Seeing a turf mare as accomplished as Got Stormy in a $75,000 stakes might seem strange, but at a time when only a few racetracks are open, it was a rather logical spot in the mind of trainer and recent U.S. Hall of Fame selection Mark Casse.
Monthly Archives: May 2020
2020 Minimum Purses Dropped for G1 and G2 Stakes
Minimum purse for grade 1 stakes dropped to $250,000, grade 2s dropped to $150,000.
Cuomo Urged to Allow Spectatorless Racing at Belmont
A group of state and local officials from New York City, Long Island, and the Saratoga Springs area is urging New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to let racing resume at Belmont Park by the end of May.
Fonner Park Cuts One Day from Live Meet
Fonner Park, the small track in Grand Isle, Neb., that has seen unprecedented mutuel handle as a result of racing a Monday-Wednesday schedule during the COVID-19 pandemic, has cut one day from its remaining schedule.
New Jersey online gambling soars in April, sports betting slumps
New Jersey’s regulated online gambling revenue soared to a record $80m in April as Atlantic City casinos remained under COVID-19 lockdown.
Figures released Wednesday by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) show the state’s licensed online gambling operators generated combined revenue of just under $80m, a 118.6% gain over the same month last year and nearly $15m better than the previous record set in March 2020.
The online casino vertical was up 114.3% to a record $74.8m while online poker more than tripled year-on-year to $5.15m, manhandling the previous poker record of $3.6m set in March. So if your poker buddy has suddenly relocated the swagger he lost over the past decade or so, you’ll know why. (Don’t worry: it will only last until there’s a vaccine.)
April was the first month in which AC’s casinos were shut for the whole month, whereas in March the casinos remained open for the first couple weeks. And while the online numbers are stellar, remember that they have a long way to go before they make up for the couple hundred million or so that brick-and-mortar gaming traditionally brought in each month.
Churchill Downs Opens for Training
With a steady rain falling at 5:29 a.m. ET May 13, Churchill Downs’ outrider Lee Lockwood spoke on the track radio with the words so many people have been anticipating: “We are open for business. Gap Attendants, you can open the track.”
Four Wheel Drive, Chimney Rock Face Off at Churchill
Six months after running 1-2 in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2T) at Santa Anita Park Nov. 1, Four Wheel Drive and Chimney Rock are rematched in an $84,000 allowance at Churchill Downs May 17.
Blockbuster Return to British Racing Set for June
British racing is planning for a blockbuster return as the first two classics of the season remain scheduled for the first weekend in June within the latest provisional program put forward by the British Horseracing Authority.
Goken Half Brother Impresses in Saint-Cloud Maiden
Hurricane Cloud had one of the strongest pedigrees in the field for the Prix Kashmir II, a one-mile maiden for unraced 3-year-olds at Saint-Cloud May 12, and he lived up to his genetic potential with an impressive victory.
Australian Broodmare Sale Gets Belated Sale Topper
In a private sale, Miss Exfactor (Lot 399) went for AU$280,000 to Aquis Farm.
Four Wheel Drive, Chimney Rock Rematched at Churchill
Six months after running 1-2 in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2T) at Santa Anita Park Nov. 1, Four Wheel Drive and Chimney Rock are rematched in an $84,000 allowance at Churchill Downs May 17.
Oaklawn Park to Reopen Casino May 18
The casino will open with 33% capacity allowed and adjusted operating hours.
Simeen Scores in Prix de la Pistole at Chantilly
The Aga Khan’s Simeen is now just 5-1 for the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches (French One Thousand Guineas, G1) with Coral and Betfair after getting up under a hand ride from Christophe Soumillon in the Prix de la Pistole at Chantilly May 13.
Churchill Downs Opens Track for Training
With a steady rain falling at 5:29 a.m. ET May 13, Churchill Downs’ outrider Lee Lockwood spoke on the track radio with the words so many people have been anticipating: “We are open for business. Gap Attendants, you can open the track.”
Japan says casino strategy unaffected by Sands’ withdrawal
Japan’s government doesn’t plan to revise its casino strategy following Las Vegas Sands’ abrupt withdrawal from the race to win one of the three available integrated resorts (IR) licenses.
On Wednesday, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary said there are “no plans to change the basic schedule at this time” for determining the three recipients of the first round of casino licenses by 2021, despite Sands’ Tuesday declaration that Japan’s “framework around the development of an IR has made our goals there unreachable.”
Last August, Sands shifted its IR focus from Osaka to either Yokohama or Tokyo. On Wednesday, Yokohama mayor Fumiko Hayashi said Sands’ withdrawal from the IR process was “not surprising” given the “global economic situation” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Japan’s central government may not anticipate any change in the IR schedule from Sands’ skedaddle, Hayashi said Tuesday that the release of the IR implementation policy previously scheduled for June was being pushed back two months due to the pandemic.
Ohio Could Authorize Racing Resumption by May 22
During a teleconferenced late-morning meeting of the Ohio State Racing Commission May 13, chairman Scott Borgemenke suggested horse racing in the state could be authorized to resume by May 22
Canterbury Park Seeks Revised 52-Day Race Meet
Canterbury Park submitted May 13 a revision of racing dates for 2020 to the Minnesota Racing Commission, asking for a 52-day season beginning June 10 and concluding Sept. 9, with races conducted Monday through Thursday.
Omaha Beach, Vino Rosso to Shuttle to Australia
Spendthrift Farm’s first-year sires and multiple grade 1 winners Omaha Beach and Vino Rosso will shuttle to Australia, the farm announced May 13 along with its Southern Hemisphere roster and fees for 2020.
Danish gamblers not shifting their pandemic action online
Denmark’s gamblers aren’t shifting their action online despite the mass closure of retail gambling options, while Spain’s government says its gamblers were gambling online more until it cracked down on operator marketing.
On Tuesday, Denmark’s Spillemyndigheden regulatory body released figures detailing Danish gamblers’ activity from March 9 to May 3 to determine how the pandemic-related March 11 closure of land-based casinos, betting shops and slots halls had impacted consumer behavior.
The results show a 60% decrease in betting activity, spurred by not only the retail lockdown but also the mass cancellation of major sports events. But while other markets have witnessed a surge in online casino activity during this period, Spillemyndigheden says online casino figures are up only 2% year-on-year, a much smaller growth rate than online casino enjoyed from 2018 to 2019.
The pandemic lockdown has also failed to produce “great variation” in the country’s ROFUS gambling self-exclusion registry. There were also fewer calls to the StopSpillet problem gambling help line during the period in question than the year before.
Galaxy Entertainment Group Q1 casino earnings plunge 93%
Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) saw its Q1 earnings plunge 93% and things would have been even worse had the operator not ‘played lucky’ with its customers.
Figures released Wednesday by the Hong Kong-listed GEG shows the company generated revenue of HK$5.1b (US$658m) in the three months ending March 31, down 61% from the same period last year and down the same rate from Q4 2019.
GEG’s adjusted earnings fared much worse, falling 93% year-on-year to just HK$283m, and would have fallen 95% had its casinos not ‘played lucky’ at its two major Macau properties, Galaxy Macau and StarWorld Macau.
GEG’s Q1 gaming revenue (after commissions and incentives) was down 63.5% to HK$4b as spending fell across the board due to the Macau casino market’s 15-day shutdown in February, the limited gaming options upon reopening and the COVID-19 quarantine restrictions that slowed Macau’s visitor traffic to a crawl.