Have you ever walked by a blackjack table in Las Vegas and marveled at how much money people can bet on a single hand of cards? The first time I saw someone betting $150 per hand I was 21 years old, and I was shocked at how easy it was for a gambler to see that kind of money come and go.
But hundreds of dollars per hand is small change for big gamblers and the gaming companies that run major casinos. They have clients betting thousands, even tens of thousands, per hand on blackjack, craps, baccarat, and any other game in the casino. And you might not ever see the biggest hands being played because they're in private rooms off the main gaming floor.
Below are some numbers showing how much is bet at the average table and slot machine each and every day at several high-profile casinos.
Image source: Getty Images.
Table games are big business
It might not seem so among the dings of slot machines in Las Vegas, but the biggest revenue generator at casinos today is table games -- particularly in Macau.
Below is a table that shows just how much was lost on average at Las Vegas Sands (LVS -0.19%) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN -3.06%) table games and slot machines every single day last quarter. The figures in Las Vegas are impressive, but Macau is simply astounding.
|
Table Games |
Slot Machines |
|
|---|---|---|
|
The Venetian/Palazzo Las Vegas |
$3,737 |
$185 |
|
Wynn Las Vegas |
$8,130 |
$276 |
|
The Venetian Macau |
$16,926 |
$358 |
|
Wynn Macau |
$26,146 |
$1,163 |
Source: Company earnings reports.
For perspective on the $26,146 per day lost at the average table at Wynn Macau last quarter:
- $1,089 is lost at an average Wynn Macau table game every hour of the day, or $18.16 every minute.
- Wynn Macau generates an average of $9.5 million in revenue at each gaming table over the course of a year.
- If we assume a house advantage of 2%, to generate $26,146 in revenue daily, $1.3 million would have to be bet at each table every single day. At that rate, $477.2 million is bet at each table every year. (These estimates are likely low.)
Image source: Getty Images.
Slot machines aren't nearly as popular in Macau, where baccarat is the game of choice, but you can see they still generate a tremendous amount of revenue.
The house always wins
There's a reason why casinos keep getting bigger in Las Vegas and Macau, and why gaming companies do everything they can to expand into new gaming markets, such as Singapore and Japan. There's big money at stake, especially in Asia.
Keep these figures in mind next time you're at a casino. That table at which you might play a few hands of blackjack could be pulling in thousands of dollars in revenue for the casino each and every day.
