BLYN — After a months-long long wait, Our Cedars Sportsbook at 7 Cedars Casino in Blyn opens at 11 a.m. Thursday.
Longtime 7 Cedars Casino Manager Bill Matsko will cut the ribbon and Howard “Scooter” Chapman, longtime sportscaster who retired in 2022, will place the first bet at the casino at 270756 U.S. Highway 101 east of Sequim.
“This is the first legal bet in Clallam County ever,” said Casino CEO Jerry Allen.
“This event is going into the time capsule that will be opened in 50 or 100 years.”
Allen said the casino is preparing for the Seahawks game on Saturday.
“This is a quiet opening because there’s nothing on Thursday. We are hoping for a soft opening so that by Saturday we’ve found out any bugs and we can take those bets,” Allen continued.
The Seahawks playing Saturday was “a lucky marriage,” Allen said.
“It’s almost a grand opening. We should have a good number of people. We’ve always promoted Seahawk Sundays and now we have Seahawks Saturday.”
The Seattle Seahawks Wild Card Weekend playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers begins at 1:30 p.m. Saturday on Fox Sports.
Matsko was a part of the casino when it opened in 1995. He returned after working in Palm Springs, Allen said.
“He’s a Vegas guy. He has the face and the personality,” Allen added.
“People like to see a friendly face, and Bill will be one of our greatest assets.”
The 7 Cedars Rainforest Bar and an adjacent performance stage were removed to make room for Cedars Sports, which will include sportsbook-style theater seating and two 21- and 22-foot TV screens.
Six self-service sports betting kiosks will be available to bettors in the casino and hotel.
“We added those two big screens,” Allen said. “We need to keep up with the times and the changes.
“We’re glad to be able to do it.”
The sportsbook originally was slated to open Aug. 1.
“Our partner Pen National had a relationship with the people who supply the odds. They were changing providers and they needed some time to get it all worked out,” Allen said.
“It was big-picture stuff, and it really delayed the whole thing.
“But, as I tell people, we are here for the long run not the short run,” he said.
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Reporter Brian Gawley can be reached at brian.gawley@soundpublishing.com.
