Jay Sarno once said that it doesn’t take any talent to give stuff away. It might not be a coincidence that the Sands is celebrating its closing…by giving stuff away. From the AC Press:
The Sands Casino Hotel will be giving money away on its final night of business. Really, it will.
Lucky gamblers will be showered with more than $200,000 in free cash Friday from progressive slot machines that have not yet paid off their jackpots. The Sands has to dispose of the “unhit” jackpots before the casino closes its doors for good Saturday.
The cash giveaway will be held every half hour between 4 and 8 p.m. Friday, meaning eight people will be chosen as winners. To be eligible, gamblers must insert their Sands player card in any slot machine at least 15 minutes prior to the sweepstakes drawings. A computer will randomly select the winners.
“The sweepstakes is our way of saying thank you to our customers and friends for 26 years of great memories,” Sands President George Toth said.
The Sands, the city’s smallest casino, is being shut down to make way for development of a $1.5 billion megaresort by its new owner, Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. of Las Vegas.
All gaming is scheduled to stop at 6 a.m. Saturday. Hotel guests will be checked out by early afternoon, and the building will be locked that night.
“I expect the hotel guests to be out of here by 12 noon or 1 o’clock,” Toth said. “That will be it.”
New Jersey casino regulators approved a series of security and financial measures last week to ensure the Sands’ orderly closing. Most of the procedures involve confidential internal controls to secure the casino’s chips, markers and other gaming items. The Sands has already stopped issuing credit to gamblers.
Come and get it: Sands to give away free cash on final night
There’s not too much to say about that. I guess that they have to get rid of the money, and this is as good a way as any other. It beats tossing $100 bills off the second floor of the casino, at least in terms of crowd control.