U.S. handle declined 7 percent in January
Total wagering on races held at U.S. tracks during the month of January declined significantly compared to the same month last year, according to figures released on Monday by Equibase.
The 7.2 percent declined occurred during a month that had nine weekend dates, when handle is typically far higher than weekdays, compared to 10 weekend dates in January last year, somewhat mitigating the drop. However, the decline also occurred despite a 4.3 percent jump in the number of races held during the month.
On average, each race held in January this year attracted $383,413 in bets, down 11.0 percent from the January average last year of $430,894. The total number of races held in January of this year was 2,280, compared to 2,186 last year.
This year’s January wagering figures were hurt by the inability of Sam Houston Race Park to send its signal out-of-state due to a dispute between the Texas Racing Commission and the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, as well as extremely weak handle numbers at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.
In total, handle dropped from $941.9 million during January of last year to $874.2 million in January this year, a decline of $67.7 million.
In large part due to the increase in races and much higher purses at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas and Turfway Park in Kentucky, total purses distributed during the month rose 9.7 percent, from $82.1 million in January of last year to $90.1 million this year, according to the Equibase figures. The average purse rose from $37,558 last January to $39,504.
Purses remain at record levels despite a stagnation in U.S. wagering totals reaching back six months. Purses at U.S. tracks are heavily subsidized by casino revenues.
The average field size declined slightly, from 7.75 horses per race last year to 7.73 horses in January this year, a decline of 0.3 percent.
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