photo: Russ Rueda
text: DAAguilar

PAGCOR Heritage almost instinctively predicted summer nights to be hotter when they booked the cool voice of Nonoy Zuniga to chill things down a bit.

Rarely are voices as distinct and as pleasant as Nonoy Zuniga.  His soothing voice has the capacity to enthral without trying to take too much attention.  Perfect for those who want to keep on playing while enjoying the entertainment PAGCOR has to offer.

If you’ve been visiting the PAGCOR Entertainment site, you’d notice that Mr. Zuniga has been doing the rounds of the PAGCOR metro branches along with equally top calibre artists both classic and current.  This May is no different.  There is no let up with what’s on stage for PAGCOR patrons, all over the metro, all over the country.
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by: DAAguilar

In a move that reflects PAGCOR’s latest pursuit to introduce variants in gaming and to spur continuous excitement inside the casino areas, PAGCOR Heritage recently unveiled it’s latest gaming area tailored fit to satiate the senses dubbed as, “The Heritage Boutique Casino (THBC)”. The latest playing field for gaming afficionados was launched last Dec 18, 2009 in line with Heritage’s 15th year anniversary. The quaint yet roomy boutique casino boasts a rainbow of 86 slot machines, 10 gaming tables and 3 fine dining restaurants for that complete ultra-sensory overload appealing to players as part of a wave that is the current trend in gaming.

THBC also showcased a unique parade of female dealers with their couture designed uniforms, created by renowned designer Eddie Badeo.

The launch was graced by PAGCOR visionaries Chairman, Efraim C. Genuino, COO Rafael “Butch” Francisco and Senator Richard Gordon who cut the ribbon during the opening ceremonies. The festivities were attended by various VIPs, local celebrities and supported by a great number of PAGCOR notable personalities spearheaded by PAGCOR-Heritage GM Jose L. Tulio as cocktails were served on the house all night long.

Eye candy entertainment was provided by a Belarusian group called the “Dream Girls” and capped off by a full concert set by Ms. Vina Morales who led a sing-along to which the Chairman gamely played along during a number Ms. Morales’ string of standard hits.

Iya Villania gave card-dealing a try the Guest Celebrity Dealer for that night. This is a running marketing hit of PAGCOR Heritage for the past few weeks, featuring female celebrities as croupiers for Baccarat held at it’s VIP room as an “invitation only” event for the high-stake players.

As a measure of it’s fast paced, snowballing success, THBC is now operating 24/7 from the 16 hour daily operation during its soft opening.

Do come, visit and experience THBC, for that distinct pleasure only PAGCOR can provide!

Held twice every month, the VIP Invitational Celebrity Dealing of PAGCOR Heritage has been a crowd-drawer. With the enticing slogan “Come Play with me”, who wouldn’t want to try their luck at the
gaming tables when sexy and famous showbiz stars are there to lead the way?

Last November 20, 2009, two up-and-coming celebrities tried their hands in dealing at the Private Gaming Room of PAGCOR Heritage. The beautiful ladies acted as Croupier – the one distributing the cards,
while the PAGCOR Heritage dealers were in charge of the payoffs – the ones who pay or collect the bets.

Princess Ryan,a fresh face in the ABS-CBN sitcom ‘Banana Split’, was taught by the pit managers how to deal for less than an hour. She never thought she would learn the game that fast knowing that there were a lot of rules to follow. When a Korean player opened her table, she was nervous at first.

“I had no knowledge about cards, my friends taught me poker, only to discover that I was dealing at a baccarat table. I did not expect there were hitting rules. I survived, thanks to the real PAGCOR
dealers who watched me and guided me all the way,” she said.

Pau Diaz, a regular guest in ‘Wowowee’ and ‘Showtime,’ revealed she played in the casinos more than five times already, and this made her familiar with baccarat. She was briefed only for thirty minutes and she already knew the methods in dealing.

While waiting for her first customers, Pau graciously posed with some fans who wanted to have a picture taken with her.

The stars were also given their tip boxes and counted their tips at the end of their duty. These made them very excited and made them feel like a dealer in real life.

According to Princess Ryan, being a dealer is not far from being an actress. “In show business, actors have to wait in the set for their assigned scene. When you are dealing, you will also have to wait in
your table until someone comes and requests the table to be opened,” she observed.

On December 08, 2009, sultry stars Andrea Del Rosario and Bianca King will take their turns to be the celebrity dealers of PAGCOR-Heritage. Watch out for it!