Oak Grove: Handle doubled, purses up in 2023

The 2023 harness racing season at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel, which concluded July 10, saw significant increases in all-sources wagering handle and total purses paid, giving cause for optimism among players and participants alike for the future of the sport in the Bluegrass State.

Total handle for the 30-day season was just over $7 million, a 103% increase over the 2022 total of $3.4 million. Average daily handle this season was $233,000, up 82 percent from a $128,000 average last season, and just over 2022's highest single-day handle of $229,000. Over $6.3 million in purses were disbursed through the meet, including $2.7 million in Kentucky Standardbred Development Fund (KSDF) stakes events for 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds that attracted the sport's premier stables and drivers to southern Kentucky.

During the stand, Oak Grove served as the home base for the United States Harness Drivers Club (USHDC), an amateur driving club that raised over $11,000 for local charities.

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After conducting autumn meets in 2020 and 2021, Oak Grove has positioned itself at the beginning of the Kentucky harness racing circuit the past two seasons and will do the same in the spring of 2024, when it hosts its fifth season of Standardbred racing. For more information, visit oakgrovegaming.com.

--press release (Oak Grove)--