Of all the encouraging figures in the most recent New Jersey gaming revenue report, perhaps the most eye-catching was the number 1,908,742. That was the revenue, in dollars, generated by the live sportsbook at Ocean Resort Casino in November, good for No. 1 by a healthy margin among Atlantic City casinos — more than doubling runner-up Borgata.
Ocean has a tough act to follow, but not in the traditional sense of a predecessor setting a high standard. Quite the opposite. Revel Atlantic City occupied that same space at the end of the Boardwalk for 29 inglorious months from 2012-2014, going down as one of the biggest all-time financial failures in casino history. It set a precedent that had many in the industry expecting Ocean to fail from the moment it re-opened with its new ownership, new management, and new name in June 2018.