[BrentCrude]

I remember the tail end days of old Vegas and how there were still really seedy and raunchy bookie joints with 100 year old guys with stogies,trench coats,wing tips-spats and houndstooth hats that were fixtures there.It seemed either they would have a growth protruding out of their head or have TB where they hacked flem.Are there still any bookie joint only type places down there that I don't know about?I remember about 20 years ago they built a place called Sport of Kings that was an upscale bookie joint pavillion but it never really opened due to license troubles or mob tie connections.I think a pure bookie joint might do well in Vegas because not everyone wants to be at the upscale multi theatre type books full of irritating college boys.

[bookie]

Sport of Kings operated for a couple of years. The idea was that they'd offer fixed odds horse racing. Sharps just blew em up and they had to close. Toward the end their were questions about their license as you mention, but I don't believe that's why they closed.

As to your question, I don't think a pure bookie joint would work. You're not going to take huge action at 11-10 when there are better deals available elsewhere, and I can't imagine anything else that would draw clientel.

[Korchnoi]

any way you cut it, running a live sportsbook isn't as profitable as other forms of gambling. Even if the avg customer bets $500 on a game (which he doesn't) that's a $500 bet spread over, at least, the lenght of a game. That same gambler betting $25 a shot in roulette for the length of the game would give the house much more house edge.

[crackerjack]

I think it would work if it was tied into something else, like a sports themed restaurant or something. I'd love to have a place where I could go get a nice meal and bet some games and watch the games on a huge screen tv. Or maybe a poker room that had an area for sports betting. These I think would work better in Texas or NY or somewhere other than Vegas (if it were legal that is...)

[Korchnoi]

it would work if they allowed it... imagne if pinnacle opened stroe front shop??. Vegas sports woud never be the same. vegas dont allow new niche casinos. they get run out.

even Pinny has a casino!

[Doug]

I don't think sports only would work, you'd need big limits. The present books could just do it now, if they wanted to.

Instead they act like it is a service for their guests, not really a business in itself.

[JoshW]

Combine it with a strip club. Everything works business wise if you throw a strip club in the mix.