Parx handle on PA Derby Day?
 

Does anybody know if they had a really good day over last year or much better than a usual Saturday? Just curious.

$10,400,000 and reportedly a big increase v. previous year. Derby alone was in excess of $3MM.

Awesome! Glad to see my local track do well.

so their bonuses were well spent?

The increases year over year were tremendous, but in terms of determining whether the bonus money was well spent you have to consider what was spent by on-track patrons on non-wagering items. I'm sure the casino also had a HUGE bounce. If you were basing this determination solely on handle, the answer would be no, the bonuses were horribly spent. Parx's take on the day from all sources handle would barely cover the bonuses let alone the purses on the day.

That being said, the numbers from the day were outstanding. The PA Derby itself handled $1.5 million in 2013. It handled $4.2 million this year. The P4 pool this year was 517k vs. 223k in 2013. Now, while last year's field did not include the Derby winner it did have the 1-2 finishers in the Travers. Cotillion handle was up 80% with one less horse this year.

Having a horse with the name recognition of California Chrome is always going to be hugely beneficial for a racetrack. But, the real question is what long-term benefit will you get from the people who showed up and how much did you get from them the day they showed? For a place like Parx, it's an uphill battle and you almost feel like their goal was to get those in attendance to be long-term casino patrons.

To put things in perspective, Belmont handled $12.1 million Saturday on a ho-hum card. It's nice for tracks like Parx to have moments in the sun, but the tangible impact that they have on generating customers is negligible.

And as an additional post-script to Nick's perspective, Chuck made the point to me that a day like this is a net negative because it effectively glosses over the problems Parx perpetuates the other 364 days a year...

My group had a lot to do with the handle increase, esp in the P3 and P4 pools!! :rolleyes:

My buddy's dad was given 4 free tickets to watch the races from The Cotillion Room. This included free food and drinks, a $50 horse racing voucher, and $100 in slot dollars.

The room was packed with older people who you could tell were only there to collect their free items. There wasn't ONE horseplayer in the room besides us four. There were more $2 WPS bets on Cali Chrome than I ever thought was possible. The teller and I hit it off, joking about all of the idiotic bets that were presented to her throughout the day.

As great as it was to look around and see Parx filled to the brim, the sobering truth that this was the only day of the year for the track to look crowded was always in the back of my mind. I'm hoping that we can somehow build off that.

My brother showed up with his friend who knows absolutely nothing about horses or betting. Told him to put his $40 on Bayern to win. Needless to say, on the walk back to the car, he was hooked. He asked if we can go back more often bc he really wants to get into it. He looked at me like I had three heads when I asked Asmussen for his picture, but was astonished once I told him that he was the winning trainer of the previous race. Poe loved the interaction, and his first trip to the track was a winning one.

He'll be back, if only for next year's PA Derby. I tried to do my part in making new fans of the game. So thank ME for all the future dead money in the pools! :D

I did my part too. explaining the Bris pace figures and how the races would probably play out. Never had so many people asking me Who do you like , then smiles and handshakes after etc. Did likewise at Haskell day with a newbie who hit his first tri himself and cashed for 4 bills, paying for his BC trip. But, I do concur with the amount of $2 bettors on hand at the windows, the tellers ran out of change too. :D

Chuck's point is spot on. Pick 6 carryover is today 1581.00. Don't you think they would ask themselves why nobody plays it? Even the pick 4 is a very small pool everyday.