Boyd muscles up with merger

When Boyd Gaming Corp. announced Monday that it is acquiring Coast Casinos for $1.3 billion, many in the Nevada casino community were shocked.

The merger - expected to be completed by the middle of summer, according to Boyd spokesman Rob Stillwell - moves Boyd Gaming to the upper tier of the industry, with MGM Mirage, Caesars Entertainment, Harrah's Entertainment, and Mandalay Resort Group.

Boyd will now have 17 properties with annual revenues of more than $2 billion.

For years, Boyd Gaming was best known for the Stardust on the Strip and Sam's Town on Boulder Highway, along with its downtown properties (the California, the Fremont, and Main Street Station). It has since grown to include riverboats and land-based casinos in the Midwest and South, The Borgata in Atlantic City (in a joint deal with MGM Mirage), Delta Down Race Track, and is also in the process of buying a hotel-casino in Shreveport, La., from Harrah's.

The addition of the Coast Casinos - The Orleans, Gold Coast, Barbary Coast, and Suncoast - will give Boyd 11 properties in Las Vegas, and another on the way, with the $350 million Southcoast about to break ground.

Race and sports book customers of the two companies are watching this merger closely because, while there are a lot of casinos that cater to horseplayers in town, it's hard to argue there is another company that markets to the race and sports crowd more than Boyd and Coast.

Coast Casinos host major handicapping tournaments at all of its properties and have loyal daily customers. Sam's Town also caters to horseplayers, with selections from handicappers Gordon Jones and Patrick McQuiggan, and the Stardust has power ratings available for all races.

On the sports side, the Stardust is known as the home of the Vegas line, while the Coast Casinos' sports books have a hard-earned reputation for taking big action. A rumor has already been circulating that Bert Osborne, who runs the Coast books from his office at the Gold Coast, would be setting the lines for all of the combined sports books, with the exception of the Stardust.

"I don't know where they got that," Stillwell said, citing a report in GamingToday. "They didn't get it from us."

Stillwell said Coast will be a "wholly-owned subsidiary" of Boyd Gaming and that the race and sports book operations would continue to operate independently after the merger.

Michael Gaughan, chairman and CEO of Coast Casinos, will stay on to run the local casinos and be the second-largest shareholder, behind Boyd Gaming chairman and CEO William Boyd. The fathers of Gaughan and Boyd - Jackie Gaughan and the late Sam Boyd - are Las Vegas pioneers whose families are now joining forces.

Love is in the air this weekend

With New Year's, Chinese New Year's, and the Super Bowl behind us, and March Madness right around the corner, Las Vegas certainly hasn't been lacking for big weekend crowds. But this weekend could rank right up there, with Valentine's Day on Saturday and Presidents' Day on Monday turning this into a three-day weekend.

If you're in town to get married, you need to go to the Clark County Marriage Bureua (200 South 3rd St. in downtown Vegas) for a license before finding a justice of the peace, minister, rabbi, or Elvis to perform the ceremony.

The bad news is that it can take several hours to get through the line on Valentine's Day, which is rivaled only by New Year's for the number of weddings in Vegas. The good news is that the bureau is open 24 hours a day this weekend.

Senator Kerry to visit local schools

Sen. John Kerry (D.-Mass.) has been getting a lot of love from voters in recent weeks, and he will be in Las Vegas on Friday and Saturday. He already has a lot of local support, largely because he voted against the national nuclear waste depository at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

John Kerry will be at Valley High School at 7:30 p.m. Friday and then will be at Chaparral High School at 8:30 a.m. Saturday to greet voters in Clark County's Democratic presidential caucuses.

Battle of another kind

The Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League host their home opener at noon Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center. The game, against the Los Angeles Avengers, will be televised by NBC.

The Avengers, second choice at 4-1 to win the Arena Bowl, defeated the Arizona Rattlers, 51-32, in their season opener last Saturday. The Gladiators looked like they were coasting to a win last Friday at the Colorado Crush before they gave up two touchdowns in the final 12 seconds (aided by a recovered onside kick) and lost, 43-42.

The Avengers are a 5-point favorite.

The Gladiators have done a good job of building a fan base and are expecting a sellout crowd Saturday. Carnations will be given to the first 1,500 women, and a drawing will be held for a $5,000 diamond ring. Schedule magnets will also be given to the first 5,000 fans.

Last year's opener was the only sellout, with 12,251, but the average attendance was 9,791.