AUSTRALIA'S richest man, James Packer, walked out of Sydney's Star City's high-rollers' room at the weekend in protest after the casino refused to provide credit to his friend.
Croupiers and other staff in the high-stakes Endeavour Room were amazed when management refused a $20,000 line of credit to the gaming mogul's friend, despite Mr Packer's offer to guarantee the sum, sources said.
By 9.30pm (AEST), the two men had left.
They were playing the "big bac" - baccarat - the game loved by Mr Packer's late father, Kerry, who was such a big gambler at Star City that he even had his own personal chips marked with KP.
Kerry Packer's betting - and tipping - was the stuff of legend as a "whale" or one of the world's biggest gamblers in industry-speak.
He was rumoured to have once won 20 consecutive hands of baccarat in 20 minutes at $250,000 a hand in Las Vegas.
But while his son controls a growing gambling empire spanning Australia and Britain and with deals progressing in China and Russia, little is known about James Packer's deals on the casino floor itself.
Mr Packer and his friend turned up unannounced at Star City on Saturday evening and were admitted into the invitation-only Endeavour Room.
"The staff were excited. They thought they were in for a big night," said a witness.
But Mr Packer's friend was losing heavily on the cards and sought a $20,000 line of credit to continue.
Mr Packer, executive chairman of PBL, which owns Crown casino in Melbourne and Perth's Burswood Casino, offered to go guarantor for the loan but it was rejected by management.
"The croupiers went out of their way to try to help and the staff couldn't believe the management's decision. James and his friend walked out in protest," said the witness.
A spokesman for Star City said the casino was prohibited by law from providing credit to any customer.
"Patrons can apply to set up a cheque-cashing facility but there are some procedures and paperwork," the spokesman said.
source : News.com.au
