TRA adopts new bet scrutiny

The Thoroughbred Racing Associations has adopted a set of procedures to investigate incidents in which bettors are able to place wagers after a race has started, the organization announced Thursday.

Such incidents are rare, according to racing officials, but bettors remain highly suspicious because of late odds changes caused by the significant influx of money into commingled pools within the last minute before post, causing odds on many horses to change even after a race has started.

Chris Scherf, the executive vice president of the TRA, said Friday that the procedures are not designed to prevent post-start wagers but for racetracks to follow when they occur.

"We'd like to be able to report back to racing commissions and the public within 24 hours what happened and why," Scherf said.

The procedures include enabling a host racetrack to obtain wagering data from any site in its simulcast network, as well as synchronization of live race videos with the internal clocks of bet-processing networks to determine how long pools remained open after a race starts.

* Separately, Roy Arnold, the president of Arlington Park, was elected president of the TRA for a two-year term.