Jockey Steve Hamilton to have back surgery, career uncertain

Steve “Cowboy” Hamilton has carved out a nice niche in the Maryland jockey ranks since he resumed riding in 2016 following a 10-year hiatus to raise his two sons in his native Oklahoma. But Hamilton has been sidelined with back pain since June and is scheduled to have surgery next week to remove several small tumors at the base of his spine.

His riding future depends on how well the surgery relieves his pain.

“My spirits are up, and I’m trying to stay positive,” Hamilton said. “We’ll just have to see how we come out of it before I can say anything else.”

Hamilton, 44, has won 1,374 Thoroughbred races in his career and led the Pimlico standings at meets in 2004 and 2005. In 2017, Hamilton was the fourth-leading rider in Maryland with 94 victories.

Hamilton is the father of successful Maryland apprentice rider Weston Hamilton, who finished second in the standings at the Laurel Park winter meet.