Dan Nailen
Gonzaga great Robert Sacre placed the first bet at Northern Quest's new sports book at a party Friday night. He took Alabama and the points in the Tide's matchup with Georgia Saturday.
There's a new game in town, and it's one a lot of sports lovers are going to want to know about.
Northern Quest Resort & Casino opened the area's first sports book Saturday, the Turf Club Sports Book, and celebrated the addition to their gaming options with a party Friday night. While guests surveyed the array of TV screens and lounged in some of the really comfortable chairs, former Gonzaga great and Los Angeles Lakers player Robert Sacre was given the honor of placing the first bet. He took Alabama +6.5 in the Crimson Tide's SEC Championship showdown with Georgia.
Sacre will have to wait until Saturday afternoon to find out if he won. Same goes for me for a little NFL parlay I put together for Sunday. Virtually the entire sports world is available for folks who like to bet on football or basketball, UFC fights or horse racing. Right now Northern Quest has a desk set up where employees will process your bets, and there are kiosks located in the building to place bets yourself. Soon, there will also be the ability to bet from your phone via app as long as you're on the casino premises. Digital screens in the Turf Club constantly rotate through the latest odds for a variety of games and matches available for bettors.
Sports betting is new to Washington state, and Kevin Zenishek, Northern Quest's executive director of casino operations, noted in a statement Friday that the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, owners of Northern Quest, weren't alone in guiding sports books into existence. "We were proud to work closely with other tribes across the state as we all found a meaningful way to responsibly bring legal sports betting into Washington." The Spokane Tribe Casino will be opening its sports book soon as well.
Northern Quest's Turf Club retail counter to place bets is open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Saturday-Sunday from 7 a.m.-10 p.m. The electronic kiosks available for betting 24/7 are located in the Turf Club space as well as EPIC sports bar.
