Five-year highs in both all-sources and on-track handle highlighted figures from the recently concluded Belmont Park fall meeting released Nov. 9 by the New York Racing Association.
Th 37-day fall stand ran from Sept. 7 to Oct. 27.
All-sources handle, which includes wagers on Belmont Park races both on-track and from simulcast outlets nationwide, was $326,878,686—the highest of the past five years, according to NYRA. The figure represents an increase of 9.8% from $297,670,005 last year, and a jump of 24.3% from $263,037,788 in 2011.
On-track handle on Belmont fall meeting races was $47,238,016, also the highest of the past five years, NYRA said. The total was up 11.1% from $42,499,742 last year and 13.4% over the $41,656,097 wagered on-track in 2011.
The 2013 Belmont Park fall meeting had one more card than in 2012 and 2011, when inclement weather forced the cancellation of one race day each year.
Attendance for the meet was 126,469, a 10.7% increase from 114,294 in 2012, NYRA reported.
"Anchored by Super Saturday and Empire Showcase Day, the Belmont fall meet was a solid success," said Chris Kay, CEO and president of NYRA. "By continuing to focus on enhancing the experience of guests—both on and off track—and improving the quality of racing, we will give our fans every reason to play our races more frequently, come out to the track more often, and enjoy themselves even more when they do come out.
"We also wish to thank the New York State Gaming Commission for allowing us to introduce at the Belmont fall meet the reduced-takeout Pick 5 wager, which is very popular with our players."
Average betting interests per race dipping slightly to 8.4 (3,016 total over 361 races) per race compared to 8.5 (2,917 total over 344 races) in 2012. There were 191 turf races with seven races taken off the turf and moved to the main track in 2013, compared to 140 on and 40 off in 2012.
Belmont Park
Coglianese Photos