Handing out more comps can benefit players and casino alike, says the new boss of the Meadows Casino in Washington.

“I see the discretionary comp as a tool to introduce customers to other amenities on the property,” says Rod Centers, who became vice president and general manager this month after Pinnacle Entertainment of Las Vegas took over operation of the Washington County casino and racetrack.

Discretionary comps, awarded without regard to the number of points in a player’s club account, have become less common throughout the country as casinos cut costs. Centers, who says he instituted a “comper of the week” award at his previous job as general manager of Pinnacle’s Ameristar in Kansas City, Mo., describes discretionary comps as “deserved but not earned” by the standard calculation of money and time spent gambling. He sees them as a way of selling a casino’s nongaming aspects.

“I look at discretionary comps as a tool not only to strengthen the loyalty and relationship between a casino and the player but also to introduce the player to other offerings within our casino they may have never even tried,” he tells Player’s Advantage in an interview in his office overlooking the harness track.

“What if I comped you to a couple free games at the bowling alley one day? You might go try it. Ever had our pizza? It’s amazing. Discretionary comping gives me and my team a chance to introduce guests to facets of our business they may not even be aware of.”

Cannery Casino Resorts of Las Vegas, which had owned Meadows since its opening in 2007, sold the casino to Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. for $440 million. GLPI then sold the casino operation to Pinnacle Entertainment for $138 million, and Pinnacle agreed to lease the land for an initial rate of $25.5 million a year. The 10-year lease can be renewed for up to 19 additional years.

On Sept. 7, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board approved gaming licenses for Pinnacle executives and agreed to accept a $2.5 million change-of-ownership fee.

Former Meadows GM Sean Sullivan, who has more than 30 years of gaming experience, remains with Pinnacle as vice president of special projects.

Pinnacle operates casinos in more than a dozen states, including Ameristar casinos in Missouri, Indiana, Iowa and Mississippi; Boomtown casinos in Louisiana; and L’Auberge casinos in Louisiana. It also owns the Heartland Poker Tour. Executives told the Gaming Control Board that Meadows will be Pinnacle’s third-largest property in terms of gross gaming revenue.

By April, the Meadows’ Advantage players club will be converted to Pinnacle’s MyChoice club, which will be linked to the company’s other casinos. Centers says mail offers and the benefits of the five-tier MyChoice choice will be “extremely competitive.” Players who achieve the top tier, or Owners Club level, receive 100 shares of Pinnacle stock, and the company pays for a one-year lease on a Mercedes Benz.

Centers, 45, who says he enjoys shooting craps, understands that many players feel casino freebies “are never good enough and you can never overcomp me.” From a casino viewpoint, however, players can be overcomped.

“(At Pinnacle), we have conversations about keeping comping in line, but we’re extremely generous,” he says. “The difference is what we call “in line,” compared with some of our competitors.”

Centers touched on other areas that Pinnacle will address with Meadows:

• Building a multipurpose entertainment venue and conference center.

• Improving the food and beverage offerings. One focus will be the Carvery, which is a cross between a sit-down restaurant and a casino buffet. “A lot of thought needs to go into that,” he says. “I plan to spend lot of time with guests. That’s whose opinion matters.”

• Keeping the slot-machine offerings fresh. The company will install several new slots in the next few weeks and will look at whether the floor area could be arranged more conveniently.

All of that is geared toward getting people into the Meadows rather than the other four casinos nearby or the myriad of other entertainment options available.

“You have some free time; I want you to spend it here,” Centers says. “How do I go about doing that? I make the experience as broad, as enjoyable and magical as I possibly can.”