One of the largest mergers in gambling history has presented Chicago's Pritzker family the opportunity to take control of Elgin's Grand Victoria Casino.

If MGM Mirage gets the OK this summer to buy Mandalay Resort Group's interests, which include the Grand Victoria, the Pritzkers could take over the casino's day-to-day operations.

Mandalay and the Pritzkers' Hyatt Gaming Management Inc. each own half the casino.

A clause in the ownership contract between the two gives one partner the option of taking over the riverboat's daily operations if the other sells its interest in the casino.

And with Hyatt Gaming now gaining ground in the gambling industry, the move could prove beneficial, said a Pritzker family spokesman.

Since 1994, when the Hyatt Development Corp. bought half of the casino with Circus Circus, now known as Mandalay, Mandalay has run the casino's day-to-day operations.

But since Hyatt's first venture into the casino world - the deal on the Grand Victoria - the company has bought casinos around the United States and in South America and the Caribbean.

"Certainly Hyatt manages casinos all over the world and are ready to step in," the spokesman said. "That's contingent on the gaming board."

Some analysts wouldn't be surprised if Hyatt also goes after MGM's portion of Mandalay's ownership.

"Illinois still remains one of the largest gaming markets in the country and it would make natural sense for Hyatt to take full control of the asset," said Marc Falcone, a gaming industry analyst for Deutsche Bank Securities in New York. "The Grand Victoria is not a core asset to MGM, so it doesn't surprise us that they would have an interest in selling at the right price."

Having a single operator in control of the property ultimately may yield higher returns to the market and the property, Falcone said.

MGM Mirage is focused on closing the $7.9billion deal for Mandalay before it considers who will oversee the Elgin casino's management or whether it will sell its portion to Hyatt, said Alan Feldman, MGM spokesman.

"I'm not aware of any other discussion going on right now," Feldman said. "All we're doing right now is taking the necessary steps to affect the purchase of Mandalay's interest.

"If the Pritzkers are interested, they know how to reach us."