Michael Gaughan (March 24, 1943 in Omaha, Nebraska) is a casino owner and operator in Las Vegas, Nevada. Michael is the son of Jackie Gaughan and was the owner of a NASCAR race team, South Point Racing, for which his son, Brendan Gaughan, used to drive. The team was dissolved at the end of the 2007 season.
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Early on Michael showed his interest in racing when he won the 1966 Mint 400 race. He went on to win other races. His continued interest continues to today with South Point Racing which he founded in 1999 and dissolved in 2007.
After many roles in casinos, including various ownership roles, Michael opened the Barbary Coast Hotel and Casino in March 1979 at a cost of $11.5 million. That casino, on only 4.3 acres (17,000 m2) of land, became the foundation for Coast Casinos.[1]
Michael Gaughan Airport Slots is the name of the slot operations at McCarran International Airport, which is owned by Gaughan.
In 2004, Michael sold Coast Casinos for $1.3 billion to Boyd Gaming. In July 2006, Boyd gaming announced that it was selling the South Coast to Michael for an estimated $576 million. The casino was built at a cost of $600 million.
The South Coast was required to be renamed as a part of the purchase and was renamed to the South Point.
Gaughan was elected to the Gaming Hall of Fame in 2009.[2]
Michael Gaughan has been granted the rights to operate slot concession at McCarran International Airport under the name Michael Gaughan Airport Slots,[3] operating over 1,300 slot machines in all of the airport's terminals.[4] The concession is licensed by the state as Michael J. Gaughan, Airport Slot Concession, Inc.[5]