This week’s casino news takes on a tour of the world with stops in the United States, Australia and Canada. We’ll start off with the local news where construction of a new casino in Arkansas is finally underway.
Construction Begins On $350 Million Casino In Arkansas
Construction of a brand-new, $350 million casino is underway in Arkansas following a groundbreaking ceremony that was held by the Quapaw Nation tribe. The group received the third casino licence handed out by the state last June. Now there are shovels in the ground on the Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff where the casino is being built.
Arkansas voted to bring casinos to the state when it passed an amendment to their constitution last November. Then in March, the state handed out the first two casino licences in its history. The casino will feature a gaming floor with more than 2,000 slot machines and 50 table games, and the property will also include a 300-room hotel along with an entertainment venue scheduled to open on the property about six months after the actual casino opens. According to the builders, the casino and hotel are expected to open in June of 2020.
76ers’ Star Ben Simmons Accuses Australian Casino Of Discrimination
Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons has accused the staff at an Australian casino of discrimination following an incident in which he felt he was racially profiled. The NBA star, a native of Australia, posted a video to his Instagram account that showed him and two other black men stopped by security as they entered the Crown Casino in Melbourne.
In the post, Simmons asked the security guards why he and the people he was with were being stopped while a group of white people also entering the casino at the time were not. Simmons ended up deleting the video the following morning after the casino released a statement that refuted his claim of racism. However, that wasn’t before thousands of people saw the video and called the incident in to question.
The casino’s statement indicated that their internal security team is required to check identification of anybody that appears to be under 25-years-old even if they are already in the casino. Simmons is 23. They say that ID was provided and the group was allowed to go in. It’s unclear whether he was simply insulted by the request to show ID or whether the casino, in fact, turned him away. However, with a very diverse group of players on the casino floor of every race, it’s hard to believe the casino would simply turn away business.
Woman Wins $1.8 Million At Gold Horse Casino Slot Machine
Brenda Lloyd was hoping for the best when she walked in to the Gold Horse Casino in Lloydminster to play the slot machines last week. She probably couldn’t have imagined in her wildest dreams what would happen next. Lloyd, who is a Lloydminster native, hit it big by winning more than $1.8 million playing the Smoke Signals Jackpot slots machine. That particular machine has a minimum jackpot of $1 million and a maximum jackpot of $2 million, so she all but cleaned it out.
It marked the first time that anybody has ever won the slot machine jackpot at this particular casino. Lloyd told a local reporter that she plans to spend some of her winnings on a vacation with her family.