The boutique casino would feature several gaming tables and cater for about 200 people.

Shamrock Hotel owner Jim Hogan said a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision to ban pokies at one of his other hotels had forced him to reconsider his investments.

Mr Hogan lost a five-year battle to install electronic gaming machines in the Romsey Hotel on Thursday following strong opposition from residents of the small town.

He said the $5 million he planned to spend on the venue would now be invested at the Shamrock Hotel and the Wallan Hotel.

“I’m going to apply for a casino licence for the hotel,” Mr Hogan said.

“This will draw people from Melbourne and all over Australia.

“It will be a big drawcard for Bendigo.

“It’s not going to be a big casino, but it will certainly mesh well with the current direction of Bendigo tourism.”

Mr Hogan said the casino would be modelled on intimate European casinos.

He said Crown Casino would lose exclusive rights as Victoria’s only casino in the next two years.

Mr Hogan did not rule out a High Court challenge to VCAT’s verdict regarding the Romsey Hotel. He will meet with his legal team on Monday.

“Myself, the lawyers and everyone else in the industry was certainly surprised with the judgement,” Mr Hogan said.

“It’s a test case and it certainly changes the landscape for gaming.

“It extends to planning as well as gaming, it really has far-reaching ramifications.

“I wouldn’t expect to see any new venues popping up for a while.

“But it just means that I’ve now got money available to spend on my other venues.”