Keeneland fall stakes schedule a lot like last year's
Officials at Keeneland Race Course on Wednesday released the stakes schedule for the 2019 fall meet with minimal change from the status quo. Eighteen stakes, 10 of them Breeders’ Cup Challenge races, will be worth nearly $5.7 million, a record for the Lexington, Ky. track.
The front-loaded meet starts with the three-day FallStars Weekend which includes most of the Breeders’ Cup preps, including five Grade 1 events. The 17-day meet runs Oct. 4-26.
The only changes from last fall are $50,000 purse increases for the Franklin County and the Sycamore, both now worth $150,000. Those increases account for the new record.
Overnight purses at Keeneland, as with most other tracks in Kentucky, have reached all-time highs, thanks in part to revenues from the slots-like historical-racing machines that have proliferated at state tracks.
2019 Keeneland fall schedule
| Date | Stakes | Division | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 4 | $400,000 Alcibiades (G1)* | 2YO Fillies | 1 1/16 Miles |
| Oct. 4 | $250,000 Ogden Phoenix (G2)* | 3YOs & Up | 6 Furlongs |
| Oct. 5 | $1 Million Shadwell Turf Mile (G1)* | 3YOs & Up | 1 Mile (T) |
| Oct. 5 | $500,000 Breeders' Futurity (G1)* | 2YOs | 1 1/16 Miles |
| Oct. 5 | $400,000 First Lady (G1)* | 3YOs & Up, F&M | 1 Mile (T) |
| Oct. 5 | $250,000 Thoroughbred Club of America (G2)* | 3YOs & Up, F&M | 6 Furlongs |
| Oct. 5 | $200,000 Woodford (G2) | 3YOs & Up | 5½ Furlongs (T) |
| Oct. 6 | $500,000 Spinster (G1)* | 3YOs & Up, F&M | 1 1/8 Miles |
| Oct. 6 | $250,000 Bourbon (G3)* | 2YOs | 1 1/16 Miles (T) |
| Oct. 6 | $200,000 Indian Summer* | 2YOs | 5½ Furlongs (T) |
| Oct. 9 | $200,000 Jessamine (G2)* | 2YO Fillies | 1 1/16 Miles (T) |
| Oct. 11 | $150,000 Franklin County (G3) | 3YOs & Up, F&M | 5½ Furlongs (T) |
| Oct. 12 | $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) | 3YO Fillies | 1 1/8 Miles (T) |
| Oct. 17 | $150,000 Sycamore (G3) | 3YOs & Up | 1½ Miles (T) |
| Oct. 18 | $150,000 Valley View (G3) | 3YO Fillies | 1 1/16 Miles (T) |
| Oct. 19 | $250,000 Raven Run (G2) | 3YO Fillies | 7 Furlongs |
| Oct. 20 | $125,000 Dowager (G3) | 3YOs & Up, F&M | 1½ Miles (T) |
| Oct. 26 | $200,000 Fayette (G2) | 3YO & Up | 1 1/8 Miles |
*Breeders’ Cup Challenge stakes
