Hard Rock Casino records highest monthly earnings ever in March

Data released Wednesday by the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) show Hard Rock in March tallied more "win," or revenue after paying successful bettors, than any of the 11 other commercial casinos in the state for a 18th consecutive month.

Hard Rock recorded $39.7 million in win last month — a 3% increase compared with its March 2022 win of $38.5 million. It's the first time since March 2018 any Indiana casino came close to cracking $40 million in monthly win, records show.

The Gary entertainment destination also accounted for nearly 18% of the state's $224.7 million in total casino win for the third month of 2023.

Matt Schuffert, president of Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana, credited new slot options and a strong entertainment lineup for boosting the fortunes of Hard Rock over the other Region casinos on a year-over-year basis.

"I am very pleased with our March results, posting nearly $40 million in win, about 3% higher than March 2022. The slot side of our business continues to lead that growth, despite the Northwest Indiana gaming market performing poorly in March as a whole, compared to 2022," Schuffert said.

"As a true entertainment destination, Hard Rock continues to focus on providing quality experiences across the board, from headline entertainment, award-winning food and beverage available seven days a week, and the best gaming experience in Chicagoland," he added.

Hard Rock's state-leading slot machine play totaled $290.2 million in March, with a state-best win of $28.5 million, compared to March 2022 slot win of $26.2 million on $268.6 million in play.

The Gary casino also led the state for March table game play, primarily baccarat, with $58.8 million, and was tops in table win at $11.2 million.

To put that in perspective, considerably more money was wagered at Hard Rock table games in March than the tables at Indiana's five Ohio River casinos and the French Lick Casino combined ($50.3 million), records show.

According to the IGC, the state's former earnings leader, Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, last month ranked third in the state behind its Horseshoe Indianapolis sister property with $29.2 million in win — down 15.2% from its March 2022 win of $34.4 million.

Monthly win at Ameristar Casino in East Chicago fell 9.1% to $18.2 million for March compared with $20 million for the same month in the prior year.

Meanwhile, last month's win at Blue Chip Casino, in Michigan City, totaled $11.5 million versus $12.8 million last March, a decrease of 10%, according to the IGC.

The NCAA men's and women's college basketball tournaments seem not to have inspired Hoosiers to up their sports wagering in March.

The statewide online and retail handle was $433 million last month, compared with $476.8 million in March 2022. The all-time record is $500.1 million from January 2022.

In total, Indiana in March collected $69.9 million in tax revenue from slot machine and table game play, and $4.1 million from settled sports wagers, according to the IGC.

By Dan Carden