EXHIBIT 99.1
NEWS RELEASE
LAKES ENTERTAINMENT, INC.
130 CHESHIRE LANE
[LAKES ENTERTAINMENT, INC. LOGO] MINNETONKA, MN 55305
952-449-9092
952-449-9353 (fax)
WWW.LAKESENTERTAINMENT.COM
TRADED: NASDAQ "LACO"
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Timothy J. Cope 952-449-7030
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
MARTIN DEKNIJFF WINS $2.7 MILLION IN WORLD POKER TOUR
CHAMPIONSHIP, LARGEST FIRST PRIZE EVER PAID IN TOURNAMENT POKER
MINNEAPOLIS, APRIL 27, 2004 -- On the final episode of its second season, the
WORLD POKER TOUR (WPT) awarded $2,728,356 to Martin Deknijff of Stockholm,
Sweden, the winner of its WPT Championship tournament at Bellagio in Las Vegas.
The total was the largest prize ever paid to a single individual place finisher
in a televised poker tournament or North American sporting event. Deknijff
outlasted 342 poker players in a tournament that will air on The Travel Channel
on June 30.
"This is a dream come true. To win the World Poker Tour Championship and the
biggest tournament ever in poker...it is just overwhelming," said the
32-year-old Deknijff, who stated his first post-tournament act would be to wake
up his seven-year-old son Robin and tell him the news. Deknijff has made his
living combining sports betting, poker and professional bridge since he
graduated high school in Sweden. He has recently moved to Las Vegas.
The top 50 players in the WPT Championship each earned a share in the $8,342,000
prize pool, the most ever for a poker tournament. The buy-in was $25,300, the
largest poker tournament entry fee to date.
Coming into the final table were Dekenijff, who was the chip leader; Matt Matros
of Bronxville, NY; Richard Grijalva of Las Vegas; Hassan Habib of Downey, CA;
Russell Rosenblum of Bethesda, MD and Steve Brecher of Reno, NV.
Poker pro Habib walked away with $1,372,223; Matt Matros, a grad student at
Sarah Lawrence College took home $706,903; Grijalva claimed $457,408; Rosenblum
won $332,660 and earned Brecher $232,862.
The $2.7 million to the victor was more than double the $1,011,886 prize money
paid to the winner for the inaugural World Poker Tour Championship, which aired
last year on The Travel Channel.
(more)
"We are truly excited about having hosted the record-breaking 2004 World Poker
Tour Championship and Five Star World Poker Tour Classic at Bellagio," said Doug
Dalton, director of poker operations at Bellagio. "This was another successful
tournament and we look forward to hosting additional WPT events in the near
future, including the 2005 WPT Championship."
World Poker Tour, LLC is a media and entertainment company principally engaged
in a development, production and marketing of gaming-themed televised
programming, the licensing and sale of branded products and the sale of
corporate sponsorships.
The World Poker Tour is a joint venture between Steven Lipscomb and Lakes
Entertainment, Inc., which owns approximately 80% of WPT. Lakes currently has
development and management agreements with four separate Tribes for four new
casino operations, one in Michigan, two in California and one with the Nipmuc
Nation on the East Coast. In addition, Lakes Entertainment has agreements for
the development of one additional casino on Indian-owned land in California
through a joint venture with MRD Gaming, which is currently being disputed by
the Tribe. Lakes Entertainment, Inc. common shares are traded on the Nasdaq
National Market under the trading symbol "LACO".
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The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor"
for forward-looking statements. Certain information included in this press
release (as well as information included in oral statements or other written
statements made or to be made by Lakes Entertainment, Inc.) contains statements
that are forward-looking, such as statements relating to plan for future
expansion and other business development activities as well as other capital
spending, financing sources and the effects of regulation (including gaming and
tax regulation) and competition. Such forward-looking information involves
important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect anticipated
results in the future and, accordingly, such results may differ from those
expressed in any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the Company.
These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, possible delays
in completion of Lakes' casino projects, including various regulatory approvals
and numerous other conditions which must be satisfied before completion of these
projects; possible termination or adverse modification of management contracts;
continued indemnification obligations to Grand Casinos; highly competitive
industry; possible changes in regulations; reliance on continued positive
relationships with Indian tribes and repayment of amounts owed to Lakes by
Indian tribes; possible need for future financing to meet Lakes' expansion
goals; risks of entry into new businesses; and reliance on Lakes' management.
For more information, review the Company's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
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