DEADWOOD — Gaming’s gains, a veritable horn of plenty for 2021, continued in cornucopia fashion for November, as statistics released by the South Dakota Commission on Gaming Wednesday showed both the monthly and cumulative handle up more than 30%.
Already well beyond the billion-dollar mark for the year, gamers visiting Deadwood in November dropped $116.2 million in machines and on tables and $1.4 billion, year to date, for a 30.38% increase compared to November 2020 and a 37.2% increase in the cumulative gaming totals compared to the same reporting period in 2020.
This resulted in $10.3 million in taxable adjusted gross revenues for the industry in November.
Of that, 9%, or $923,935, was collected as state tax and distributed to various entities across the state.
“The perfect fall weather, coupled with an outstanding event and concert series lineup came together to set a record for Deadwood gaming in November,” said Mike Rodman, executive director of the Deadwood Gaming Association. “Also, the ability to wager on your favorite sporting event has brought new sports enthusiasts to Deadwood.”
Under the handle comparison category, in November, table games had a handle of $6.4 million, slot machines had a handle of $109 million, and, in its third month of reporting, sports wagering had a handle of $717,774.
Thus far this year, table games have had a handle of $84.3 million, a 49% increase compared to 2020 levels and slot machines have had a handle of $1.3 billion, a 36% increase compared to 2020 levels. Thus far in 2021, the collective handle in Deadwood has been roughly $1.4 billion, up 37% compared to the same period in 2020.
As stated in the report, approximately 2,590 slot machines accounted for roughly $109 million in coin in, with gamers winning around $99.5 million with an estimated average payout of 91%, leaving a statistical win of $9.5 million for the slot category in November. The two largest contributors were 2,081 penny machines, with $83.6 million in coin-in, which generated roughly $7.4 million in statistical win and a 91% payout to players, followed by 219 dollar machines, with roughly $9.4 million in coin-in, which generated $759,416 in statistical win, and a 92% payout to players.
With 90 tables reporting revenue, table games generated a drop of $6.4 million in November and an estimated statistical win of $1.2 million, with an average payout to players of 81%. The leading revenue generator in this category was blackjack, with 40 tables, reporting a drop of $2.8 million and a statistical win of $451,637 with an 84% payout to players.
Three craps tables in town generated a drop of $451,722, a statistical win of $122,216, and a 78% payout to players; nine roulette tables in town generated a drop of $343,071, a statistical win of $87,497, and an 81% payout to players.
A total of 26 house banked poker tables generated a drop of $2.2 million, a statistical win of $527,543, and a 76% payout to players.
With five casinos reporting revenue, sports wagering had a handle of $717,774 for November, an estimated statistical win of $74,918, and an average payout to players of 90%. The leading revenue generator in this category was NFL Football, with a handle of $376,427, a statistical win of $67,152, and an 82% payout to players. NCAA football handle came in second, with a handle of $211,169, a statistical win of $5,638, and an average payout to players of 97%. The third most popular event for sports wagering in November was NBA basketball, with a handle of $55,937, a statistical loss of $5,506, and an average payout to players of 90%
Rodman said Deadwood gaming operators rewarded players with $1,398,358 in “free-play” for the month of November.
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