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LAS VEGAS (Associated Press) — Nevada gambling revenue was down more than 2 percent in April compared with last year, in part due to a quirk in how the state counts slot revenue.
The state's casinos won $876 million in April, the Nevada Gaming Control Board reported on Thursday. Las Vegas Strip gambling revenue was down almost 2 percent to $491 million last month, and downtown Las Vegas winnings were down 13 percent to $43 million.
The drop came even though it was an eventful month in Las Vegas that included the debut of the T-Mobile Arena, Rihanna and Bill Joel concerts and a fight featuring Manny Pacquiao.
Reno casino revenue was up almost 19 percent to $50 million, while South Lake Tahoe revenue fell 12 percent to $13 million in April.
The year-over-year drop comes in part because April 2015 was a strong comparison year, and in part because an estimated $30 million in slot revenue from April will actually be counted in May. April ended on a Saturday, and casinos don't count slot revenue on the weekends to avoid disturbing activity on the casino floor during a busy time, according to control board analyst Michael Lawton.
Slot machine revenue was down about 5 percent last month. The amount wagered went up about 4 percent to $9.1 billion in April, but casinos kept 6.2 percent of that — a smaller fraction compared with last year.
Winnings in the "tables and games" category rose more than 4 percent in April, thanks to a strong showing for baccarat. Nevada casinos brought in about $105 million from baccarat, or about 10 percent more than the same time last year, even though bettors wagered less on the game.
"The reason why baccarat increased was the casinos ran pretty lucky last month," Lawton said.
The state collected $44 million in tax money based off the April winnings, which is down 18 percent from the same time last year.
