But it was Elgin's riverboat casino, which had a total of 225,829 visitors during October 2002, who lost an average of $142 per visit. The Elgin casino also posted the highest adjusted gross revenue per square foot of any other casino in Illinois in the amount of $1,075 followed by Harrah's $635 figure.

Also according to the Illinois Gaming Board the new wagering and admission tax rates of $3 went in to effect in this past July and is shared by the state and local governments on a 2-1 ratio. As a result, the state of Illinois collected more than $60.5 million from the new tax in October of this year from nine casino gambling centers. Local governments collected only $8.7 million.

The board's monthly report also reflects that seven of the nine riverboat casinos in Illinois saw a drop in admission during October, ranging from .05 percent to more than seven percent. Only East Peoria and Alton realized an increase in the number of admissions with a rise of 3.66 percent and 5.24 percent, respectively.

Total year to date revenue among all of the casinos for adjusted gross receipts is down almost $13.5 million from last year's more than $1.5 billion.

There were still more tables (168) playing blackjack than any other game during October. Poker was the only game of chance excluded from the board's report because it is a competition between patrons and the table AGR (adjusted gross receipts) is not relevant.