American horse racing in 2011 had its share of ups and downs. Two developments on the positive side of the ledger are promising for 2012 and beyond. Racing at the highest level was traditionally the bailiwick of extremely wealthy individuals because of the immense outlays involved. The increasingly popular limited partnership concept has changed this [...]

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Steve Byk, the informative host of At the Races on SiriusXM, recently had an on-air discussion with the knowledgeable Andy Serling of NYRA about the long-term process required to get new bettors up to speed on handicapping. They were of the opinion that racetracks should not “dumb down” their offerings to attract beginners, though they [...]

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Points of view are plentiful in the world of horse racing about the appropriate level of takeout rates on handle in order to optimize racetrack and ADW profitability. Virtually everyone agrees that pari-mutuel wagering has an uncompetitive takeout rate, as compared to alternative gambling products, but that is where the agreement ends. A wide disparity of thought [...]

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