[clevfan]

Sports bettors line up in Windsor

BY MARGARITA BAUZA
DETROIT FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

September 9, 2006

WINDSOR -- Construction worker Steve Dunlop got up Friday morning with one thing on his mind: sports betting.

And he was first in line at Legends, the new sports lounge at Casino Windsor. It opened Friday with much fanfare and media attention from around the region. The lounge is part of a $360-million expansion at the casino.

"That's the only reason I have to be here today -- checking out the sports betting," Dunlop said.

It's the first sports betting lounge easily accessible to Detroiters. The other closest one opened in Niagara Falls, Ontario, last year. In the United States, sports betting is legal only in Nevada.

Dozens of curious bettors lined up outside the lounge's doors before 4 p.m., wanting the first peek at the lounge, which featured U.S. Open tennis matches and golf and baseball games on 36 high-definition televisions.

Customers made beelines for the bar and restaurant seating areas, ordering drinks and such bar fare as nachos, burgers, calamari and onion rings. They also watched games and placed bets at the far end of the dim room.

Dunlop, who plays Texas Hold 'Em and frequents Detroit and Windsor casinos, said he had stopped visiting Windsor because of the provincial smoking ban. "I really like to smoke when I'm gambling," he said, adding that he wasn't sure he'd return.

Bill Johnson, 48, of Toledo made the 45-minute trip Windsor to place some bets on college football games. "This is a new thing for me," said Johnson, who manages a golf course.

"I bet you they do so well; they will have to expand soon."

Casino Windsor could use the lift. This summer, it had to lay off 329 workers as it saw its revenue plummet 17%, in part due to the smoking ban.

Ernest Dex, 78, of Milwaukee stopped in to bet on the Green Bay Packers. He left his girlfriend Della, 79, at the slot machines, played blackjack, where he won $500 and then made his way to the sports lounge.

He and his sons visit Las Vegas three to four times a year to place sports bets. But even with that option, he probably will make more frequent stops at Casino Windsor to place bets on pro football.

"I'm a gambler," said Dex, who will be in Windsor for two weeks. "It makes my heart beat fast."