Sep 9, 2019 | Breaking News, Gaming, General News
Awards include 13 first place honors in gaming, hotel and guest services
WILKES-BARRE, PA (September 9, 2019) – Casino Player Magazine, America’s #1 Gaming Publication, recently released their 2019 Best of Gaming Awards, and Mohegan Sun Pocono placed in 21 different categories – including 13 #1 rankings. First place awards include, “Best Hotel”, “Best VIP Services”, “Best Poker Tournaments”, “Best Roulette”, “Best High Limit Room” and more. Other notable acknowledgements include second and third place wins in categories, “Best Overall Gaming Resort”, “Favorite Casino to Vacation At”, “Best Hosts” and Best Blackjack”.
“To receive recognition by Casino Player Magazine in over 20 categories is an honor, and a true testament of our team’s hard work,” said David Parfrey, Vice President of Marketing at Mohegan Sun Pocono. “We are dedicated to continuing to provide an award-winning experience to our guests, with some exciting updates to come in the near future.”
Mohegan Sun Pocono is one of the biggest gaming destinations in Pennsylvania, with an 82,000 square-foot gaming floor featuring a luxurious high-limit slot room, private player’s lounge, over 70 table games, more than 2,300 slot machines and an all-new Sportsbook venue set to open fall 2019. In addition to a renowned gaming experience, guests can experience first-class pampering during a hotel stay at Mohegan Sun Pocono. The seven-story hotel features an indoor pool, fitness center, a porte-cochere and for those who really desire the VIP treatment, Spa Sapphire. Named “Best Spa” by Casino Player Magazine, Spa Sapphire promises a luxury spa experience along with state-of-the-art salon services. Advanced technicians and specialists provide a variety of services including massages, facials, manicures, pedicures, hair and makeup services, as well as a full men’s salon, couples’ suite, sauna, and more.
For a full list of awards won by Mohegan Sun Pocono, visit the Casino Player Magazine website.
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN POCONO
Mohegan Sun Pocono, owned by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, was the first destination to bring gaming to Pennsylvania in 2006 and since then has become one of the premier entertainment, gaming, shopping, and dining destinations in the state. Situated on 400 acres in Plains, Pennsylvania, Mohegan Sun Pocono features a 238-room hotel with on-site spa and adjacent 20,000 square-foot Convention Center. It is currently home to 82,000 square feet of gaming space including over 80 live table games, 2,300 slot machines and electronic table games, a variety of dining and shopping options, nightlife, entertainment and live harness racing. Mohegan Sun Pocono is within easy access of New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Delaware. More information is available by calling 1.888.WIN.IN.PA (1.888.946.4672) or visiting our website. Connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram, download our app and view us on YouTube.
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Sep 7, 2019 | Racing
The top pointearners in the eight divisions of Pennsylvania Stallion Series, a class just below the Sire Stakes program, will be meeting during a Monday twilight card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono to contest $40,000 Championship races.
Perhaps the most interesting entrant in the Stallion Series Championships is the three-year-old Muscle Massive colt Kate’s Massive, who will attempt to become only the third Stallion Series Championship winner at two to repeat at three, behind trotting filly Migisi (2010-11) and pacing colt Nimble And Quick (2015-16). Kate’s Massive made a break in his first StS start of 2018, then won two prelims before taking the final; this year he won all three of the prelims he entered and should be favored from post seven in race nine. In the companion filly event, race seven, Spring In Paris recorded three wins and a second in the prelims and figures the horse to beat from post four.
Among the sophomore pacers, race thirteen’s colt event had only two two-time StS prelim winners, Under Paid and Skip To My Lou, and figures to be a wide-open contest. In contrast, the pacing fillies, gathered in race eight, had five distaffs who posted two Stallion Series winners, including JK Mardi Says, who was victorious the only two times she entered the prelims.
Turning to the two-year-olds: the one hope that a Stallion Series horse would win in all four preliminaries, the pacing colt Captain Groovy, had that dream brought to a halt last time when he was beaten by a half-length. The Captain still figures as one of the sixth race favorites, along with the streaking Lake Charles, three-for-three in the prelims. Among that gait’s distaffs, in race four, the two standouts are Aplomp Hanover and Arden Hanover, both of whom won three preliminaries – and was beaten by the other in the fourth.
In the baby trotting races, Town Victor has three Stallion Series victories and 5-of-7 so far in his young career; he is likely to be favored over good youngsters Saxon and Stickler Hanover. The StS Championship for baby trotting fillies is race three, where five misses notched two preliminary wins, including three who won in both their prelim appearances: Heart N Soul Deo, Next Level Stuff, and Caviart Guilia.
The eight Stallion Series Championships will share the Monday spotlight at Pocono with the three $100,000 Great Northeast Open Series Championships for mare pacers, open trotters, and open pacers, in that order, all to be conducted at 1¼ miles. Horsemen with GNOS Championship entrants are reminded that there is a six-hour detention situation from scheduled post time, with post time for the first event, the mare pace, listed at 6:42 p.m. Contact the racing office for further information.
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Sep 5, 2019 | Racing
August 31-September 6, 2019
The past week’s racing at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono was highlighted by a mandatory Rainbow Pick 5 payout, which awarded winning tickets at over $1,200 a pop Sunday night. It will be fun to see how high the Rainbow rises as it starts up again and rolls through the rest of the season at Pocono. As usual, we saw some outstanding performances over the past four racing programs, and we highlight the best of those now by handing out the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: TEXICAN N
This 11-year-old gelding has been a stalwart performer throughout his career. In fact, he’s not that far off from having a million dollars in purse money. Where once he was a top Open and condition performer, these days he plies his trade in the claiming ranks and recently has found the old fastball for trainer Brittany Robertson. After a few near-misses, Texican N scored a win in a $20,000 to $25,000 claiming handicap on August 17, utilizing a pocket trip for the 1:51:2 score.
On Saturday night, Texican N was back at it against the same claiming class, this time leaving from post position #3 and doing so as the 2-1 favorite. Texican N left early for the lead, but then watched as Beach Memories moved past him on the first turn. In the previous start, the gelding sat in the pocket behind Beach Memories and prevailed late. But this time around, driver Matt Kakaley urged the veteran on for a quick retake of the lead on the front stretch.
The move seemed to take the stuffing out of Beach Memories, who wasn’t a threat from there. Texican N had to deal with other horses in the field making a late play, but he was up to the challenge. He ended up coming home a winner by 1 ¾ lengths over King Harvest in a sharp winning time of 1:50:4. And, with the win on Saturday night, he proved that he could still dominate the proceedings rather than just relying on a trip to win.
Other top pacers this week include: Torrid Bromac N (Pat Berry, Traci Berry), who won his second straight $15,000 claimer on Saturday night and fourth out of five overall in 1:51; Daamericansky (Marcus Miller, Mark Silva), who rolled to his second condition win in his last three races on Sunday and did so in a new career-best time of 1:49:3; and Lady Dela Renta A (Anthony Napolitano, Jose Godinez), who moved up in class for her second straight win at Pocono on Tuesday night, this time capturing the night’s featured condition pace for mares in a new career-best time of 1:49:2.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: SATIN DANCER
Winning a Sunday night featured trot at Pocono these days is quite an accomplishment. It doesn’t seem to matter the condition or the purse; the field always seemed to be stacked from inside to outside with top competitors, making it like a gauntlet for anyone brave enough to tackle it. This past Sunday night’s edition, a condition with a purse of $17,500, was no different. Moving up in class to face a group like that is a tough task, but that’s just what Satin Dancer was undertaking.
The five-year-old mare trained by Travis Alexander was coming off a victory in her previous start at Pocono at the $14,000 level in 1:54:3. In the Sunday night tilt she was the 4-1 fourth choice on the board, leaving from post position #4 in a field of eight. And, as in her previous start, she left in a hurry, grabbing the lead after a brief speed duel with 2-1 favorite Two AM. From there, driver Dexter Dunn was able to rate the pace favorably because no first-over challenger came along to speed his horse up.
As they hit the top of the stretch, only Two AM was still hanging around with a chance to derail the mare. But she closed out the mile as powerfully as she began it, keeping Two AM at bay to win it by a length as the only distaff horse in the entire field. Not only did Satin Dancer conquer the feature with her second straight win, but she also did it in 1:53, which matched her career-best mile in the process.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Lionbacker Kidd (Marcus Miller, Bucky Angle Jr.), who picked up his second straight condition win on Sunday night, scoring in 1:55:3; Broadway Mojo (George Napolitano Jr., Brandon Presto), who followed up a win at the Meadows with a claiming handicap victory at Pocono on Sunday night in 1:55:1; and Amador (Marcus Miller, Joseph King), whose upset win at Pocono in a condition trot on Sunday night in 1:54:2 gave him two straight victories, with the previous one coming at Harrah’s at Philadelphia.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: MACH WEST
Despite a romping win at Tioga in his previous start, this pacer driven by Anthony Napolitano got away at 33-1 in a condition on Sunday night and won it to pay off $68.80 on a $2-win ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ANDY MILLER
Miller had a blast on the Labor Day card, coming up with winners in four of the day’s dozen races, cashing in with a favorite every time.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: JULIE MILLER
You might have guessed from above that Monday was also a big day for Julie, as she went a perfect four-for-four on the day with her trainees.
That will do it for this week at Pocono, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Sep 5, 2019 | Racing
A world record for 1¼ miles on a 5/8-mile track was broken in last year’s inaugural edition of the Great Northeast Open Series (GNOS) Championships, and this coming Monday at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, the world record at both gaits for the elongated distance, twice around the Pocono 5/8-mile oval, may be in jeopardy in this season’s three $100,000 Championships.
It was Homicide Hunter who lowered the record on the trot to 2:22.2 in winning his GNOS Championship, and the World’s Fastest Trotter returns to Pocono Monday for trainer Ron Burke and Crawford Farms Racing. The gelded son of Mr Cantab starts from post six in a field of seven in the eleventh race, with David Miller driving. 2019 has not been as kind to the Homicide Hunter as last year, when he went 1:48.4 at Lexington to become the fastest-ever at his gait, but the veteran does have a GNOS victory and looked good against lesser foes last time out, so he may be on a bounceback.
The horse to beat in the GNOS starts just outside of him, and is a stablemate – 2017 Horse of the Year Hannelore Hanover, owned by Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Frank Baldachino, and J&T Silva Stables, and to be driven by Yannick Gingras. The daughter of Swan For All has won half of her eight seasonal starts, has beaten 1:51 twice, and was undefeated in two GNOS starts, including setting a Philly track record of 1:52 in winning the final prelim.
The pacing record for 1¼ miles is 2:19.4 (it is not kept separate by sex), and it appears to be under greater threat from the open pacers division, race twelve. The field is replete with high-percentage winners, one being Highalator (post seven, trainer Jenny Bier, driver Richard Still), 11-for-23 in 2019, who won three GNOS prelims, including last week’s, and is the year’s co-fastest horse on a 5/8-mile track over the mile in 1:48. A fellow three-time GNOS winner is None Bettor A (post eight, trainer Andrew Harris, driver George Napolitano Jr. listed), who is 10-for-14 this season, won nine in a row earlier in the year, and controlled a good Open field at Yonkers last time out.
Add in Backstreet Hanover, who lost a five-race winning streak last time out, and Prairie Panther, each of them a winner in half of their twenty seasonal starts, and you have many fast horses who know the way to get to the winners circle – it should be fascinating to see which one in the full field of nine will be able to work out the winning trip.
The #1-ranked harness horse, pacing mare Shartin N, is sticking to her intermittent racing pattern, so she is not in the mare pacing Championship (a race where she had a rough trip and faded last year). One distaff who will not regret her absence is the Bettor’s Delight mare Caviart Ally, who is having an excellent season in the shadow of the superstar – in fact, Caviart Ally has not lost a race that Shartin N did not win since “Ally”’s seasonal debut on April 30. She has given Shartin N some notable battles, and she may be in controlling position from post two in the tenth race field of seven for driver Andrew McCarthy, trainer Brett Pelling, and Caviart Farms.
Eclipse Me N, the horse who beat Caviart Ally in her 2019 bow, is still going strong over four months later, and she’ll have the “home field advantage” Monday in that she is trained by Rene Allard, leading trainer at Pocono; Rene’s brother Simon will be driving from post three.
In addition to these three outstanding races for the more seasoned performers, the Monday card will also feature eight $40,000 Championship events for Pennsylvania Stallion Series high preliminary pointwinners. Those races will be featured in a separate release.
Post time for the first of fourteen races at Pocono on Monday is 4 p.m.
Aug 29, 2019 | Community Relations, General News, Keystone Grand Ballroom, Special Events, Sports
Largest NEPA cornhole tournament of the year takes place Saturday, October 5th in the Keystone Grand Ballroom
WHAT: NEPA Cornhole is back at Mohegan Sun Pocono with their biggest event of the year! At Corntoberfest, cornhole teams of all skill levels can toss their way to a minimum of $5,000 in guaranteed payouts.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday, October 5th
Keystone Grand Ballroom
Backyard/Social Divisions
Registration: 11:00am
Tournament Begins: 12:30pm
Competitive/Advanced Divisions
Registration: 1:00pm
Tournament Begins: 2:30pm
IN DETAIL: Guests can take part in one of the biggest Cornhole Tournaments in the region when NEPA Cornhole returns to Mohegan Sun Pocono for Corntoberfest! With four different divisions, any skill level can play and win, from beginners to the most experienced. With $5,000 in guaranteed prizes, plus skill challenges and side games to take home extra winnings, this is one event cornhole competitors won’t want to miss!
NEPA Cornhole will be running the tournament on all professional regulation boards. American Cornhole League rules will be followed. For more information, visit nepacornhole.com.
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN POCONO
Mohegan Sun Pocono, owned by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, was the first destination to bring gaming to Pennsylvania in 2006 and since then has become one of the premier entertainment, gaming, shopping, and dining destinations in the state. Situated on 400 acres in Plains, Pennsylvania, Mohegan Sun Pocono features a 238-room hotel with on-site spa and adjacent 20,000 square-foot Convention Center. It is currently home to 82,000 square feet of gaming space including over 80 live table games, 2,300 slot machines and electronic table games, a variety of dining and shopping options, nightlife, entertainment and live harness racing. Mohegan Sun Pocono is within easy access of New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Delaware. More information is available by calling 1.888.WIN.IN.PA (1.888.946.4672) or visiting our website. Connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram, download our app and view us on YouTube.
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