Del Mar has made slight alterations to the stakes schedule for its summer meeting later this year, increasing the purse of its opening-day feature on July 17 – the Oceanside – to an all-time high of $150,000, the track announced Tuesday. The conditions of the Oceanside Stakes for 3-year-olds at a mile on turf have been changed from a restricted stakes to an open handicap. The purse of the race has been increased $50,000. Previously, the Oceanside was run for nonwinners of a first-place purse worth $50,000 or more to the winner at a mile or longer in the calendar year in which it was run. The restriction often prevented two-turn stakes winners in the first six months of the year from starting in the Oceanside. The track will run two turf stakes for 3-year-olds instead of three races as was the case in recent decades. The $100,000 La Jolla Handicap for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles has been put on hiatus, according to a track official. The race was typically run in the first half of August. This year, the Oceanside will be followed by the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby, a $300,000 race at 1 1/8 miles on Aug. 23. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. The La Jolla Handicap had struggled to draw large fields. In the last five years, the race had five starters once, six starters three times, and eight runners once. The La Jolla Handicap was a Grade 3 as recently as 2023 and had listed status the last two years. Aside from the Oceanside, the only stakes with a higher purse this summer will be the Grade 2 Green Flash Handicap at five furlongs on turf, which has been raised from $150,000 in recent years to $200,000. The race was promoted from a Grade 3 to a Grade 2 this year. Grade 2 stakes must have a minimum purse of $200,000. The meeting’s richest race, the Grade 1 Pacific Classic, worth $1 million and run at 1 1/4 miles, will be held Aug. 22, its earliest running since 2021. The race was run on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend from 2022-25. The Aug. 22 program has three other stakes – the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks for 3-year-old fillies on turf, the Green Flash Handicap, and the Grade 2 Del Mar Mile on turf. The Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap, the leading race of the season for turf marathoners, will be run Aug. 29. The race was run on the same day as the Pacific Classic from 2015-25. The distances of four $100,000 stakes for California-bred 2-year-olds sprinters have been extended by a half-furlong. The Graduation Stakes and CTBA Stakes for fillies, scheduled for Aug. 2 and Aug. 7, will be run at 5 1/2 furlongs. The races were run at five furlongs last year. The Generous Portion Stakes, for fillies, and I’m Smokin Stakes will be run at six furlongs on Sept. 4 and 7. The races were run at 5 1/2 furlongs last year. The Sept. 7 program, on Labor Day, is the final day of the meeting and is highlighted by Grade 2 John C. Mabee Stakes for fillies and mares at 1 1/8 miles on turf. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.