Pechanga Resort & Casino in Riverside County, California has been named first in a USA Today readers’ poll of best casinos in the United States.
The casino was selected from a list of 1,500 casinos. According to Tony Harrell, one of those who conducted the poll, some of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas didn’t make the cut because they are diversifying, rather than concentrating on being the best casino.
“In the meantime, a lot of smaller casinos are focusing on their reason to be – friendly places to go to with reasonable prices and reasonable odds,” he told the Press Enterprise.
The casino has 3,400 slots, 130 gaming tables, a 43-table poker room and a 700-seat bingo hall.
The other casinos named in the top 10 were (from the top), Pechanga Resort & Casino – Temecula, California, Mohegan Sun – Uncasville, Connecticut, Foxwoods Resort Casino – Mashantucket, Connecticut, L’Auberge Casino Resort – Lake Charles, Louisiana, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Biloxi – Biloxi, Mississippi, Harrah’s Resort Southern California – Valley Center, California, Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa – Atlantic City, Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa – Las Vegas, French Lick Resort – French Lick, Indiana and Thunder Valley Casino Resort – Lincoln, California.
Voting was conducted on the 10Best.com website between May 25—June 22.
Patrick Murphy, president of the Pechanga Development Corp., told the Press Enterprise, “For me personally, it all goes back to when we started this thing and what we set out to be, to be the best in California, if not the United States.”
Pechanga will soon celebrate its 20th anniversary. It opened in July 2995 with 135 employees and now has 4,300. Currently it is in the midst of planning a $285 million hotel expansion, which will add 568 rooms.
It plans to celebrate the designation by giving away $100,000 in a slots tournament.
