Mild weather coupled with five Fridays helped boost revenues at Northwest Indiana’s four casinos by 3% from November to December.
The four casinos took in a total of $92.74 million in revenues in December compared to $90.03 million in November and $68.09 million in December 2020, before Hard Rock Northern Indiana replaced the two struggling Majestic Star Casinos in Gary, according to the monthly revenue report issued Wednesday by the Indiana Gaming Commission.
Once again, Hard Rock Northern Indiana took the top place in overall earnings and table games in the state last month, according to the report. The casino raked in $32.45 million, $10.57 million of which was in table games and $21.87 million in slots.
“Hard Rock Northern Indiana had its strongest month yet in December, capped off by an amazing New Year’s Eve celebration,” its president, Matthew Schuffert, said.
“The mild weather in December, along with having five Fridays certainly helped volumes in December,” Schuffert said.
Ameristar took in $18.9 million in revenues in December, up 7% over November’s $17.68 million and 7.8% more than December 2020′s $17.53 million.
Blue Chip Casino brought in $11.69 million in revenues, an 8.1% increase from November’s $10.81 million and 46.5% more than the previous December’s $7.98 million.
Horseshoe Hammond was the only casino in Northwest Indiana to show a drop in revenues both from November and the previous December. Its $29.7 million haul in December was 3.2% less than the $30.69 million it took in during November and 9.5% less than the $32.84 million it brought in during December 2020.
Horseshoe Hammond did continue its monthslong lead in the state in terms of slot revenue, taking in $22.86 million on slots.
Schuffert said Hard Rock’s table games business continues to perform extremely well, led by its strong baccarat business. He said the casino will be adding more games soon based on customer feedback.
He said the casino added more than 50 slot machines to its floor in December, with nearly 100 more classic games coming soon.
“I have to give credit to our food and beverage offerings. Customers continue to give us rave reviews on the quality of our food and the service provided by our team members,” Schuffert said.
The report pleased Horseshoe executives.
“Overall, we continue to see strong volumes year over year, in particular with slots,” said Shannon McKellar, vice president of marketing with Horseshoe Hammond.
She said the casino recently expanded its electronic table games offering to include popular options such as Big Six and more craps games. In its World Series of Poker Room, the casino is bringing back the Legendary High Hands promotion, where guests who hit a qualifying High Hand will receive a cash prize. It’s also expanding its poker room hours to Monday through Friday.
Kathryn Jenkins, senior vice president and general manager of Horseshoe Hammond, said The Venue will feature the bands War and The Commodores during Valentine’s Day weekend.
Horseshoe Hammond also continues to focus on Caesars Rewards, its casino loyalty program.
Ameristar and Blue Chip officials do not respond to questions on revenues.
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