Maryland’s six casinos have set a new single-month revenue record in May, with reports showing $156,555,593 (£116,625,306) in total earnings. This is an increase of 14.7% over the May 2017 totals of $136,464,277 (£101,658,381).
Maryland Lottery and Gaming released the May reports this week, revealing that the single-month record was broken in May. The previous record had been set just two months earlier, in March, when just over $150m (£112m) was earned. May was the fifth full month in which the state was able to make a direct year-over-year comparison with all six operating casinos since the MGM National Harbor opened in early December 2016.
Breaking down the numbers
The top operator for Maryland continues to be the MGM National Harbor. The casino has held the number one spot since opening in December, moving past the Live! Casino & Hotel, the state’s former top operator. For May, MGM National Harbor earned $62m (£46m) from slot machine and table gaming, an increase of 23.2% over the same month last year. The MGM property operates just over 2,700 slot machines and 178 table games.
MGM earned almost $10m (£7.5m) more than Live! Casino & Hotel last month. Live! was second for the month with $52m (£39), an increase of 13.4% from last year. Live! operates 4,004 slot machines and close to 200 table games.
From the third to sixth position, revenues earned drop significantly as compared to the top two spots. The MGM National Harbor and Live! Casino & Hotel hold the largest market shares in casino gaming, while the remaining four casinos contribute a smaller percentage.
The Horseshoe Casino Baltimore holds the number three earnings spot, with $24m (£17.9m) generated in May. This was an increase of only 2% over the same month last year. The Horseshoe has 168 table games in operation and 2,200 slot machines. Hollywood Casino Perryville brought in $6.7m (£5m) for May, which is a 6.7% increase from the previous year. This casino operates a smaller selection of games, with only 822 slot machines and 22 table games.
Rounding out the bottom of the list are the Ocean Downs Casino and the Rocky Gap Casino Resort. Both saw a nice increase year-over-year, with Ocean Downs Casino jumping just over 21% in revenue earnings to $6.4m (£4.8m) in May. Rocky Gap was up only 3.9%, with $4.9m (£3.7m). These two casinos also offer a smaller number of casino games, with Ocean Downs featuring 892 slot games and 10 table games (banked), while Rocky Gap operates 665 slots and 17 table games (banked).
Maryland Lottery and Gaming
The casinos of the state are overseen by Maryland Lottery and Gaming, The casino revenues support the Education Trust Fund as well as local impact grants, the general fund, local jurisdictions, and the state’s horse racing industry.
Gordon Medenica, the director of Maryland Lottery and Gaming, said of the May revenues: “As our casino partners continue to innovate and add new amenities, it’s exciting that all six properties saw year-over-year increases in May. We congratulate them on an excellent month and we’re looking forward to their continued success.”