Originally not included in New Jersey’s November 21st Internet gaming trial rollout, the Golden Nugget was approved for a gaming permit late on Thursday.
The Golden Nugget has had its troubles of late. Located next to two of Atlantic City’s most profitable casinos – Harrah’s and the Borgata – the recently rebranded and renovated casino has struggled to find its niche, and its revenues have suffered because of it. But when it was the second casino to receive an iGaming permit from the DGE, things appeared to be looking up – at least temporarily.
Earlier this week, the DGE issued orders to six out of the seven permit holders, recognizing them for successfully completing the testing period. The Golden Nugget was noticeably absent from the list, and was in danger of not being allowed to participate in the soft launch.
The reasoning behind the Nugget’s exclusion was a minor technical problem that according to sources was a non-issue
. The problem: DGE agents had an issue with the way the Nugget formatted one of its reports. Unfortunately, the casino did not have the time to rectify the concern in time to be included on the short list of casinos set to open their sites to pre-selected invitees at 6 p.m.
When asked for a statement, Golden Nugget General Manager Tom Pohlman replied, This is such a minute issue, it’s not even funny
. He displayed confidence that the site would be added to the list by Friday.
In a reversal of fortunes, the issue was fixed sooner than expected. Late on Thursday night, the casino was added to the approved list, much to the fancy of Golden Nugget representatives. It appears as though the casino and poker room will be set to roll-out at the next scheduled starting time of 6 p.m local time on November 22nd.
The Golden Nugget is offering casino table games, slots and poker under its own brand. Bally Technologies is the driving force behind the Nugget’s software.
According to the DGE, the soft opening is a trial period used to “demonstrate to the Division that all systems perform as required under the stress of live gaming and that operational and revenue reporting controls are effective.” The DGE will closely monitor site activity until the full iGaming rollout on November 26th.
