Will Desert Diamond Casino Tucson open a sportsbook?

Arizona recently approved House Bill 2772, which legalizes fantasy sports and sports betting in Arizona. An amended Tribal-State Gaming Compact will allow casinos to launch retail sportsbooks and increase the number of gambling machines on their premises.

The Tohono O’odham Nation had its representatives at the signing. Although it still hasn’t published plans to form partnerships with a sports betting company, such a move appears likely in the coming months, especially for its Tucson facility, which is one of its top venues.

Slots & table games at Desert Diamond Casino Tucson

Visitors at Desert Diamond Casino & Hotel in Tucson, AZ can expect to find the following slots and table games on offer:

Slot machines

The floor at Desert Diamond Casino Tucson is packed with over 1,000 multi-denomination slot machines from a variety of game companies, such as IGT, AGS, Aristocrat, and SG. The casino adds new slots monthly, many of which boast progressive jackpots, where potential payouts can reach the millions.

At the 2015 Best of Gaming Native Southwest Awards, the casino took home 11 trophies. One of them was the Best Slot Tournaments Award, which solidified the casino’s position as one of the premier slot destinations in the state. Here are some of the most popular titles at the casino:

• Treasure Ball - Treasure Ball is one of Konami’s most successful progressive jackpot slots, with a distinctly Asian theme. It runs on the provider’s Concerto Opus cabinet and operates on a 5×3 grid. Its popularity lies in the random feature, where a dragon ignites the prize wheel that will then spin and land on different symbols. If it lands on a number, it will activate the Treasure Ball feature, and the corresponding number of prizes, including instant cash rewards and progressive jackpots, will roll out of the machine.
• Fortune Coin - Another Asian-themed slot, only this time, it comes from IGT. The game plays on five reels with three rows of symbols, and it boasts 243 ways to form a winning combo. While it is a rather simple game, it has a couple of bonus features that include four different jackpots, free spins with prize multipliers, and many other bonuses that can keep both novice and veteran players entertained.
• Olympus Strikes - The story of the ancient Greek gods of Olympus is a popular one in the slots industry, and AGS’s Olympus Strikes is one of the most widely available versions. It features five reels and 243 ways to win, thanks to AGS’ PowerXStream format. There are four jackpots in the game, which randomly activate by a flash of lightning. In addition, the flaming torches, which are the game’s scatters, will trigger a free spins bonus game that you can play on a special grid. There will be up to 1,024 ways to win, depending on the free spins format you choose.
• 88 Fortunes Diamond - This is another successful title from the 88 Fortunes series from Scientific Games. It is a three-reel and 27-ways slot that features a free spins bonus game and a Fu Bat jackpot, where players who match three Fu Babies symbols can win one of the four progressive jackpots. What’s more, even the base game has its own special features. The multipliers feature randomly triggers and can multiply the winning combo up to 88 times.
• Mega Meltdown — Mega Meltdown is a classic slot with bars, 7s, and other symbols that bring back the good old days of casino games. The game’s main feature is the six-tier progressive jackpot, which triggers when the Mega symbol lands on the first reel and is a part of the winning combo when the max bet is at play.

Table games

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson in Arizona might be largely focused on slots, but the live table games are far from neglected. Namely, there are over a dozen tables hosting top-quality blackjack, roulette and other table games. In fact, blackjack is so popular at the casino that it has its own room, with higher betting limits and more personal service.

In addition to the usual table games, Desert Diamond Casino Tucson offers keno and bingo rooms in a 300-seat hall, where you can take a shot at prizes such as $30,000 from the VIPickems do-it-yourself games.

The table games library also includes Fortune Pai Gow Poker and Three Card Poker, available under a license from SHFL Entertainment. Heads-up poker is also available.

Desert Diamond poker room

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson boasts an eight-table dedicated poker room, with Texas Hold’em, Omaha Hi-Lo, and mixed games action. There are numerous daily cash games and tournaments, with buy-ins ranging from $2 to $500. Around two tournaments take place every week.

Diamond Rewards loyalty program

Diamond Rewards is a proprietary loyalty program available at all four Desert Diamond Casinos & Entertainment locations. All casino patrons are free to register for the benefits that come from the six-tier program, such as free play, discounts at retail shops, hotel discounts, priority lines, invitations to exclusive events, and access to VIP lounges and services.

The more you play, the faster you can accumulate the reward points, advance to the next level of the program, and receive better prizes. Here’s the complete tier structure, alongside the number of points for each level and some of the benefits:

• Classic - 0 to 499 points (redeemable rewards points, free play, etc.).
• Silver - 500 to 19,999 points (redeemable rewards points, free play, hotel discounts, retail discounts, no check-cashing fees, etc.).
• Gold - 20,000 to 99,999 points (everything from the previous levels plus bigger discounts).
• Diamond - 100,000 to 399,999 points (everything from the previous level plus access to VIP lounges, invitations to events, and even bigger discounts).
• Double Diamond - 400,000 to 999,999 points (everything from the previous level plus bigger bonuses and discounts up to 25%).
• Triple Diamond - 1,000,000 points + (everything from the previous level plus bigger discounts for services at retail stores, the hotel and restaurant).

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson responsible gambling

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson abides by strict responsible gambling policies for the state of Arizona and on the federal level.

Only visitors 21 or older may gain entrance, and all of them are advised to gamble responsibly. If you feel as though your gambling habits are getting out of hand, you can contact hotlines at 1-800-777-7207 or 1-800 NEXT STEP (1-800-639-8783) and receive instructions to help battle problem gambling.

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson history and owners

Desert Diamond Casino Tucson is owned and operated by the Tohono O’odham Nation through Desert Diamond Casinos & Entertainment. The property in Tucson was the first that the tribe established, originally opening in 1993.

A couple of years later, the Tohono O’odham Nation opened similar venues in Why and Sahuarita. The fourth and final one opened in 2015 in Glendale.

In 2007, the original Nogales Highway casino was replaced by a brand new casino and hotel complex, the current Desert Diamond Casino Tucson. The venue employs over 1,200 Native and non-Native American people and generates millions of dollars in tax revenue.