Golden Nugget Review

Golden Nugget Sportsbook Review

Golden Nugget Sportsbook has a strong foundation after being purchased by DraftKings early in 2022 – and sports bettors can only hope that key changes will follow

Golden Nugget has forged a positive longstanding reputation in the casino and gaming industry, allowing it to transition into the sports betting space seamlessly. But the sportsbook lags well behind the casino product, offering a limited selection of sports and boasting an interface that is in need of a facelift.

Here's a look at Golden Nugget's mobile sportsbook offering, and why experienced bettors are more likely than beginner wagerers to favor this site.

Golden Nugget Quick Facts

Golden Nugget Locations

The Golden Nugget Sportsbook is live in the following states:

• Arizona
• Michigan
• Nevada
• New Jersey
• Virginia
• West Virginia

While the Golden Nugget sportsbook website says more state options are "coming soon," it isn't clear when this expansion will take place.

Sports Leagues to Bet On

Golden Nugget offers wagering on standard North American sports leagues and events. It also provides markets for niche sporting events like Aussie Rules, darts, cricket, rugby, and various soccer leagues throughout Europe and South America. 

The Golden Nugget betting menu is satisfactory, but not overly impressive for either casual or secondary market bettors.

NFL Betting

Golden Nugget offers a standard range of betting options for NFL wagers, including conference, divisional, and Super Bowl futures, moneylines, spreads, totals, in-game wagers, and player props each Sunday during the season. You won't find the sheer volume of markets here of sites like FanDuel or Caesars, though it does provide a decent number of player props.

NBA Betting

Golden Nugget features moneyline, spread, and total plays for every scheduled NBA game. You can also wager on teasers, quarterly or halftime options, player props, and various alternative spreads and totals. The vig on both standard and secondary markets is in line with the industry standard, but Golden Nugget doesn't quite match the elite sportsbooks with player props.

College Football

Golden Nugget has moneyline, spread, and total plays for most college football games on any given Saturday, along with various futures markets for the National Championship, conferences, and divisions. There's nothing remarkable about Golden Nugget's presence in the NCAA football sphere, though the odds for most markets are quite competitive.

College Basketball

Golden Nugget has players covered when it comes to NCAA basketball betting, carrying all the traditional markets throughout the regular season and conference tournaments. You'll find more options when the action ramps up for March Madness. As with its NCAA football coverage, Golden Nugget does a solid job of covering off most relevant markets with strong odds.

NHL Betting

Golden Nugget offers a standard NHL betting menu. In addition to moneyline, puckline, and total plays, bettors have access to team and player props, along with period-specific betting markets and futures. The player prop markets are scarce, which will disappoint more casual players, but Golden Nugget does well to match the industry leaders from a quality of odds perspective.

MLB Betting

Golden Nugget offers comprehensive MLB markets. Apart from your standard moneyline, spread, and totals, bettors can wager on player props, futures, and first-five game props. The story here is the same: The vig for both standard and secondary markets is reasonable, but you won't get nearly as many player props here as you will at books like Barstool or PointsBet.

Other Sports Leagues

Golden Nugget also offers betting markets for snooker, rugby union, darts, and table tennis. Considering the shared technology, most of the markets you find at DraftKings should be available at Golden Nugget.

Online Betting Experience

Golden Nugget offers a mobile betting app for iPhone and Android and a website accessible on laptops and desktop computers.

Website Experience

The black-and-gold color scheme is consistent with the Golden Nugget umbrella brand – but there's a lot of room for improvement here. 

Upon entering the desktop site, you will find the top ribbon filled with promotional offers that take up plenty of real estate. Combined with a wide Betslip or "Featured Golden Lines" menu on the right-hand side of the screen (depending on which state you're in), bettors have a lot of clutter to deal with right from the start.

The "Featured Golden Lines" section is particularly distracting, inundating players with a flood of information that dominates the right edge of the screen and could seem overwhelming to a new customer. 

Fortunately, things get better from here. Tucked below the scrolling ad banner is a navigation bar consisting of the most popular sports leagues available to bet on. One nice aspect of this is that it allows you to find games for each respective league for the next week-plus and a "later" and "future" icon to find events weeks or months out.

I'm also a fan of the menu option on the far-right of the screen which allows players to toggle between features like "My Feed", "My Account" and "My Support", among others. It's a nice alternative to having to scramble for these options at other sites, which prioritize putting them either in the top right or the very bottom of their screens.

Still, though the Golden Nugget website has numerous useful functions, its suboptimal design makes for a less enjoyable experience compared with the industry leaders, especially for bettors who generally prefer something less "busy".

Mobile Betting and Betting App

The mobile app is available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play – and in most cases, it provides a better user experience than the website. 

The app is less cluttered and easier on the eyes visually. The top ribbon makes it easy to find the events for each day, and the "A-Z Sports" icon allows users to browse the available leagues to wager on.

The Betslip feature is neat and organized, allowing users to quickly track live and settled wagers. The InPlay and Trending features make it easy to make a live bet or join the crowd in that day's most popular bets. 

Overall, the Golden Nugget Sportsbook app is a pleasing experience but lacks the more modern design and interface elements that other competitors offer.

Live Betting

Upon entering the website and app, the live betting markets are the first option displayed on the page. An icon also brings you directly to the page dedicated solely to live betting.

This is a welcome design element for live betting enthusiasts who need and want instant access to get the best line available.

Casino, Poker, & Other Gaming Options

Golden Nugget offers iGaming in Michigan and New Jersey – and it's clear from the scope of its offerings that it prioritizes the casino side of the business.

Players have access to more than 550 different gaming options online, with Golden Nugget throwing in the added wrinkle of providing star ratings out of five for every slot machine (why more sites don't do this is a minor mystery.)

Players also have access to a wide variety of live and non-live table games, including blackjack, roulette, baccarat and video poker. There are even a couple of scratch ticket options for players who love the thrill of an instant scratch-off win.

Golden Nugget's casino offering is among the top tier in the country, which isn't a surprise when you consider its decades-long presence as a U.S. gaming institution.

Golden Nugget History

The Golden Nugget brand was founded in 1946 in Las Vegas, Nev. It began as a standalone casino and, over time, evolved into a world-class brand and experience. 

Though sports betting was always permitted in Las Vegas, the Golden Nugget couldn't offer online sports wagering until PASPA was repealed. Beginning in 2018, Golden Nugget started offering sports betting in New Jersey and soon followed suit in other respective states. 

The Golden Nugget gaming brand was acquired by DraftKings early in 2022, allowing the franchise to leverage the DFS giant's SBTech sportsbook technology. 

Today, Golden Nugget operates in six states with a plan for further growth in the future.

Customer Ratings & Reputation

The Golden Nugget Sportsbook app has an unimpressive 3.3-star rating on the App Store and plenty of lackluster customer reviews overall. Select complaints surround its poor user interface and isolated customer service issues (which I did not encounter).

Customer Service

The customer service at Golden Nugget is strong overall. Users can contact the sportsbook via email, phone, or 24/7 live chat.

Customer service agents are friendly, responsive, and more than willing to answer questions.

Wait times for phone and email are lengthier than the Live Chat function, so we recommend reaching out via chat for a prompt resolution.

Golden Nugget Contact

• Email: support@goldennuggetcasino.com
• Phone: 855-873-1010
• 24/7 Live Chat

Golden Nugget Legal Betting

Golden Nugget Sportsbook is regulated by the Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Virginia and West Virginia gaming commissions:

• Arizona Department of Gambling
• Michigan Gaming Control Board
• Nevada Gaming Commission
• New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement
• Virginia Lottery
• West Virginia Lottery

Responsible Gambling

The legal age for sports betting in most states is 21+. This is subject to regional regulation. Please play responsibly. Golden Nugget complies with the rules laid down by the respective gaming commissions in the states where it operates.

Here are a few resources to help ensure you are gambling responsibly.

• National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG): The NCPG has over 50 years of experience assisting people and families affected by problem gambling. You can call or text them (1-800-522-4700) or join their 24/7 Live Chat.
• Center for Problem Gambling: The Center has been funded by the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) since 1996. They are committed to serving anyone affected by a gambling addiction. Treatment is confidential and provided regardless of a person’s ability to pay. Their gambling counselors have significant experience working with problem gambling and include therapists who are Nationally Certified Gambling Counselors.
• BeGambleAware.org: Offers free, confidential help and support to anyone worried about gambling for themselves or others.
• Gambling Therapy: A global service provided by Gordon Moody offering free emotional support and advice to anyone affected by gambling.

Why Choose Golden Nugget?

Golden Nugget Sportsbook provides a decent sports betting experience, which makes it a suitable option for those looking to add a sportsbook to their portfolio.

While the quality of odds holds up and the casino is impressive, there are concerns surrounding the design and poor user interface and the menu of available betting markets is average.

That said, Golden Nugget's customer service is solid, and the sportsbook offers many deposit and withdrawal options, which is beneficial for customers. It also offers a great sign-up bonus and other promotions worth scooping.

Overall, Golden Nugget is a solid sportsbook despite its deficiencies – but those expecting an experience similar to the industry leaders will be disappointed.