MGM Springfield

[olds442jetaway]

Has anyone been to MGM Springfield to check the video poker pay tables? I’m just curious as I haven’t been able to get up there yet.

[Jstark]

Might be decent. Check out this winner on 9/6 DDB DSTP.

https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/gamblin ... alt-royal/

[olds442jetaway]

I made a trip up there myself early Sunday morning. The non-smoking was nice and the staff was pleasant but to be blunt, the video poker odds sucked. I don’t think they even had 20 machines and most of the video poker was at a bar the pay tables looked to be in the 96% range. I also got panhandled three times and the clientele that I saw appeared ski V. I won’t be going back there any time soon. They don’t even have a lounge for the Higher level players. But, that is not as important as the poor pay tables.

[Carcounter]

Springfield Mass seems an odd place to open a multi million dollar casino. The Wynn outside Boston makes sense, but Springfield doesn't seem to have the required demographics. Not surprised you got panhandled that often. I wonder about the Resorts casino up in the Catskills as well. Wonder how they are doing.

[DaBurglar]

Springfield Mass seems an odd place to open a multi million dollar casino. The Wynn outside Boston makes sense, but Springfield doesn't seem to have the required demographics. Not surprised you got panhandled that often. I wonder about the Resorts casino up in the Catskills as well. Wonder how they are doing.

I was criticized in my other thread for making the "prediction" that the city would regret this decision to allow this casino in the city in a couple years. It took 7 years for it to get here after all the debating and arguing and processing....the ANTI-CASINO forces are still out there and in force so stories like Olds experience will continue to accumulate until, a couple years from now, the city will demand MGM pay MORE for its privilege of fleecing the citizens of western New England.

Demographics wise, there are a lot of wealthy communities around here, it's just that the people there do not gamble that much to support a local casino!

[DaBurglar]

You'll see....this MGM-Springfield situation is just one more symptom of the greater disease out there, namely the proliferation of Casino Gambling beyond the ideal number and level of market saturation.

With the two HUGE (and long established) Casino Resorts in Southern Connecticut, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods; with the several smaller, but still dynamic and popular, casinos located in Rhode Island; with the couple that are in Upstate New York; and with the upcoming opening and establishment of the massive 2-1/2 Billion dollar WYNN Mega-resort casino in the greater Boston, the market and demand for gambling within New England itself is over-saturated. I have not even mentioned the fact that a lot of people within New England greatly prefer to gamble and relax in Las Vegas itself, for all the obvious reason! A few, like myself, prefer to visit AC with it's Ocean Boardwalk Environment and features.....

The overall result and impact is that a property like the one MGM opened in Springfield is up against too many options and too much competition to thrive, UNLESS it truly has something unique and special to offer to the market and the customers in the region. In this case it does not, sooooo.....you'lllllll see

[Carcounter]

I agree with DB on this one. There are just too many casinos competing for too little action in most parts of the country. By next year, several of the weaker performing AC casinos will close. Anybody have any experience with the Sugar Hill casino in Philadelphia or the Harrahs in Chester PA? They seem like they are in sketchy areas.

[FloridaPhil]

I agree with DB on this one. There are just too many casinos competing for too little action in most parts of the country.

DB is right. This is getting ridiculous. When we first started our cross country VP road trips, it was a chore to plan our trips so we could stay at a casino in the evening. Now it seems you can't get out of sight from one. Sooner or later all these new casinos will be low income housing. At least the panhandlers will have a place to stay.

[Tedlark]

No offense to any of the marketing people here in these forums, but; they don't build them just to build them.

[DaBurglar]

No offense to any of the marketing people here in these forums, but; they don't build them just to build them.

Uh, no they do not "just build 'em...", and no one here is saying THAT. What is being said is that, intentions aside, they are building them when and where they should NOT....the recent closures of casinos in several significant markets across the country in recent years proves that.

So you are disagreeing with the notion that there are too many casinos and are saying that the market is NOT over saturated? The only way this argument holds water is if you include the factor that distribution of casino SUPPLY is imperfect resulting in regional oversaturation while other regions remain underserviced.....but therein lies the issue and problem that communities have a choice whether or not to allow casinos in to begin with....the reason some regions are underserved is quite simply, people don't want casinos there. That's why for any casino company to expand into any given community, they now have to go thru a years long process of promotion, lobbying, and spending to essentially "legally bribe" the community to let them in....

The MGM - Springfield very nearly did not get approved in its first pass thru for approval (in 2011 it squeaked by), which was close enough for the Anti-casino folks to organize and get a SECOND Approval vote initiated in 2014, which also narrowly passed. Having been defeated twice, the Anti-casino groups withdrew and are now biding their time to see what transpires over the next couple years, to see just what effect the casino actually has on the community and economy. I guarantee, every incident like the recent attack, and every day there are panhandlers and other blight where there was none previously, is being documented by these zealots and will be turned into political fodder in the years to come.