Miami Pelotari's New Hope

They don't really care about being ambassadors of Basque cuture, their sight is on the money, show them the money.

It seems like for some pelotaris in Florida there is no need to worry about how to line their pockets for the next few years, a casino from Las Vegas just injected some moola into the operation of their Jai Alai venue.

Here you have the note that appeared at the Sun Sentinel:

Jai-Alai players hope sale of Dania facility will salvage sport

By Dave Joseph
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Posted June 1 2006

DANIA -- When Pedro Irusta came to the United Startes from Spain as a 16-year-old to begin his jai-alai career, the frontons were full and the future was bright.

But the man jai-alai patrons at Dania Jai-Alai know simply as "Iru," has watched the sport "go down, down, down."

"When I came here there were 20 frontons [in North America]," said Irusta before his matches Wednesday evening. "Now there's, what, five? And only two are open all year."

For Irusta, Wednesday's news that Dania Jai-Alai had been purchased by Boyd Gaming Corporation for $152.5 million offered a glimmer of hope for a fading sport he so dearly loves.

"To see the sport going down and now to see a little window of [opportunity] open ... it makes everyone happy," said Irusta, 35, who also serves as president of the players' union.

Added Jose Ramon Oyarbide, another Dania player, "This is a great opportunity for the possible revival of jai-alai."

Once a popular sport in the southeast and northeast, jai-alai has struggled the past 15 years because of the expansion of other forms of gaming. Florida, which once played host to 10 frontons, has only six left, and only Miami and Dania remain open year round. Three frontons in Connecticut and one in Rhode Island all have closed.

"Even in the Basque country [of Spain] there's less people playing because they don't have the prospect of playing in America," Oyarbide said.

That's why the purchase of Dania is important, according to Irusta.

"Maybe young people will see the light," he said.

Officials from Boyd Gaming met with the players early Wednesday evening and reiterated to them their interest in maintaining the fronton at Dania even when 1,500 slot machines are placed inside Boyd's new gaming and entertainment complex sometime in 2007-08.

"They said jai-alai would be part of the showcase of their facility," Oyarbide said. "They said they're going to stick with jai-alai."

Players, who currently make between $40,000 and $65,000 a year, agreed to a new contract with the owners of Dania that allows them a $15,000 to $20,000 bonus at the end of the year. That figure would escalate, according to Irusta, depending on the growth of jai-alai and revenue once slots are installed.

"If the company makes more, we make more," Oyarbide said. "We've been making the same amount of money for the past 10 years, and we've gone along with that because we knew the place wasn't going forward.

"But it's about more than money."

Added Irusta, "Our main concern is saving the sport."

That's also the goal of Riki Lasa, president of the International Jai-Alai Players Association. Lasa would like to have more assurances from Boyd Gaming of their support of jai-alai through additional legislation.

Under gaming rules passed by legislators for the four Broward County pari-mutuels able to operate 1,500 slot machines, Dania must run 150 live dates.

The fronton currently operates nearly 400 performances.

"As soon as the state of Florida gets a taste of the money slot machines generates, we'll [jai-alai] will disappear," Lasa said. "The exact same thing will happen in Florida that happened in Rhode Island."

Lasa was referring to the fronton at Newport, R.I., which operated for 27 years but closed in 2003 when it paid a higher tax rate to the state in exchange for more gaming and a permanent end to running a fronton.

"Anytime a casino comes in, jai-alai disappears," Lasa added.

Oyarbide was a little more optimistic.

"I don't think the other pari-mutuels will allow that," he said. "There were no other pari-mutuels [in Rhode Island]."

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