Heard it on the River

There is a celebration coming to TUNICARESORTS and it will be a significant one. WEBSTER FRANKLIN, who ably runs our Convention & Visitors Bureau, tells us that a grand opening will be held for the new $26 million RiverPark accompanied by a ribbon cutting and some special activities of local interest March 18-20. Overlooking the Mississippi River adjacent to FITZGERALDS CASINO, the ecopark offers a unique historical experience and Webster predicts it will likely become one of the South's best natural attractions. There is a more complete article on the RiverPark in this issue of JACKPOT and opening festivities commence on the 18th next month at 1:30 p.m. GOVERNOR HALEY BARBOUR is coming by so why don't you?

If you hurry and have $500 to spare, you can still enter two great competitive table games events this weekend. GOLD STRIKE is holdings it's MISSISSIPPI CRAPS CHAMPIONSHIP with $50,000 prize money on the table and GRAND hosts it's LEAP INTO CASH blackjack tournament with $100,000 up for grabs.

Tournaments are proving winners for casinos and BALLY'S just concluded ULTIMATE BLACKJACK TOURNAMENT drew a whopping 270 players who forked up $500 to play with the result the record turnout moved prize money up from $125,000 to $160,000. First place money jumped from $50,000 to $65,000 and that tidy sum was won by a pizza parlor operator from War Trace, Tenn. by the name of ED JOHNSON. His wife cried and so did I. I only made to the semi-finals. Next time guys!

Overhead in the pits from a dealer…"Tunica is the only place where you can shoot doves and craps in the same field." I think JEFF FOXWORTHY said it first. For all you poker lovers and those of you, like me, who watch it avidly on television, The WORLD POKER TOUR will televise the finals of the HORSESHOE/GOLD STRIKE JACK BIN-ION WORLD POKER OPEN concluded here last month on Wed. night April 21 on the Travel Channel. You can learn more about how to play Texas Hold 'em by watching these events than by reading any book. Getting inside the heads of top players while they make their moves, and mistakes, gives you a shot at improving your own game. Did you know that with 50 million players poker is more popular than golf, tennis or billiards?

BOYD GAMING chairman BILLBOYD received the Lifetime Achievement Award at a ceremony in Vegas earlier this month at the 10th Annual Gaming Summit. He paid tribute to 18,000 employees of the company in his acceptance. The One Club loyalty card offered to MANDALAY BAY RESORT GROUP properties, including GOLD STRIKE, will soon be able to pickup points when they purchase meals and shows at the resorts. The date of the startup has not been announced.

SHERATON has installed a nice feature above its table games. Plasma television monitors are suspended over the middle of the pits and provide a nice viewing angle for players. Are your taste buds jaded? Try this for a nice change at the CHICAGO STEAK-HOUSE in GOLD STRIKE…. roasted chicken folded with potato cakes and aged pro-volone and Gruyere cheese served with a tarragon jus. Or how about sauteed veal and lobster tail with wild mushroom sauce ragout and roasted potatoes and vegetables du jour? LUCIO, you haven't lost your touch.

THE USAOLYMPIC BOXING TRIALS are winding down and close out a great run at the PAUL BATTLE ARENA this Saturday (2/21) so you can still show your support and take in some great matches before we send our team to Athens this summer. Tickets can be found at TicketMaster.

With the U of MEMPHIS Tigers moving out of the PYRAMID to play round ball in the new FEDEX FORUM next season, will the move to put a casino in the empty Pyramid heat up? It seems so as LAKES ENTERTAINMENT is working hard to achieve this. State Senator STEVE COHEN says it will never happen but momentum appears to be building up. One little problem, however, Tennessee state law does not allow casino gaming and to change the law is a steep mountain to climb. Meantime over in neighboring ARKANSAS, the House Rules committee has stopped a measure that would have allowed electronic gaming at the state's two racetracks in West Memphis and Hot Springs.

NICK "LITTLE MAV" MAVROMATIS has joined SAM'S TOWN as Casino Executive Host bringing with him 23 years of experience in the gaming industry. Remember when you parked cars as a valet in AC, Nick? DON SALLYis the new Food & Beverage Director at HOLLYWOOD and will oversee operations for three restaurants, including the fabulous FAIRBANKS, as well as the employee dining facility, room service and catering. Hollywood has also won top honors in the "Large Food and Lodging" category in the Mississippi Business Journal's Salute to Business & Industry held last month. This is a prestigious statewide recognition program that showcases good corporate citizenship of companies based in the state.

FROM THE QUOTABLE GAMBLER…the Lyons Press

"Poker is a game of many skills: you need card sense, psychological insight, a good memory, controlled aggression, enough mathematical know-how to work out the odds as each hand develops, and what poker players call a leather ass, i.e. patience." ALVIN ALVAREZ (No Limit, 1994)

LAISSEZ LE BON TEMPS ROULER!

Heard it on the River is published courtesy of Jackpot Magazine, the South's leading gaming newspaper.