igamingbusiness . com
FEATURE
MGM RESORTS CEO BILL HORNBUCKLE ’ S VIEW FROM THE TOP
Bill Hornbuckle has come a long way from his beginnings as a busboy to the boardroom at the Bellagio , writes Robin Harrison . The MGM Resorts CEO has made it to the top , living through an unprecedented evolution that now sees sports coming to Las Vegas
M
GM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle is in a reflective mood . “ About four months ago I was sitting at Spago , on the balcony having dinner with my wife looking across at the Jockey Club ,” he says . “ There were very few lights on , but it ’ s still going .”
It ’ s a perfect illustration of where Hornbuckle started , and how it ’ s going . He started his career as a busboy in the Jockey Club after moving to Las Vegas from Connecticut .
The Jockey Club opened in 1974 and , with about 1,500 timeshare owners , it ’ s unlikely to disappear from the landscape . But its surroundings would be unrecognisable for anyone present at its opening . The casinos are still there . But gambling isn ’ t the only attraction today . These days crowds flock to Vegas for football , F1 and , soon , Major League Baseball as the Oakland A ’ s prepare to relocate . That ’ s if they ’ re not in town for fine dining or clubbing .
“ I didn ’ t grow up in a great environment in terms of economic profile . I was not the world ’ s best student . I can assure you my high school principal would not have thought me to be the most likely to succeed in the class ”
And as chief executive of the Bellagio ’ s owner MGM Resorts , getting a table at a restaurant like Spago probably isn ’ t much of a problem these days .
HORNBUCKLE ’ S JOURNEY
Going from bussing tables at a timeshare to running the company behind some of the world ’ s most renowned integrated resorts is a heck of a journey . Hornbuckle admits he ’ s amazed at how far he ’ s come .
“ I didn ’ t grow up in a great environment in terms of economic profile ,” he says . “ I was not the world ’ s best student . I can assure you my high school principal would not have thought me to be the most likely to succeed in the class .”
It was working as a bartender at 18 , in his native Connecticut , that set him on his way . “ I loved the social aspect of the job . There was a bit of a craft to it .” That , thanks to a halftime ad for a hotel school in Vegas during a UNLV Rebels game , set him on the way to his current role .
“ It was a long shot but I think passion and hard work drove me on ,” he says . “ In the industry in the late 70s and early 80s , most of my graduating
54 • ISSUE 135 • ICE LONDON 2024