Station Casinos is one of the strongest sports betting providers in the city. Every year, they offer the $100,000 Handicappers Challenge, which has an entry fee of just $25 (good for the entire season). You can enter the contest at any Station Casino in Las Vegas (there are several locations scattered around town). Palace Station has been very pro-sports betting from its inception, with free seminars and handicapping forums for gamblers. This is one of the few casinos in the city that offers this perk to gamblers.

Palace Station, which started many years ago as a bingo hall and grew into a large casino-hotel, is located right off the main highway, on Sahara Blvd. It's less than a mile from the Vegas Strip, but is very much a "locals" casino. While it does get a steady stream of tourists, the sportsbook is largely comprised of local residents.

On a typical night, you are likely to sit with perhaps 20-30 other sports gamblers, most of whom have bets ranging from $10 to $50 on the game. The sportsbook is very informal and gets lots of blue collar gamblers. You are very likely to hear lots of bad beat stories, shouts of the F-word, and get lectured by the resident "experts" who will always let any stranger know they have the winning side. There is also a clique of steady losers who hang out here (I see them every time I come in -- perhaps they live here). If you take it all in stride, this can be a fun experience. If you get annoyed by such chatter or by profanity, you are advised to avoid this place and stay on The Strip. Many of the locals smoke, and there seems to be a steady stream of second-hand smoke that always drifts to the right side of the room. So, if you don’t like smoke, sit on the left side of the room.

There are roughly a dozen television sets scattered across an overhead bank. The is no giant television screen in here -- but it's not really necessary because everything is in close proximity. Visibility is good as there is not a bad seat in the room. I can see and read any graphic that's posted on the screen, even from the rear seats. All of the seats are the "school desk" type, with the cup holder and desk on the side.

The tote boards here are excellent and provide lots of useful information. This is one of the few sportsbooks in the city that keeps all of the lines up continuously (including halftime lines, which are NOT posted in many sportsbooks -- they are simply announced over the loudspeaker elsewhere). This makes it easier to review numbers and scores as they come in. All of the scoring is done with a felt-tip maker on a white background. The record-keeping here is excellent, as is the service and helpfulness of the staff. Standing in line is rarely a problem. The longest I ever had to wait was maybe two minutes after a Monday Night game.

Cocktail service here is excellent and efficient. Most times, you can order and get a drink very quickly. The waitresses rarely ask for a comp ticket (some books require a ticket that shows you are a paying customer to keep out the riff-raff). I have been asked for a ticket perhaps a quarter of the time.

There is a Poker Room about 20 feet away. One minor annoyance is the slot area which is right adjacent to the rear of the sportsbook. Another is the location of the nearest restroom, which requires you to take an escalator upstairs. If you get bothered by slot noise, sit closer to the front but get used to hearing the clankity-clank of the video crack addicts. I've never had a problem getting a seat in this room. It's friendly, convenient (parking is literally right outside the side door), and a good place to watch a game.

ATMOSPHERE: B

COMFORT: C

TV SCREENS: B-

STAFF: A

COMMITTED TO SPORTS GAMBLING: A

OVERALL: B+