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Leroy's Horse & Sports Place
Leroy's Horse & Sports Place, also known as Leroy's Race and Sport Book or simply Leroy's, was an operator of sports books in Nevada. As of 2012, it had 72 race and sports books and kiosks. It was based in Las Vegas. Leroy's parent company, American Wagering, was purchased by British bookmaker William Hill in 2012, and its locations were rebranded under the William Hill name.
In 1978, businessman Leroy Merillat bought a sportsbook in a strip mall in Downtown Las Vegas, and named it "Leroy's" after himself. The following year, Nevada gaming regulators found Merillat unsuitable for licensing because of questions about the propriety of a land deal in California, and he was forced to sell the business. Merillat sold the operation to his son-in-law, Vic Salerno, in 1979.
Nevada sportsbooks at the time were predominantly independent operations, rarely found in casinos. Around 1983, the popularity of sportsbooks began to boom and they started to become more common in casinos. Salerno developed one of the first computerized sportsbook management systems to make his operation more efficient and able to compete with the large casinos.
In 1984, Salerno and two partners formed CBS Computer Systems to market their system to other sportsbook operators. The company, which shared the building with Leroy's, was soon providing systems to almost all of Las Vegas's bookmakers. They sold CBS in 1989 to United Tote for $3.5 million.
In June 1989, Nevada law was changed to allow outside operators for casino sportsbooks, and Leroy's quickly took advantage of the new law by beginning to open branches in casinos. By 1992, Leroy's was the only independent sportsbook in the state, and had branches operating in 30 casinos.
Leroy's was placed under a holding company, American Wagering, Inc. (AWI), and made its initial public offering in May 1996. Leroy's had 35 locations at the time. The funds raised in the IPO were used to complete the purchase of a 150-room Howard Johnson's hotel and casino near the Las Vegas Strip, which the company planned to remodel as a sports-themed resort.
In October 1996, AWI bought CBS back from Autotote Corp. for $3 million, and renamed it as Computerized Bookmaking Systems.
AWI agreed in April 1997 to buy Imagineering Systems, a maker of keno systems, for $3 million, but canceled the deal in September 1997, deciding instead to build a progressive keno system in-house. Imagineering sued AWI for breach of contract, and was eventually awarded $1.2 million. Meanwhile, AWI launched The Game, a keno offering with progressive jackpots linked to multiple casinos, in August 1999. The company closed its keno operations in 2002.
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Leroy's Horse & Sports Place
Leroy's Horse & Sports Place, also known as Leroy's Race and Sport Book or simply Leroy's, was an operator of sports books in Nevada. As of 2012, it had 72 race and sports books and kiosks. It was based in Las Vegas. Leroy's parent company, American Wagering, was purchased by British bookmaker William Hill in 2012, and its locations were rebranded under the William Hill name.
In 1978, businessman Leroy Merillat bought a sportsbook in a strip mall in Downtown Las Vegas, and named it "Leroy's" after himself. The following year, Nevada gaming regulators found Merillat unsuitable for licensing because of questions about the propriety of a land deal in California, and he was forced to sell the business. Merillat sold the operation to his son-in-law, Vic Salerno, in 1979.
Nevada sportsbooks at the time were predominantly independent operations, rarely found in casinos. Around 1983, the popularity of sportsbooks began to boom and they started to become more common in casinos. Salerno developed one of the first computerized sportsbook management systems to make his operation more efficient and able to compete with the large casinos.
In 1984, Salerno and two partners formed CBS Computer Systems to market their system to other sportsbook operators. The company, which shared the building with Leroy's, was soon providing systems to almost all of Las Vegas's bookmakers. They sold CBS in 1989 to United Tote for $3.5 million.
In June 1989, Nevada law was changed to allow outside operators for casino sportsbooks, and Leroy's quickly took advantage of the new law by beginning to open branches in casinos. By 1992, Leroy's was the only independent sportsbook in the state, and had branches operating in 30 casinos.
Leroy's was placed under a holding company, American Wagering, Inc. (AWI), and made its initial public offering in May 1996. Leroy's had 35 locations at the time. The funds raised in the IPO were used to complete the purchase of a 150-room Howard Johnson's hotel and casino near the Las Vegas Strip, which the company planned to remodel as a sports-themed resort.
In October 1996, AWI bought CBS back from Autotote Corp. for $3 million, and renamed it as Computerized Bookmaking Systems.
AWI agreed in April 1997 to buy Imagineering Systems, a maker of keno systems, for $3 million, but canceled the deal in September 1997, deciding instead to build a progressive keno system in-house. Imagineering sued AWI for breach of contract, and was eventually awarded $1.2 million. Meanwhile, AWI launched The Game, a keno offering with progressive jackpots linked to multiple casinos, in August 1999. The company closed its keno operations in 2002.