Asian gamblers are betting millions of dollars at Burswood Casino's elite International Room.
According to one croupier, some ? known as "whales" ? gamble a staggering $50 million in a week, or $5 million in a single hour.
The high-rollers often gamble in the smoke-filled elite International Room for 12 hours straight.
The croupier, who cannot be named for fear of being sacked, said the gamblers would arrive in Perth in parties of 10 and be treated to free flights, accommodation, food and drinks as they turned over millions of dollars during two to three-day gambling sprees.
"Many of them are brought in by junket operators from Singapore, Thailand or China," the croupier said.
"They accumulate points depending on how much money they turn over and those points can be used for flights, rooms, golf and meals."
The croupier said baccarat was the game of choice for most "whales" and he had seen some turn over $5 million in an hour.
"The maximum bet is $300,000, but you could bounce backwards and forwards until they stop betting and you could end up with $10 million on one side and $10.3 million on the other," he said.
"We have people come in and turn over $5 million in an hour, or $50 million in a week.
"Some people will bet my mortgage every hand, so inside a minute they have bet my mortgage. If you start thinking of the numbers you'd go crazy."
With casino and media mogul Kerry Packer recently taking control of Burswood, the high-rollers have been welcomed back to WA.
The exclusive International Room has a betting maximum limit of $300,000, but punters regularly turn over more than $2 million.
Most are gold card members who turn over $200,000 in three months, but those who bet more than $2 million are invited to become platinum members ? which opens the door to even more incentives.
Their impact is so big, they can slash casino profits with just a few lucky hands.
Burswood's international business accounts for about a third of its overall revenue, with a reported turnover of $5.5 billion.
And with such high stakes at play, it's expected the Government will soon decide whether a smoking exemption in the International Room will continue, or even be extended to include a second proposed high-roller room.
The croupier called for the State Government to stop the exemptions, which allow smoking in the International Room.
He said Burswood staff feared for their health after years of being exposed to passive smoking.
"They know that the only good level of cigarette smoke is zero. Everybody knows that. We know there is going to be a price to pay," he said.
"But despite all the health issues, they say that because these people have got lots of money we should let them smoke."
Burswood chief executive David Courtney said the casino could pull out of the lucrative high-roller market if smoking was banned in its international rooms.
But the croupier thought Burswood would go ahead with its proposed $23 million high-roller facilities, even if the smoking ban was enforced.
"They've threatened to pull out in the past and they haven't because there is so much money in the international business," he said.
A reported $23 million will be spent on the new international business facilities ? a far cry from three years ago when former Burswood bosses were spooked by some big losses.
In 2002, a handful of wealthy Asian players took Burswood to the cleaners during its baccarat tournament.
Following the massive payout, Burswood decided to play it safe and stripped back its willingness to take big-money bets.
Limits on the tables were reduced from $200,000 to $150,000 and, combined with the impact of the SARS virus, international visitors to the casino slumped.
But the red carpet was laid out agains after Mr Packer's Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd took control of the casino in a $715 million takeover last year.
Mr Packer is renowned for his love of a big punt and one of the first priorities of Burswood's new boss was to again make Burswood a premier high-roller gaming facility.
With Melbourne's Crown Casino and Jupiters Casino at Surfers Paradise, Burswood is considered one of Australia's three high-roller casinos.
Asian-based casinos and cruise ships operating out of Singapore are Burswood's other main rivals.
Burswood pioneered the international commission business market in the late 1980s.
Today, the International Room allows overseas VIP players to bet up to $300,000 on baccarat, mini baccarat, blackjack, roulette and Caribbean Stud.
