Treasure Island became under new ownership Friday morning. After months of a pending sale, Kansas billionaire Phil Ruffin was to take over the newly purchased property. The Nevada Gaming Commission approved Ruffin’s purchase of Treasure Island Thursday. Ruffin was to pay USD 600 million in cash by midnight and take possession of the former MGM Mirage property in the early hours of Friday morning.

Kansas businessman Phil Ruffin says he expects few changes among the employees of Treasure Island on the Las Vegas Strip after his USD 775 million purchase. Ruffin says he plans to keep management at the casino-hotel intact, as well as its Cirque du Soleil and pirate shows. He also says the move won’t affect the resort’s 3,200 employees, including their seniority, benefits and retirement. Ruffin, who bought the casino from MGM Mirage in a deal announced earlier this month...

Phil Ruffin's nearly 10-year run as a casino magnate on the Strip is officially over. He signed the final papers Aug. 7, selling the 34.5-acre New Frontier property for USD 1.24 billion, according to the Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, his hometown newspaper. Ruffin paid USD 167 million for the property in October 1997. His purchase brought to an end four months later what had been a bitter six-year labor strike.

It has been a tumultuous nine years for New Frontier owner Phil Ruffin. The Kansas billionaire who now calls Las Vegas home says he's close to selling his casino and its valuable land to Israeli-based real estate investment group Elad Properties in a deal Ruffin said would bring him more than USD 1 billion. "In real estate the deal's not done until the money changes hands, but it is a fantastic deal," Ruffin said.