Nevada Poker Revenue For 2018 Proves Less Is More For Number Of Tables

The constant announcement of poker‘s death seems to be a bit premature, at least in Nevada.

Nevada poker rooms generated just over $120 million in 2018. That figure is the state’s highest total in five years.

The last time poker revenue topped $120 million was 2013, when the state boasted 88 poker rooms and 778 poker tables.

Decline in number of tables hasn’t impacted Nevada poker revenue

After the number of poker rooms and tables unexpectedly increased in November 2018, the numbers ticked back down in December. The Nevada Gaming Control Board counted 56 poker rooms and 553 poker tables for the month.

That’s a noticeable decline from the 58 poker rooms and 562 tables counted in November, and an even steeper decline year-over-year, as the state boasted 61 poker rooms and 568 tables last December.

Yet, the disappearance of poker rooms and poker tables isn’t impacting Nevada poker revenue. Revenue roughly equaled the performance from five years ago.

2018 live poker revenue in Nevada

A look inside December 2018’s revenue numbers

Nevada’s poker rooms once again beat last year’s revenue numbers in December, this time by 3.47 percent. Collectively, they tallied $9.8 million in December 2018, well ahead of the $9.5 million generated in December 2017.

The numbers are even stronger on a per table basis, as Nevada poker operators continue to increase the efficiency of each table. The year-over-year monthly performance of Nevada poker tables has jumped by almost $1,000 per table:

• December 2017 table average: $16,750
• December 2018 table average: $17,801

3- and 12-month poker room and table trend

Over the last three months, Nevada has averaged 557 poker tables at 58 separate locations. Those rooms generated $27,610,000 over that period, a 1.49 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

More broadly, during the past year, Nevada has averaged 599 poker tables at 63 locations. During that time the state’s poker operators have generated $120,012,000, a 1.31 percent increase compared to the previous 12-month period.

The largest poker rooms in Nevada are found mainly on the Las Vegas Strip:

• Venetian (The Strip) – 37 poker tables
• Bellagio (The Strip) – 37 poker tables
• Orleans (Las Vegas off-strip) – 35 poker tables
• Wynn (The Strip) – 28 poker tables
• Aria (The Strip) – 24 poker tables
• South Point Casino (Henderson) – 22 poker tables
• Green Valley Ranch Casino (Henderson) – 22 poker tables
• Red Rock Casino (Summerlin) – 20 tables

Historical data and trends of poker in Nevada

Just for context, here’s a look at several key poker metrics from the UNLV Center for Gaming Research, which has been tracking the number of poker rooms, tables and revenue since 1992:

Year	# of Rooms	# of Tables	Total Revenue	% Change YoY
1992	92	564	74,701,000	-2.57
1993	89	571	70,814,000	-5.20
1994	93	586	71,667,000	1.20
1995	92	574	66,520,000	-7.18
1996	82	539	64,485,000	-3.06
1997	77	490	61,509,000	-4.61
1998	76	526	58,873,000	-4.29
1999	70	546	63,244,000	7.41
2000	68	473	63,064,000	-0.28
2001	65	475	59,673,000	-5.38
2002	57	386	57,791,000	-3.15
2003	58	383	68,276,000	18.15
2004	79	484	98,862,000	44.80
2005	96	701	140,224,000	42.00
2006	106	886	160,929,000	14.77
2007	113	907	167,975,000	4.38
2008	113	913	155,724,000	-7.29
2009	114	905	145,580,000	-6.54
2010	109	920	135,200,000	-7.13
2011	104	872	131,877,000	-2.46
2012	99	809	123,253,000	-6.54
2013	88	774	123,891,000	0.56
2014	79	736	119,904,000	-3.18
2015	76	681	118,023,000	-1.57
2016	73	661	117,753,000	-0.18
2017	71	615	118,455,000	0.60
2018

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