good customer appeal, by the time he pays Shufflemaster a commission and pays the rent on the automatic shuffler, the blackjack table next to it makes more money. But Finley's convinced the rebirth of faro would be quite popular and profitable for casinos.

"The single reason it's not being offered today is the industry's paralyzing fear of taking even the slightest chance, in a business built solely on chance," he said. By the way, the Nevada Gaming Control Board said the game is still on its books. Any casino wanting to open a faro table need only pay the tax and start dealing. Gaming and tourism reporter James Robbins works weekdays. one-year term.

As director of public affairs for Harrah's, Baker said he has helped the organization in 17 states as a participant in the process to legalize gaming. For gaming to gain status as a legitimate industry in all new jurisdictions, he said, "data has to be honest and credible." And like any other business, gaming needs good management, which comes more easily with top-notch, college-trained managers. "The gaming industry's needs are no different than any other industry's," he said. For those who have been in the business for a while but want to increase their knowledge and management skills, the university's Division of Continuing Education offers a wide array of training courses and a certificate program. The certificate program has seen more than 2,700 registrants since its inception in 1989.

"What people need is good, solid management training," Reed said, summing up the goal of all three branches of the university's gaming focus. "We're all working toward the same goal." Gaming and tourism reporter James Robbins works weekdays. Phone: 788-6217. invade their circle. "It was a closed society," he said, noting that dealers never greeted customers the way some are instructed to do in modern casinos.

"Intimidation of the novice player is what killed this game," he said. These days, casino executives say customers are nervous about bellying up to the craps table because it looks too complicated and they stay away from blackjack tables because they're worried about other players' getting mad at them if they make the wrong move. It's much less intimidating to slink off into a corner and play a slot machine instead. A faro layout also looks complicated, Finley admitted, but after a few simple instructions just about anyone can easily pick up the game. The typical faro table consists of an entire suit of cards painted on the green felt, next to something called a "case," which looks a little like an abacus.

Players make bets by placing chips or money on the card spots on the table. They can either bet that the card will be a "winner" or a "loser." After shuffling, the dealer places the deck of cards face-up in something called a "box." The top tions, he said. Further, Eadington said, he tries not to make judgmental decisions as to whether gambling is right or wrong. Instead, his goal is to find information and present it in a logical manner. While the industry gets plenty of criticism as leading to moral decay and being a waste of people's time and resources, Eadington said, its value is no different than any other form of entertainment.

It all depends on one's perspective. From a purely logical standpoint, he explained, "Going to a theater and watching people run around on stage doesn't make sense." The institute has also positioned itself as an international source of top management training with its Executive Development Program. Cornelius said the seven-day intensive program draws executives from Canada, France, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the Philippines, Africa and from throughout the United States and Native American casinos. Eadington also regularly lectures around the world at various economic, business and gaming conferences. In 1995-96, the institute will By Diana Frear Paschall GAZETTE-JOURNAL CIRCUS CIRCUS: Kristy L.

Carter has been promoted to guest relations manager. She was previously guest Carter By James Robbins GAZETTE-JOURNAL Jim Finley believes the newest casino game that could make it big in Nevada also happens to be one of the oldest. Trouble is, about the only place you can find a faro table these days is in Virginia City, and it's in a display case. Finley, 67, is a 53-year veteran of the casino business. He first began working in a casino at the age of 14 in Miami, in 1942 when gambling was still legal in that state.

By 1952, he said, he was dealing faro in a casino in Elly. Nowadays he considers himself one of the few people left in Nevada who still knows anything about the game. Talk to casino officials and you will hear a litany of responses as to why what was once the most widespread game in Nevada and the nation is nothing more than a faint memory. Some say the house advantage was too high and no one liked to play. Others say the house advantage was too small.

Still others say the game was too complicated, while others argue that it was the proclivity of dealers to cheat that caused casinos to abandon the game. Finley said it was none of the above. What killed faro is the same thing that gambling experts now say is killing many other casino table games: intimidation. When Finley dealt the game, there were very tight-knit groups that played and had little or no tolerance for those who tried to UNR From page IF gaming industry. There were "anecdotal histories" of gaming in print and plenty of "how-to" gambling books, but little else, Eadington said.

So he focused his thesis on the "economic implications of gambling-based tourism," an important topic for Nevada cities. "Academically, there was a significant prejudice against gambling as a serious topic," he said. But years and several books later, Eadington and his associate director Judy Cornelius are now regarded as being among the top researchers in the industry. They have also worked hard to position the institute as one of the best resources of "objective" information about gaming in the world. "We want to provide good information to aid in the public process," he said.

So when new jurisdictions are considering legalizing gambling, governmental bodies, citizens organizations and gaming operators can all look to the institute for information. And to help the institute remain objective, it doesn't accept any funding from gaming corpora Gaming Index The USA Capital Composite Gaming Index is a market value weighted index tracking the performance of 18 gaming companies representative of the industry. The Index was set equal to 100 at Dec. 31,1989. Last Week's close: 166.24 net change: 821 822 823 824 825 Week's change: na 12-month high: 174.7 12-month low: 120.0 Source: USA Capital Management Gazette-Journal San Francisco appeals court puts casino crackdown on hold Federal officials will have to put their planned crackdown on Indian casinos on hold.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said it wants to hear more arguments concerning the casinos' Nevada-style slot machines. California has an estimated 8,000 of the devices. Federal prosecutors were contemplating a coordinated effort to halt use of the illicit slots within a month because of a recent decision by the same court. That ruling held California is not required to negotiate with Indian tribes over use of gambling devices that are not allowed elsewhere under state law.

Nevada-style slot machines are specifically banned under the state's constitution. But the court reopened the case, saying it wanted to hear further arguments from tribal attorneys and the state Attorney General's Office. Specifically the federal court wants to look at the possible relevance of a recent state court ruling that found California laws surrounding the state lottery authorize use of slot machines. Tribes under federal law can operate gaming devices allowed by the state. FBI wants records of license check Records of a Louisiana casino regulator's investigation into a company with ties to a state senator have been subpoenaed by the FBI.

The subpoenas were delivered as an undetermined number of Louisiana lawmakers received demands to turn over campaign and personal finance records to federal prosecutors. The Louisiana Economic Development and Gaming which issues licenses to do business with Harrah's land casino in New Orleans, was ordered to turn over records and depositions in connection with a license suitability probe into Gulf South Business Systems. New Jersey city signs Oklahoma tribe A plan to have an Indian tribe from Oklahoma build a casino in Wildwood, N.J., is a farfetched scheme that would hurt Atlantic City casinos and cheat New Jersey taxpayers, critics said. "For the sake of Atlantic City and all of New Jersey's taxpayers, we must kill Wildwood's shortsighted and provincial casino project before a single shovel is put in the ground," said state Assemblyman Thomas Foley, D-Atlantic. Under an agreement, the city would give the Delaware Tribe of Western Oklahoma a 2'2-acre parcel of land to be developed into a tax-exempt casino with no hotel rooms, no restaurants and no alcohol.

Cow Creek Indians to offer live games Feeling the heat from competitors, Oregon's first Indian gambling center in Canyon ville will soon offer live poker and blackjack. In addition to the bingo, slot machines, keno and video poker already offered, the Cow Creek Indian Gaming Center will open three poker tables Aug. 29 and blackjack tables at a later date. "In Coos Bay and Lincoln City, we have competitors that already have poker and blackjack games," general manager Dennis Yin said. "I'm pretty confident that there will be response for poker.

We've had a tremendous response from advertising already." Bally makes pitch for quick hearing Bally Gaming a slot machine giant embroiled in an organized crime prosecution, is pressing for a quick licensing hearing to allow it to do business with Harrah's permanent land casino in New Orleans. Harrah's has said that unless a decision on Bally Gaming's license is made by Sept. 1 5, it will have to seek another company from which to buy a sophisticated computer system that will control the casino's 5,000 slot machines. Silver Legacy hurts other casinos It could take up to a year before the new Silver Legacy Resort starts drawing new gamblers to share with other Reno casinos, gaming analysts said. Bill Eadington, director of gaming studies at the University of Nevada, Reno, said the $350 million resort that opened July 28 is probably siphoning business from neighboring casinos during its first month of operation.

But Eadington said demand often doesn't match supply when a new casino opens. "The other properties have suffered," Eadington said. "I've heard they are finding they are down 5 to 7 percent. When things are slow, they are just losing customers. "One of the difficulties with the Silver Legacy now is the market hasn't grown enough to fully accommodate the increased supply," he said.

Circus wins approval to run Hacienda Circus Circus Enterprises Inc. cleared the final hurdle for a license to operate the Hacienda hotel-casino in Las Vegas. The Nevada Gaming Commission approved the license after a Circus Circus representative said the company's financial condition is "very solid" and the matter has been thoroughly reviewed. But Yvette Landau, associate general counsel of Circus Circus, said her company's plans for the Hacienda haven't been finalized. "We would expect at some point in the future that one or more of the Hacienda buildings would be replaced with a new building," she told the commission.

Circus Circus also purchased a 73-acre vacant lot next to the Hacienda for $73 million. Associated Press publish four books based on papers presented at its Ninth International Conference on Gambling and Risk Taking. On the university side, the gaming management degree program is the mission of the College of Business Administration to "become the premier provider of undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the fields of casino and gaming management." While the institute has been in existence since 1989 (as a spin-off of the economics department), the gaming management major was approved by the university Board of Regents just last year, Reed said. Unlike the institute, the management program receives funding from the gaming industry in the form of grants for some of its teaching staff. Harrah's Entertainment this year agreed to fund the Meade Dixon Distinguished Chair in Gaming Management for $250,000.

The chair will be held by Lou Phillips, who left his executive position with Harrah's to take the assignment. Harrah's also underwrites a visiting professor program, which Randy Baker has accepted on a governmental relations, human resources and general counsel. John McLaughlin has been named chief financial officer, filling Scharer's vacancy. He has more than 1 5 years experience in the gaming industry. HARRAH'S RENO: vl Joane Johnson, executive housekeeper, has received the certified hospitality housekeeping executive designation from the Educational Institute of the American Hotel Motel Association.

To qualify, hospitality professionals must demonstrate specific skills and abilities through academic achievement and experience. LAKE TAHOE HORIZON: The super stars for July have Williamson Johnson relations assistant manager at the Las Vegas property. Marty Williamson has been named cage and credit manager. He was previously a cage supervisor at the Luxor Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas. HARVEY'S: Charles W.

Scharer, chief financial officer, has been appointed executive vice president. He will primarily be responsible for corporate finance, business development and been named: first place, Imelba Clark, slots; second, Tammy Williams, room reservations; and third, Fred Solhtalab, Josh's restaurant. Send news of people in the casino industry to: Reno Gazette-Journal, P.O. Box 22,000, Reno, Nev. 89520.

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