Bigger purses and fields result in handle increase

AUBURN, Wash. – Wagering at Emerald Downs increased sharply in 2015 thanks in part to bigger purses and a burgeoning horse population. Average daily handle during the 70-day, April-through-September meeting was $1,262,956, track officials said, up 10.7 percent from 2014.

Emerald Downs changed hands in March, when the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe took control from track founder Ron Crockett’s Emerald Racing Association. After naming Phil Ziegler to run day-to-day operations as track president, the tribe increased overnight purses 20 percent and helped lure new trainers to Emerald with an expanded menu of incentives.

During the heart of the meeting, the number of horses stabled at Emerald Downs exceeded 1,000 for the first time in three years, while the average field size jumped from 6.27 horses per race in 2014 to 6.86 – an increase of 9.4 percent for the meeting.

Stryker Phd, who won four stakes races, including the Grade 3 Longacres Mile, was named horse of the meeting for the second consecutive year. Julien Couton (100 wins) ran away with the riding title in his first season at Emerald Downs, and Jeff Metz (66 wins) dominated the trainer standings for the third year in a row. Larry Ross led all trainers with seven stakes victories.

Ziegler said in a release: “The success we experienced this season would not have been possible without the support of our track founder, Ron Crockett, who continues to play an integral role at Emerald Downs, and the Muckleshoot Tribe, who own our company and have invested over $13 million in purses since 2004.”

Dates for the 2016 meeting will be announced later this year.