Pokies in Clutha: Venues and Gaming Machines
At the end of June 2026, 8 venues in Clutha held licences for 52 gaming machines (pokies), according to the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA). A year earlier the district had 8 venues and 52 machines, the same number of venues. Below is every licensed pokie venue in Clutha, with its address, venue type and number of machines, followed by what players lost on those machines.
Pokie venues in Clutha
| Venue and address | Type | Machines |
|---|---|---|
| Rosebank Lodge 265 Clyde Street, Balclutha 9230 | Hotel | 10 |
| South Otago Town & Country Club 1 Yarmouth Street, Balclutha 9230 | Workingmen’s Club | 7 |
| The Crescent Bar & Grill Clyde Terrace, Kaitangata, Otago 9200 | Tavern | 3 |
| Coaches & Horses Inn 7 Ross Place, Lawrence, Otago 9153 | Tavern | 6 |
| White Horse Inn 147 Union Street, Milton, Otago 9250 | Tavern | 12 |
| Catlins Inn 21 Ryley Street, Owaka 9535 | Hotel | 4 |
| Forest Lodge Hotel 31 Northumberland Street, Tapanui 9522 | Hotel | 5 |
| Lake Waihola Tavern 29 Greenwich Street, Waihola, Outram 9073 | Tavern | 5 |
Venues by suburb or town: Balclutha (2), Owaka (1), Lawrence (1), Tapanui (1), Waihola (1), Kaitangata (1), Milton (1). The largest is White Horse Inn with 12 machines. 1 of the 8 venues is a club (RSA, sports, cosmopolitan or similar); the rest are pubs, hotels, TAB venues and other commercial premises. The Gambling Act 2003 caps a pub or club at 18 machines, and venues first licensed after 17 October 2001 at 9 unless the Minister approved more.
How much players lose on pokies in Clutha
Players in Clutha lost $530,821 on pub and club pokies in the April-June 2026 quarter, up 12.2% on $473,231 in April-June 2025. Over the four quarters to June 2026 the total was $1.9 million (up 0.1% on the previous four quarters). Across New Zealand the figure for the same quarter was $267.1 million, so Clutha accounted for 0.2% of national pokie losses outside casinos.
| Quarter | Gaming machine profits |
|---|---|
| Jul-Sep 2024 | $508,266 |
| Oct-Dec 2024 | $452,761 |
| Jan-Mar 2025 | $427,762 |
| Apr-Jun 2025 | $473,231 |
| Jul-Sep 2025 | $441,455 |
| Oct-Dec 2025 | $400,073 |
| Jan-Mar 2026 | $491,271 |
| Apr-Jun 2026 | $530,821 |
Who runs the machines and where the money goes
Pokies in pubs and clubs are class 4 gambling. Only a corporate society, such as a community trust or a club, can hold the licence, and the profit after tax and costs must go to authorised purposes such as community grants. In Clutha the main licence holders are The Trusts Community Foundation Limited (6), Pub Charity Limited (1), South Otago Town & Country Club Inc (1).
More pokie venues in Otago
Dunedin (24) · Queenstown Lakes (4) · Central Otago (9) · Waitaki (11) · All of New Zealand
Before you play
If gambling is costing more than you planned, the Gambling Helpline is free and open 24/7 on 0800 654 655 or by free text to 8006. Under section 310 of the Gambling Act 2003 a venue manager must, when you ask, issue an exclusion order that bars you from the gambling area of that venue for up to 2 years. More options are on our gambling help page.
Prefer to play from home? Our online pokies guide explains how online pokies differ from pub machines, and our gambling law page covers what is legal in New Zealand.
Source: Department of Internal Affairs, Quarterly List of Venues and Gaming Machines (June 2026) and Class 4 Gambling Expenditure by Quarter and District, published on data.govt.nz. Gaming machine profits (GMP) are the amounts players put into the machines minus the prizes paid out, before tax and grants. Opening hours are not part of the DIA data; check with the venue.