Steve Schwartz Resigns TOC Position
Resigns from his position as president Feb. 5 after just being named to the post Nov. 15.
Drew Couto
News, Articles, Videos and other content about Drew Couto
Schwartz to Take Over as President of TOC
Steve Schwartz, a prominent trial lawyer specializing in equine veterinary and medical issues, has been named president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California effective Nov. 15. Schwartz replaces Drew Couto, who left the position earlier this year.
Drew Couto Resigns as TOC President
Drew Couto, who helped form the Thoroughbred Owners of California in 1993 and served for the past five years as president, has decided to step down.
TOC Among Interested Santa Anita Bidders
The Thoroughbred Owners of California is among the interested bidders in Santa Anita Park, an organization official confirmed.
TVG, Hollywood in Broadcast Fee Dispute
Advance deposit wagering provider TVG did not accept bets on Hollywood Park races April 22 as the Inglewood track opened its 65-day spring/summer meet.
Last Year for Hollywood? Not So Fast
Historic Hollywood Park, under the eminent threat of redevelopment, opens for its 70th and possibly final spring/summer racing season on April 22. Some say now is not the time.
CHRB Moves to Rescind Anti-Rebate Stance
Rebates to wagering customers have become so widespread that the California Horse Racing Board is preparing to rescind its rule against the practice.
Questions Raised on California Rebating
Here's a fact: Some domestic advance deposit wagering outlets are openly offering cash rebates to customers that wager on California racing signals.
CDI Outfits Barred from Calif. Signals
A dispute over hub-fee agreements has left some Churchill Downs Inc.-owned tracks and related off-track betting facilities without racing signals from California.
ADW Agreement Reached in California
An impasse in California over fee rates for interstate advance deposit wagering that has had a negative impact on Hollywood Park's fall meet ended Nov. 21 with the announcement that one-year deals with the four licensed providers in the state have been reached.
CHRB Pushes for Action in ADW Standoff
In a high-stakes "game of chicken," the California Horse Racing Board pushed account wagering a little closer to the edge Nov. 18 when it declined to renew the licenses of the state's four Internet and telephone bet companies.
Hollywood's ADW Dispute Unresolved
Out-of-state account wagering bettors remained locked out of Hollywood Park races as a contract dispute between the Thoroughbred Owners of California and the four advance deposit wagering companies showed no sign of resolution Oct. 30, the second day of the fall meet.
Hollywood ADW Signal Limited; Purses Cut
A stalemate between California horsemen and advance deposit wagering companies kept Hollywood Park's out-of-state signal unavailable on opening day of the track's fall season Oct. 29.
California Defers ADW Rule Change
After more than a year of discussion, the California Horse Racing Board has deferred any action on a proposed rule that would prohibit advance deposit wagering companies from making exclusive wagering agreements with Thoroughbred racetracks in the state.
'Ticked Off' Shapiro Rips Slow Response
Industry stakeholders received a tongue-lashing from Richard Shapiro, chairman of the California Horse Racing Board, as the agency took its first swipe at a race dates calendar for 2009.
Hollywood, Horsemen Reach Tentative Pact
California horsemen and Hollywood Park reached a tentative agreement Oct. 10 that allows the track to operate its 40-day autumn race meet, but a stalemate over host fees to be paid by account wagering companies for interstate bets remains unresolved.
ADW Model: Who's Right, Who's Wrong?
- By Tom LaMarra
Support for reform of the revenue model for advance deposit wagering continues to increase, but as evidenced Sept. 30 during the International Simulcast Conference, it's looking more and more like a long-term project.
Siegel Donates $100,000 to Assist THG
Prominent Thoroughbred Owner Mace Siegel, vice president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California, has given $100,000 to support the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Group and its efforts to protect live horse racing.
Hollywood, Horsemen Squabble Over ADW
With horsemen and Hollywood Park unable to come to agreement on revenue splits from account wagering sources for the upcoming autumn meet at the Inglewood track, the California Horse Racing Board agreed to conduct a special hearing to settle the impasse.
TOC to End Exclusive ADW Pacts
The elimination of exclusive account deposit wagering contracts and meeting the challenges of racetrack closures were among the subjects addressed at the Thoroughbred Owners of California's annual membership meeting Aug. 16 at Del Mar.
California ADW Test Ends; THG Talks Set
A fan-friendly experiment to share racetracks among California's advance deposit wagering companies has ended with the start of the Del Mar meet July 16.
Fan-Friendly ADW Experiment Nears End
With the looming expiration of an experiment to share racetracks among account wagering companies in California, representatives continue to meet in hopes of an agreement in time for the start of the Del Mar summer meet July 16.
California's ADW Truce Endangered
California's advance deposit wagering truce may be coming to an end.
THG to Negotiate for California Horsemen
The Thoroughbred Owners of California board of directors has unanimously endorsed the negotiating model created by the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Group, and has authorized the THG to represent the TOC in future simulcast negotiations, including in advance deposit wagering negotiations.
State Lawmakers Urged to Take ADW Action
As the popularity of advance deposit wagering increases, states need to take action to protect their horseracing industry, the president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California told a group of legislators meeting June 13 in Northern California.
CHRB Hears World Poker Tour Concept
The World Poker Tour has a tournament idea that could be developed for handicappers, the California Horse Racing Board was told Feb. 28.
Time for Peace Pipe, Shapiro Says
Now that voters in California have decisively approved a massive increase in Indian gaming for four large Southern California tribes, the chairman of the state's horse racing board says it is time for the tribal casinos to help out his ailing industry with financial mitigation.
TOC: Partial Signal Consent Given
The Thoroughbred Owners of California has given limited consent to New York's off-track betting corporations to accept wagers on California races, but is holding firm on its stance against allowing wagers from the companies'out-of-state account deposit wagering customers.
Calif. Fund for Retired Horses OK'd
California took a first step toward helping more horses after their racing years with the final approval of a new fund to support the state's equine retirement facilities.
TOC, Arkansas HBPA Join Coalition
The Thoroughbred Owners of California and Arkansas Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association have joined the new Thoroughbred Horsemen's Group, launched Dec. 5 to facilitate simulcast activities and improve the economics of the pari-mutuel model.
Calif. Jockey Health Plan Boosted
The California Horse Racing Board gave the go-ahead Nov. 29 to begin forming a trust to oversee a new jockeys' health insurance program in the state beginning Jan. 1, 2008.
Tapeta Track Debuts at Golden Gate
Northern California horsemen are hoping that Tapeta Footings, unveiled Nov. 7 at Golden Gate Fields, will put the bounce back in their racing circuit.
Calif. Account Wagering Law Extended by Governor
- By Jack Shinar
Advance deposit wagering, which in five years has grown to represent about 13.4 % of total handle through the California pari-mutuel system, was reauthorized by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Oct. 13.
Expanded Fairs Offered as Option for California Racing
- By Jack Shinar
California fairs offer a realistic option for horse racing's future at a time when two major racetracks in the state are facing redevelopment and other privately held venues are pressured by stockholders for greater revenue returns amid escalating property values.
Calif. Racing Backs Off as Tribes Expand Gaming
- By Jack Shinar
As expansion of gaming for four Southern California casino tribes lurched toward approval in the Legislature June 28, it did so with little interference from the state's racing industry.
Bay Meadows Could Race in 2008
- By Jack Shinar
With State Sen. Leland Yee in attendance at its May 22 meeting in Sacramento, the California Horse Racing Board threw open the possibility that Bay Meadows could resume racing in 2008.
Santa Anita Plan Endorsed by Racing Organizations
California's three major horse racing organizations have endorsed The Shops at Santa Anita, the outdoor, upscale shopping and dining center proposed by Caruso Affiliated at the Arcadia, Calif., track.
California ADW Rivals Near Signal Agreement
- By Jack Shinar
California customers of rival account deposit wagering companies TVG and XpressBet would be able to play any track in the state with their preferred carrier under an agreement being negotiated on a one-year experimental basis.
Account-Bet Dispute Lingers; CHRB May Act
- By Jack Shinar
The simmering dispute between the organization representing California's horse owners and the racing television and wagering network TVG appeared unlikely to be resolved heading into the Oct. 26 meeting of the California Horse Racing Board.
Reducing Races, Not Days, Goal of CHRB Committee
Reducing the number of racing events without the loss of a significant number of actual racing days in the North was the goal of the California Horse Racing Board's Strategic Alliance Planning Committee, which met for the final time Oct. 12 before making a final 2007 dates recommendation to the full board.
TVG, California Horsemen Deadlock Over Hub Fees
- By Jack Shinar
Account wagering in California remains mired in a dispute between horsemen and TVG over setting hub fees, officials from both sides told the California Horse Racing Board on Aug. 17, with no guarantee the stalemate will be resolved soon.
TOC Acts on Northern California Recommendations
As part of an effort to address concerns raised by several Northern California members, the Thoroughbred Owners of California held an open forum July 28 at Golden Gate Fields and pledged to act on several recommendations.
Fairplex Expansion Project Aired for CHRB
Fairplex Park gave an extensive presentation of a proposed $100 million project to expand and greatly enhance the racetrack facility located on the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds during the California Horse Racing Board's meeting June 22.
Fairplex Expansion Project Aired for CHRB
Fairplex Park gave an extensive presentation of a proposed $100 million project to expand and greatly enhance the racetrack facility located on the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds during the California Horse Racing Board's meeting June 22.
California Industry Backs 'Instant Racing' Bill
- By Jack Shinar
The California horseracing industry has thrown its weight behind "Instant Racing" video games in the drive to offset declining economic fortunes, but a representative of the state's major casino tribes say it's nothing more than a smokescreen to break the Indians' monopoly and give the tracks slot machines.
Northern California Horsemen Consider Breakaway Organization
- By Jack Shinar
About 200 Northern California horsemen have signed a petition supporting the formation of a new trainer/owner organization to represent them in negotiations with racetrack associations and others, saying they believe their affiliation with the Thoroughbred Owners of California is no longer adequate.
Interruption of Hollywood Signal on TVG Averted
- By Jack Shinar
A dispute between TVG and the Thoroughbred Owners of California was resolved Wednesday afternoon allowing transmission of Hollywood Park's signal on the racing network just minutes before the track's first race of the 2006 season.
Interruption of Hollywood Signal on TVG Averted
- By Jack Shinar
A dispute between TVG and the Thoroughbred Owners of California was resolved Wednesday afternoon allowing transmission of Hollywood Park's signal on the racing network just minutes before the track's first race of the 2006 season.
Guild, Feeling Pinch, Gets Relief from CHRB
- By Jack Shinar
The California Horse Racing Board approved an agreement March 23 that allows the strapped Jockeys Guild to receive its health and welfare program benefits in a much quicker fashion than in the past.
Del Mar Execs Take Polytrack Plan to Agricultural Board
Executives with the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club have taken a first step toward installing Polytrack at the popular seaside racetrack when they made a presentation to the 22nd District Agricultural Association during its board meeting Jan. 10.
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