PA takeout rates
 

They remain among the very highest in the country at horse racing despite major slots and table game revenue ... however, the state takeout rate for blackjack is just 0.355%

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pitt.../s_783375.html

Just bring one of those slick little colored cheat sheets with you that tells you what to do with each hand ... you can make up the 0.355% takeout with comps for free drinks and meals. If you can count-cards at all...the edge goes to you. Some guy in his 20's beat them for about $500,000 in a month playing blackjack here...and they were sending a limo to a trailor park to pick him up.

The takeout rate on a trifecta at Philly Park is 30% and the takeout rate on a trifecta at Penn National is 31%.

It's a pathetic situation in this entire industry... but Pennsylvania really takes the cake. At the very least ... the trifecta and superfecta bets should be eliminated at all Pennsylvania tracks allowing for much needed larger pool sizes in the exacta ("only" a 20% rake at state tracks)

Almost anyone can run 3rd or 4th in a lot of these races...the tri's and supers are utter rape ... build up the pool size of the exacta and do everyone a big favor if you must continue on this path.

So true...

I'm a PA resident and Parx, though not a bad track, has terrible takeout. And with the casino, it's like they are embarrassed to have a racetrack. They never advertise it - only the casino.

It wouldn't surprise me if they can't wait for it to wither enough to where they get permission from the state to be just a casino and raze the track.

I tried to explain the situation to a member of the PA legislature and he didn't appear interested in understanding the opportunity they have in the state.

Did you check your pockets afterwards?

Or take a shower?

The state gaming board stubbornly insisted the player get every single edge on Blackjack (from 3-to-2 on a 21, to dealer must hit an Ace-6, to the ability to surrender your cards and so forth) ... and it's my understanding that they would allow any takeout reductions the tracks want... forget the legislature in this case -- it's the racetracks. They can get any reduction they want approved.

I laughed really hard....

I dont know about Penn or Presque Isle but the geniuses in charge of the PTHA have no interest in lowering the takeout despite very little of the purses now coming via handle. There is a meeting scheduled in a few weeks on the PTHAs response to the Gov's raiding of the slot money which undoubtedly will be a waste of time but there is a chance that the two stooges that run the organization push for a increase in takeout. Seriously.

Unreal.

You almost can't bet a race in the state of Pennsylvania...it's a joke. If you want to bet a $50 exacta -- especially at PID and Penn -- even a bet that small is going to hurt your price a lot.

:tro:

It seems like Parx is happy to be relegated to what the Ghostbusters were in Gostbusters II - a backdrop to children's birthday parties. It is a shame because , with Monmouth Park off the dole, they could create a really good menu for the horseplayer. Besides the takeout rate being outrageous, this year they decided to run EVERY week Saturday through Tuesday. First time in awhile that they didn't take at least a short break. I like football but even I would get tired of it if the NFL decided to play 52 Sundays a year - and I think all gamblers would get tired of it too.
The handle is a joke. Why they continue to offer a Pick 6 when the handles are so miniscule , for example, on Saturday it was $636. Damn wasn't the Luck characters ticket more than that? They really should make a deal with Monmouth. Monmouth run, say April to August, then Parx would run from September to January. Use the slots supplement to beef up both tracks to something like $1 million per day. But for a PA Track to supplement NJ purses would be tantamount to treason. The states fight over gambling dollars is approaching civil war level.
We know what's going to eventually happen. The politicians are going to get tired of propping up the horse racing industry and PA horse racing will becaome a thing of the past.

You meant "dealer must stand on Ace-6". Standing on soft-17 is the much better rule from the player's perspective and it is the PA-wide rule. At least for now it is. I'd make a pretty large bet that 5 years from now, most blackjack in PA will be dealer-hits-soft-17.

--Dunbar

Just read an article in the Horse Of The Delaware Valley magazine, which isn't on the web. Apparently, the PA Governor recently submitted a budget that included $100 million dollars less for the horsemen. Obviously Parx and Penn National are going to try to fight it.
There is a quote from a legislature congressman: "It's great that PA breeders and owners are benefiting ... but if citizens aren't coming to the tracks and embracing racing, what is the overall benefit?"
Good question!
New Jersey has recently cut off all supplements for horse racing. Not too many people complained. It's just a matter of time before the same thing happens in Pennsylvania. Too bad that Parx didn't make much of their opportunity while they had it. It may be too late now.

Parx and Monmouth are working on a mutually beneficial partnership.

Yea right..... that will happen.... What's you point?

Well, I do tend to think racing is screwed in general in the mid- to long-term, but I think some sort of deal will happen between Monmouth and Parx (both sides are desperate enough now) and think it will have a positive benefit for both. Can't get much worse at this point. . . The PA budget thing is old news.