Feb. was good month to gamble in Nevada

April 10

The figures are in, not only was January a decent month for gamblers in Nevada, but February proved a good month, too. Make no mistake here folks - the casinos still made tons of money, jusy modest amounts according to other months.

More specific, casinos reported a measly 3.8% gain compared to February 2004.

According to state Gaming Control Board reports, the amount of money gamblers made in February stretched to $909.5 million. $765.8 million of these winnings came from casinos in the Vegas area.

As always, research analysts claim the gamblers were simply luck in the month of February.

Does the Chinese New Year, which takes place that month, have anything to do with it? Casinos won a reported $58.4 million in baccarat, 9.9 % up. But there was $754 million played, mostly during Chinese New Year and the casinos state they held 7.7% of the play as opposed to the usual anticipated 19.5%.

That being said, analysts believe that if the casinos encountered their anticipated hold percentage on the games, the statewide casino win would have been up more than 9% instead of the 3.8%.

Considering that last year's February had an extra day due to leap year the percentages are good. Also, that extra leap day fell on a weekend day, so this years February is actually a strong number if you think about it.