Golden Gate: Betting declines at fall meeting

Daily all-sources and ontrack handle at the 2012 Golden Gate Fields fall meet declined from the corresponding meet in 2011, but account betting continued to grow and field size was up.

The 35-day fall meeting ended Dec. 16. The 2012 meeting was one day shorter than the 2011 meet, and 15 fewer races were offered.

Daily betting from all sources and locations, including simulcast betting on other tracks, fell about 4 percent from the 2011 fall meet, to $2,784,071 per day.

Daily ontrack handle on the live races at the Golden Gate Fields fall meeting fell 14 percent from the 2011 fall meet, to $139,417. All-sources handle was boosted by a 25 percent increase in account-betting handle, and average field size increased from 7.33 to 7.50. Ontrack attendance fell from 2,226 to 2,045 per day.

For the entire season, which began Dec. 26, 2011, there were 153 days of racing at Golden Gate Fields, four fewer than during the 2011 season, and there were 71 fewer races.

Daily ontrack betting on Golden Gate races fell 10 percent from the previous season, to $161,389, and the daily all-sources handle was down 8 percent, to $1,413,907.

Despite fewer racing dates and races, total account wagering for the season increased by 13 percent.

For the season, field size showed a minor increase from 6.95 per race in 2011 to 6.98 in 2012.