Believe it or not, we’re just 11 weeks until Kentucky Derby 148, and this weekend marks the start of key prep races that will help determine the field for the Run for the Roses.

Down in New Orleans on Saturday evening, the Grade II Risen Star Stakes offers a field of 10 colts at Fair Ground Race Course. The 1-1/8-mile race kicks off horse racing’s Kentucky Derby Championship Series, which consists of 16 stakes races scheduled over the next two months. Horses that win these races will find themselves in excellent shape for a spot in the starting gate at Churchill Downs on May 7.

The top four finishers in the race will split 85 qualifying points for the Derby, and the winner will get 50 points and find themselves at the top of the qualification standings.

Post time for the race is scheduled for 6:58 pm ET. It will be available for viewing on TVG and online through advance deposit wagering accounts.

In addition to being a Kentucky Derby prep, the Risen Star is also considered a tune-up for horses slated to run in the March 26 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds. The winner of that race will earn 100 points.

Favorite Smile Happy Looks to Go 3-for-3

The morning-line odds list half the field with odds between 7-2 and 9-2, with Kenny McPeek training the favorite, Smile Happy.

Three colts finishing behind the son of Runhappy in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes have since gone on to win their next race.

McPeek said he plans for his colt to run in one more Derby prep after the Risen Star. He shipped Smile Happy from Gulfstream Park in south Florida for the race.

“One reason we chose this spot is because there’s more points in this race,” the trainer said.

Ridden by Coery Lanerie, the 7-2 morning-line favorite will break from the eighth post.

Deep Field of Challengers in Risen Star

Two horses are at 4-1 in the morning-line odds. Pappacap is one of the more experienced entries, with six races in his career. However, the Mark Casse-trained colt has two seconds, a third, and a fourth-place finish in his last four races. The colt finished third in last month’s Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds, less than a length behind winner Call Me Midnight.

Just in front of Pappacap was Epicenter, who led for most of the 1-1/16th-mile race until Call Me Midnight clipped him by a head at the wire.

Pappacap draws the inside gate with Tyler Gaffalione aboard, while Epicenter will race from the fifth gate, with Joel Rosario on the mount.

With odds of 9-2, Zandon makes his 3-year-old debut. Trainer Chad Brown brings his colt from New York, where he ran second to Mo Donegal by a nose in the Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct in December.

Brown thought about sending the colt to Florida for the Derby preps at Gulfstream. He definitely believes Zandon has the power to run the 1-1/4-mile Kentucky Derby distance.

We just felt like that surface and the longer stretch would suit his style better than the short stretch at Gulfstream that is usually speed favoring,” Brown said. “He’s got to get over the shipping, but the horse couldn’t be training any better.”

Jose Ortiz gets the mount, and Zandon will break from just inside of Smile Happy in the seventh gate.

Key Challenger on the Outside

Also at 9-2, and making his first start at age 3, is Slow Down Andy. Trained by Doug O’Neill, the Nyquist-bred colt has two wins in three starts, including a win in the December Los Alamitos Futurity. He rallied from being off the pace at the start of the race to track down heavy-favorite Messier down the stretch.

While Slow Down Andy has won a two-turn race, he will start the Risen Star from the outside gate. He also gets a jockey change, with Mario Gutierrez back in the saddle after Flavian Prat rode in the stakes win.

The full field can be found here.

The post Road to the Kentucky Derby: Smile Happy Faces a Tough Test in Risen Star Stakes appeared first on Casino.org.

On Wednesday, February 16^th, 2022 Liverpool ultimately defeated Inter Milan with a final tally of 2 to 0 in the 1^st – leg of this Champions League match up. Inter Milan was the home team in this first leg of Champions League action.

Following 75 – minutes of cautious and somewhat boring football in this Champions League contest hosted by Inter Milan, Andy Robertson facilitated a corner – kick that was gladly greeted close to the near post by Roberto Firminowho glanced in a header to find the back of the net as he had his back to goal.

That was Liverpool’s 5^th – goal from a set piece in the Champions League during this season, placing them in 1^st – place in Europe just like in the English Premier League (EPL).

Once Mohamed Salah touched the back of the net in the 83^rd – minute of game play as that goal score guaranteed the 6 – time European champions a 2 to 0 victory in the 1^st – leg of the Champions League round of 16 last Wednesday night.

The free – kick from Robertson which created the opportunity for the 2^nd – goal in the legendary San Siro Stadium as Liverpool scored off of the match’s only 2 – shots targeted on goal.

The host side managed to partially clear the ball prior to the football finding its way back to Trent Alexander – Arnold, who then crossed it into the penalty area and was eventually nodded down by Virgil van Dijk. Salah was prepared and unmarked in order to manufacture a solid shot attempt that was eventually deflected past goal – tender Samir Handanovic for his 10^th – goal over his previous 12 – Champions League matches.

By cemented a 4^th – sequential road win in Europe for the very 1^st – time since way back in 2006, the 2019 Champions League victors grabbed a vital support cushion to take back to Anfield Stadium for the 2^nd – leg of this match up this March.

Inter Milan was unable to muster up even a single shot on goal in the game’s 90 – minutes, and they now face missing out on a 1^st – quarterfinal appearance since the year of 2011 in European football’s elite competition known as the Champions League.

Things may have turned out differently for the Italian champions if Hakan Calhanoglu’s 1^st – half smashing – shot from a very acute angle went another way, but it just so happened to miss the crossbar leaving their fans extremely desperate at that point.

It was one hell of a night once Alexander – Arnold found his spot in the history books of Liverpool as the club’s youngest – ever Champions League player rewritten by the young and talented player in Harvey Elliott who was gifted his 1^st – appearance in the Champions League competition at tender age of just 18 – years and 318 – days.

Elliott played for the initial 59 – minutes in which Liverpool was heavily underwhelming, and they came close to scoring a goal when Sadio Mane headed an attempt during the 1^st – half of this match.

The only blemish on this trip was Diogo Jota having to be forced off of the pitch at the halftime break with an unanticipated ankle injury, however that created the path for the arrival of ultimate goal score of the game by Firmino.

Wednesday night’s other 1^st – leg Champions League contest featured a much – closer outcome as Bayern Munich drew a 1 to 1 tie versus Salzburg via a timely equalizer by Kingsley Coman during the 90^th – minute of game action in order to save Bayern Munich at Salzburg.

Media Statements

“I think we both took a lot of risk in the pressing,” Virgil Van Dijk expressed nationally on CBS. “It’s about the hard fight, the battle when you have the ball — be brave, make the right decisions and keep it tight at the back.”

“In the Champions League small details make the difference,” the Inter Milan defender Milan Škriniar proclaimed.“We have created a lot, but we did not manage to score.”

“We don’t have much hope now,” Inter Milan’s head coach, Simone Inzaghi, stated. “But we will go Anfield to play the best possible match and we will see.”

“Firmino needed time to get into the game,” the head coach of Liverpool, Jürgen Klopp, expressed on BT Sport.“After his goal you could see the confidence back. All of a sudden, the ball was our friend again and we won the game.”

Sources:

The Associated Press News Services. “Firmino, Salah give Liverpool 2 – 0 win at Inter Milan in CL”. The Associated Press. February 16, 2022.

The post Firmino & Salah provide Liverpool 2 Goals to beat Inter Milan in Champions League appeared first on Casino News Daily.

New Jersey sportsbooks fared just fine as New York oddsmakers began taking bets online last month. In fact, the Garden State experienced record wagering.

Numbers released today by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) reveal that more sports bets were placed in the state in January than in any other month since such legal gambling began in June of 2018.

Oddsmakers took more than $1.34 billion in bets in January, easily eclipsing the state’s previous best mark of just over $1.3 billion set last October. The January 2022 sports betting handle represents a 40% jump from January 2021.

On the record action, casino, racetrack, and mobile oddsmakers kept approximately $60.2 million.

But in the first month of neighborly competition, New Jersey more than held its own. New York has nonetheless dethroned New Jersey as the top sports betting state, as mobile sports betting handle there hit nearly $2 billion in the first 30 days.

Casinos Still Recovering

January was a promising start to the year for New Jersey sportsbooks. But Atlantic City casino revenues continue to lag behind pre-pandemic levels.

Brick-and-mortar gross gaming revenue (GGR) from slot machines and table games totaled $183.6 million. Though that number is 15% better than January 2021, it’s down more than 4% from January 2020. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) ordered the nine Atlantic City casinos to suspend operations in mid-March of 2020 in response to COVID-19.

James Plousis, chair of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, says January’s performance was still positive and signals that the land-based properties are continuing to recover from the pandemic.

It is encouraging to see Atlantic City’s recent positive momentum continue in the winter months. The casinos’ recent performance provides cause for even more optimism as the spring season approaches,” Plousis said.

Atlantic City casinos offset their brick-and-mortar losses with iGaming’s ongoing surge. Revenue from interactive slots, table games, and poker rake totaled a record $137.8 million — 33% better than January 2021, and 157% higher than January 2020.

State Modifies Reporting

Joe Lupo, president of Hard Rock Atlantic City and the Casino Association of New Jersey, has been campaigning for state gaming regulators to modify how their monthly GGR reports are conveyed. Lupo has voiced frustrations with media outlets reporting robust Atlantic City gaming revenue, when much of that income goes to companies that have no physical presence in the beachfront casino town.

Specifically, Lupo has called on the Division of Gaming Enforcement to separate or exclude mobile sports betting and iGaming revenue from the monthly lump sum. While the DGE hasn’t appeased that wish, the state’s January gaming report did clearly specify results by vertical — something the agency didn’t do last year.

The post New Jersey Sportsbooks Take Record Action Despite New York Mobile Start appeared first on Casino.org.

Philadelphia’s Live! Casino & Hotel in the city’s Stadium District is celebrating its official one-year anniversary with the announcement of pumping over $325 million into the local and state economies. As part of the festivities, the City of Philadelphia declared February 11 as Live! Day.

Local officials, business leaders, tourism, and communities leaders from throughout the region joined media and Cordish Company executives in the celebrations that featured a giant 4-tiered cake made by local craftsmen Termini Brothers Bakery, a Philidelphia favorite.

The South Philadelphia String Band and former Philadelphia Eagles star, Jon Dorenbos made appearances at the gala event.

The road to opening the world-class gaming, hotel, dining, and entertainment center was sometimes arduous and observers were at times unsure if all the wrinkles could be ironed out in order to satisfy stakeholders, city overseers, and the community at large, but the task was finally accomplished in 2021.

“We’re so proud of the positive impact that we’ve made on our local communities during our first year in business and thank the City of Philadelphia for their kind recognition,” said David Cordish, Chairman, The Cordish Companies. “We kept our promise to create a world-class destination, which has also proven to be an economic driver for the Greater Philadelphia region.”

$700 Million Investment

The company put as much as $700m at risk to realize the opening a year ago and nearly half that amount has made its way into the local, regional, and state economy in the first year of operations. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has seen more than $90 million in tax receipts alone from the entertainment and gambling complex.

Live! Has spent some $100m with local, minority-owned, and women-owned businesses and created 1,300 new permanent jobs. Well over half of the team members live in the city. Wages accounted for nearly $60m of the company’s economic input from the development.

Over the last year, players have collected over $80m in jackpot payouts.

Cash donations and in-kind support like the 500 hours of community service team members volunteered represented the company giving back almost half a million dollars across the Greater Philadelphia region with well over a dozen local charities the recipients of human hands of help and much-needed cash.

“As a family-owned company, we consider the community to be extended members of the Live! family. We’re proud to be able to provide jobs and support local businesses, in addition to contribute directly to the organizations helping to better the lives of those around us,” said Joe Billhimer, Executive Vice President, Cordish Gaming Group. “We look forward to continuing this support during year two, and beyond.”

Property Details

The casino resort is located off I-95 and I-76, in direct proximity to four professional sports teams. It’s no wonder the FanDuel® Sportsbook and Lounge, Sports & Social Philly, as well as nightlife at Center Bar and R Bar, are so popular.

The casino features over 150 dealer-staffed table games along with over 2,100 electronic tables and slot machines as well as a dedicated poker room. The hotel offers over 200 luxury rooms.

The Cordish Companies is a family business that still owns and operates virtually every venue it ever opened. Across the company’s hotel and sports-anchored properties, more than 55 million people visit each year.

Source: THE CORDISH COMPANIES CELEBRATES FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF LIVE! CASINO & HOTEL PHILADELPHIA; CONTRIBUTES MORE THAN $325 MILLION TO LOCAL AND STATE ECONOMY, PR Newswire, February 10, 2022

The post Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia First Anniversary appeared first on Casino News Daily.

Philadelphia’s Live! Casino & Hotel in the city’s Stadium District is celebrating its official one-year anniversary with the announcement of pumping over $325 million into the local and state economies. As part of the festivities, the City of Philadelphia declared February 11 as Live! Day.

Local officials, business leaders, tourism, and communities leaders from throughout the region joined media and Cordish Company executives in the celebrations that featured a giant 4-tiered cake made by local craftsmen Termini Brothers Bakery, a Philidelphia favorite.

The South Philadelphia String Band and former Philadelphia Eagles star, Jon Dorenbos made appearances at the gala event.

The road to opening the world-class gaming, hotel, dining, and entertainment center was sometimes arduous and observers were at times unsure if all the wrinkles could be ironed out in order to satisfy stakeholders, city overseers, and the community at large, but the task was finally accomplished in 2021.

“We’re so proud of the positive impact that we’ve made on our local communities during our first year in business and thank the City of Philadelphia for their kind recognition,” said David Cordish, Chairman, The Cordish Companies. “We kept our promise to create a world-class destination, which has also proven to be an economic driver for the Greater Philadelphia region.”

$700 Million Investment

The company put as much as $700m at risk to realize the opening a year ago and nearly half that amount has made its way into the local, regional, and state economy in the first year of operations. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has seen more than $90 million in tax receipts alone from the entertainment and gambling complex.

Live! Has spent some $100m with local, minority-owned, and women-owned businesses and created 1,300 new permanent jobs. Well over half of the team members live in the city. Wages accounted for nearly $60m of the company’s economic input from the development.

Over the last year, players have collected over $80m in jackpot payouts.

Cash donations and in-kind support like the 500 hours of community service team members volunteered represented the company giving back almost half a million dollars across the Greater Philadelphia region with well over a dozen local charities the recipients of human hands of help and much-needed cash.

“As a family-owned company, we consider the community to be extended members of the Live! family. We’re proud to be able to provide jobs and support local businesses, in addition to contribute directly to the organizations helping to better the lives of those around us,” said Joe Billhimer, Executive Vice President, Cordish Gaming Group. “We look forward to continuing this support during year two, and beyond.”

Property Details

The casino resort is located off I-95 and I-76, in direct proximity to four professional sports teams. It’s no wonder the FanDuel® Sportsbook and Lounge, Sports & Social Philly, as well as nightlife at Center Bar and R Bar, are so popular.

The casino features over 150 dealer-staffed table games along with over 2,100 electronic tables and slot machines as well as a dedicated poker room. The hotel offers over 200 luxury rooms.

The Cordish Companies is a family business that still owns and operates virtually every venue it ever opened. Across the company’s hotel and sports-anchored properties, more than 55 million people visit each year.

Source: THE CORDISH COMPANIES CELEBRATES FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF LIVE! CASINO & HOTEL PHILADELPHIA; CONTRIBUTES MORE THAN $325 MILLION TO LOCAL AND STATE ECONOMY, PR Newswire, February 10, 2022

The post Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia First Anniversary appeared first on Casino News Daily.