The upcoming “The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale” will be the first TUF Finale not held at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas since “The Ultimate Fighter 4 Finale” back in November 2006.
The UFC had an exclusive contract to hold their televised TUF Finale events at the Palms, but according to a Sunday report in the Las Vegas Review Journal, UFC President Dana White, who was also one of the Palms’ biggest gamblers, severed all ties with the hotel after they cut his credit line in half.
The TUF 16 Finale, which is headlined with a heavyweight bout between coaches Shane Carwin and Roy Nelson, is scheduled to take place on December 15 and will be held at the former TUF Finale home, the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
In a struggling economy losing a big spender like White, and subsequently the UFC, surely can’t be beneficial for the Palms. Also, White’s “legendary” tipping habits to table dealers and wait staff will certainly be missed:
One of the Palms’ biggest gamblers since it opened 11 years ago, White’s tipping habits were legendary.
“He changed people’s lives,” said one of the sources.
Dealers and wait staff were among the hardest hit by White’s departure. During one two-month hot streak, White tipped dealers more than $100,000, sources confirmed.
“Anytime he came in, we knew it was a big payday,” a Palms employee said.
A regular at N9NE Steakhouse, White routinely ran up dinner tabs of $15,000-$20,000 and tossed in $10,000 tips. That happened three or four or times a week, the sources said.
No explanation was reported on why the Palms cut White’s credit line, but the hotel did come under new management about a year ago.
The UG has an interesting bit of info on the matter:
The piece said White severed ties with the Palms after his credit line was cut in half. UGer CindyO asked White what was behind the story, and it turns out the credit limit was imposed not for losing too much, but for winning too big.
From: CindyO
Member Since: 2/10/06
Posts: 20485I asked DW what happened and he said it was because he kicked their asses by winning BIG a few times within a short period of time so they chopped his limit (he’s aggressive in his bets) in half. This isn’t the first casino that has done this to him and I doubt it’ll be the last.
Cindy