Casinos in Mississippi win $182.2 million during October

JACKSON, Miss. -- Mississippi's casinos won $182.2 million from gamblers in October, down 5 percent from $191.6 million in October 2010.

The 19 river casinos won $93.9 million in October, down 9 percent from $103.5 million in the same month last year, according to Mississippi Department of Revenue figures. Winnings at the 11 Mississippi coast casinos totaled $88.2 million, up slightly from $88.1 million the previous October.

River casino winnings are down 12.2 percent through the first 10 months of the year, reflecting the heavy impact of flooding in May and June. Coast casino winnings are down less than 1 percent for the same period. Statewide, gross revenue is down 6.9 percent for the year, to $1.89 billion. That puts Mississippi's casinos on track for the fourth straight year of declining revenue since the all-time high in 2007 of $2.89 billion.

Allen Godfrey, executive director of the Mississippi Gaming Commission, said a poor economy continues to weigh down gambling receipts. He said that the river casinos have continued to struggle against the perception that this spring's Mississippi River flooding caused permanent damage, even though all the gambling halls quickly reopened.

"Throughout the whole year, it appears that the coast counties have held more closely to what they did last year," Godfrey said.

He said that although lenders are foreclosing on Resorts Casino Tunica and Bally's Casino Tunica, the outgoing owner's financial troubles did not appear to affect their business. California-based Colony Capital has agreed to turn those two casinos over to lenders in order to hold on to its flagship Atlantic City property. Lenders chose Gulfport's Foundation Gaming Group to manage the casinos, which will keep operating under their current names.

The state figures do not include receipts at Indian casinos.

Mississippi is not the only state where gambling revenue fell. In Louisiana, gamblers lost about 8 percent less in October. Nevada gamblers lost about 6 percent less in September.