AMERICANWAY
NOVEMBER 15 2008
PHOTOGRAPHBYCHARLESWILKINS
G A M B L I N G
44
C
Considering its “SinCity”nicknameand “Whathappens inVegas stays inVegas” advertising
slogan, it’s not surprising tofind out LasVegas has had a reputation for nefarious happen-
ings, shady characters, and organized crime ever since mobster Bugsy Siegel opened the
FlamingoHotel and createdmodernVegas. So it is extremely ironic that the city is our na-
tion’s sole sanctuary from one of themost regularly broken laws inAmerica— a crime so
commonplace, it is routinely committed by teetotalers and churchgoers, CEOs and grand-
mothers alike. Pitch in $5 to your office Super Bowl pool or buy a horse at amint-julep-
ladenKentuckyDerbypartyand inmost jurisdictions, you’rebreaking the law.Whilecasino
gaminghasmovedbeyondAtlanticCityand
Reno tocities likeDetroitandNewOrleans,
and while you can find plenty of blackjack
and roulette tables at hundreds of Native
American casinos that dot the nation, Ne-
vada remains the only place in the United
Stateswhere betting on sports is legal. This
is the reasonmany people visit Las Vegas,
especially during marquee events like the
Super Bowl, championship fights, and
MarchMadness (theNCAAbasketball tour-
nament).Formore than15years, thousands
of sports fans have come toVegas to see the
action, bet on it, and—whether ornot they
knew it—dobusinesswithRobertWalker.
Like the Wizard of Oz, Walker has long
been the man behind the curtain, but in-
steadof pulling ropes and turningknobs, he
does his magic with a keyboard at a dozen
of the top casinos in town. Since 1996,
Walker has run the sports books at Mirage
Race&SportsBookand, througha seriesof
acquisitions, all MGMMirage Resorts, an
empire that comprises theMGMGrand as
well as awho’swho of Strip casinos, includ-
ing the Bellagio, Treasure Island,Mandalay
Bay, and theMonte Carlo. He is a passion-
ate sports fanwho favors polo shirts to ties
and straight talk to hyperbole. His office,
located just behind the betting windows at
theMirage, is disappointing— it’s adorned
notwithflat-screenTVs and computers but
with his daughter’s crayon drawings. I’m
lucky to even be seeing his office, though,
becauseWalker’s days of playing thewizard
of Vegas are coming to an end: After more
than 22 years in the casino business, he is
retiring in order to spend more time with
his daughter and family. His replacement
Setting theOdds
An inside look at the LasVegas sports books—
and themenwho run them.
By LarryOlmsted
