"Donald Trump's gambling empire took a big hit yesterday after his bid to open one of Philadelphia's first two slot-machine parlors was rejected.

Pennsylvania's gambling regulators instead handed out licenses to Chicago billionaire Neil Bluhm and Connecticut's Mashantucket Pequot tribe, which owns Foxwoods.

After failing to get a piece of the action in the City of Brotherly Love, shares of Trump's casino company, Trump Entertainment Resorts, tumbled 13 percent yesterday, costing The Donald millions in paper losses.

The stock closed down $3.02 on the Nasdaq at $19.78, in its biggest selloff since the company came out of bankruptcy protection in May 2005.

"They made their decision and nobody from Atlantic City was chosen," Trump told The Post. "They felt Philadelphia was too close to Atlantic City. That's what I was told."

The licenses were granted nearly two and a half years after Pennsylvania passed a law legalizing one-armed bandits, seeking to generate revenue from new sources so that property taxes could be cut.

Philadelphia is expected to become the No. 3 gaming town in the U.S. after Las Vegas and Atlantic City. It could be big competition for Trump and other Atlantic City gaming operators.

Two slot parlors are slated for Philadelphia. They are projected to generate $1 billion each a year in revenue and draw crowds in the millions.

Trump sounded undeterred by yesterday's loss.

"It was a risky deal because the tax rate was ridiculously high," he said.

When asked whether Trump Entertainment has other casino deals in the works, Trump replied, "Call me in two weeks.""