Hawthorne handle up 32 percent

It felt like a quiet Hawthorne race meeting that ended Sunday, Dec. 27, but the 2020 fall-winter race meet generated impressive betting numbers compared to the comparable Hawthorne season in 2019.

Gross handle for the 34-day season was $65,658,122, a 32 percent increase over total handle of $44,763,380 during a comparable period in 2019. An average of $1,823,837 was bet on a per-card basis, up 27 percent from 2019, while average handle per race was $220,329 on 298 races, up from $161,600 per race on 277 races in 2019. Average handle per starter increased 18 percent to $24,381 as average starters per race came back at a robust 9.04 during the meet. That number was up from 8.13 starters per race a year ago, and while Hawthorne was able to run 49 grass races this meeting compared to just 19 during fall 2019, field size in dirt races increased from 7.98 a year ago to 8.88 this meet.

Hawthorne held three-day race weeks in October and November before cutting back to weekends only during December. The track attracted a considerable number of new participants this year, many coming from Canterbury Park.

Hawthorne goes dark until it’s spring Thoroughbred season begins March 6, though a construction project remains active as the track owners continue readying the facility to house a casino, which, if all goes well, could open next winter.

Victor Santiago was the leading jockey, Hugh Robertson the leading trainer, and Novogratz Racing the leading owner.