MA casino lean likely dooms Suffolk (Update: Deal set for 2015-16)

[Alan07]

Suffolk also has moved closing day from Mon., Sept. 29 to Sat., Oct. 4.

[ScottJ]

Published Thursday, September 25th, 4:00pm

Massachusetts Gaming Commission explores ways to save racing

By Lynne Snierson

BOSTON - With the tight deadline for racing dates applications fast approaching, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is looking for ways to help live Thoroughbred racing continue in the state.

“We’re trying to keep the door open, ” said commissioner James McHugh during an open hearing Thursday.

It is somewhat amazing that a state with one operating thoroughbred track did not have a gaming commission in place that could have anticipated this outcome.

[Suffolk Shippers]

Originally Posted by ScottJ

Published Thursday, September 25th, 4:00pm



It is somewhat amazing that a state with one operating thoroughbred track did not have a gaming commission in place that could have anticipated this outcome.

Well said. It was simply stunning that one day they make a decision to give the casino to Wynn and then the next day are like, well we need to find a way to make thoroughbred racing continue. Say what?!

They relied heavily on the "jobs creation" aspect of the Wynn proposal, which was mandated because the casino legislation is a job creation bill. However, the bill also created the thoroughbred industry fund, which they seemed to ignore to an extent. Just makes no sense. They're pretty delusional if they think someone is going to come in and run Suffolk next season while it being economically palatable to the current owners.

[Suffolk Shippers]

So, a subset of the land owners where the proposed Wynn casino will go in Everett were indicated by both the state and federal government yesterday. The MA gaming commission knew about them going back a year or so, which helped lead to the indictments.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/201...JZK/story.html

Chip Tuttle, COO of Suffolk, went on Twitter and (paraphrasing) lamented that he had to explain why crooks were getting money in the name of job creation while the people at SD were working their last days. He sent a second tweet blasting the MA gaming commission, which he later deleted (I think).

Doesn't change anything for Suffolk, per se, it would seem. But, it will give fodder to those supporting the repeal of the casino law. The repeal of the casino law would wipe out the horsemen's fund, which those guys are counting on to maybe resurrect racing in Massachusetts one day.

[Kasept]

http://www.boston.com/sports/horse-r...8eP/story.html

Excellent piece by former Herald sportswriter Michael Gee. Germane fact in losing a regional facility like SUF is absence of an outlet to introduce potential sport participants to live racing. This reality is seemingly lost on the myopic 'good riddance' crowd.

[Alabama Stakes]

Barbara Livingston was there taking pics for posterity. Even one for you boss!

[casp0555]

Originally Posted by Kasept

http://www.boston.com/sports/horse-r...8eP/story.html

Excellent piece by former Herald sportswriter Michael Gee. Germane fact in losing a regional facility like SUF is absence of an outlet to introduce potential sport participants to live racing. This reality is seemingly lost on the myopic 'good riddance' crowd.

You are right......an excellant column Steve, thanks for posting.

[joeydb]

Originally Posted by Kasept

http://www.boston.com/sports/horse-r...8eP/story.html

Excellent piece by former Herald sportswriter Michael Gee. Germane fact in losing a regional facility like SUF is absence of an outlet to introduce potential sport participants to live racing. This reality is seemingly lost on the myopic 'good riddance' crowd.

Loved this part:

The most popular form of sports gambling today is fantasy football. Were I in charge of marketing horse racing, I’d run ads on cable sports networks throughout the NFL season with a message along the lines of “when you get bored with that kids game, try a REAL mental challenge. Plus, we offer nine or ten games a day instead of one a week.

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by joeydb

Loved this part:

The most popular form of sports gambling today is fantasy football. Were I in charge of marketing horse racing, I’d run ads on cable sports networks throughout the NFL season with a message along the lines of “when you get bored with that kids game, try a REAL mental challenge. Plus, we offer nine or ten games a day instead of one a week.

I did a Fantasy Football draft a few years ago.

The people who do them are tailor-made for horse racing. They virtually all carry laptops around with them. They're all opinionated and obsessed with stats. They're all sports news junkies who stay up to date on injuries and are aware of coaching changes, coordinator changes, new schemes, etc.

Most of these guys also like to gamble.

The leadership in horse racing is too dumb to see the crossover potential.

Talk about 'Fantasy' anything and it gets laughed at. They think those people are all a joke...playing a "kids game" as you called it.

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by Kasept

Germane fact in losing a regional facility like SUF is absence of an outlet to introduce potential sport participants to live racing. This reality is seemingly lost on the myopic 'good riddance' crowd.

A good, well run, off-track betting parlor is a much better outlet for developing a horse racing fan ...than a live-racing scene that showcases a terrible product. What's more, give that live-racing scene slots...and they'll showcase slots, instead of their bad racing product.

But hey, when people think of Off-Track horse betting...they generally think of New York State.

The off-track wagering parlors in New York State (or OTB's) are absolute sh!t-holes. I've never been in a New York State OTB that wasn't a complete disaster. What's more...they would rip you off on payouts.

The mentality of New Yorkers "the smart people and good handicappers go to the track" seems silly...but if you've ever been inside a New York State OTB, you'd understand that train of thought.

The old OTB in Erie looked like a University campus, compared to the OTB's in New York. They had 5 large comfortable rooms. Hundreds and hundreds of TV's. Two restaurants, a bar, and a concession stand. Hand the people in the back a VCR tape, and they'd tape a track feed for you, to anyone of about 30 different tracks throughout the country.

Even in the Mid 90's, you could bet on about 30 different tracks a day. Go to garbage pits in New York, and you'd have NYRA, but only get bits and pieces beyond that.

When I'd walk into our old OTB parlor, I'd walk into an environment where people cared about betting on horse racing. It was the only reason they showed up. I miss that.

I walk into PID and I'm immediately harassed by a security guard. Forced to identify myself. Once I do, a band is placed on my wrist. Occasionally, you'll get a security guard who is going for "Employee of the Month" who insists on searching my laptop bag, looking for a bomb. If you take off your bracelet, you get harassed. And when you take off your bracelet, it pulls off the hair on your wrist.

It's an impossible place to like if you're a simulcast horse player.

[ateamstupid]

Originally Posted by Calzone Lord

A good, well run, off-track betting parlor is a much better outlet for developing a horse racing fan ...than a live-racing scene that showcases a terrible product. What's more, give that live-racing scene slots...and they'll showcase slots, instead of their bad racing product.

But hey, when people think of Off-Track horse betting...they generally think of New York State.

The off-track wagering parlors in New York State (or OTB's) are absolute sh!t-holes. I've never been in a New York State OTB that wasn't a complete disaster. What's more...they would rip you off on payouts.

The mentality of New Yorkers "the smart people and good handicappers go to the track" seems silly...but if you've ever been inside a New York State OTB, you'd understand that train of thought.

The old OTB in Erie looked like a University campus, compared to the OTB's in New York. They had 5 large comfortable rooms. Hundreds and hundreds of TV's. Two restaurants, a bar, and a concession stand. Hand the people in the back a VCR tape, and they'd tape a track feed for you, to anyone of about 30 different tracks throughout the country.

Even in the Mid 90's, you could bet on about 30 different tracks a day. Go to garbage pits in New York, and you'd have NYRA, but only get bits and pieces beyond that.

When I'd walk into our old OTB parlor, I'd walk into an environment where people cared about betting on horse racing. It was the only reason they showed up. I miss that.

I walk into PID and I'm immediately harassed by a security guard. Forced to identify myself. Once I do, a band is placed on my wrist. Occasionally, you'll get a security guard who is going for "Employee of the Month" who insists on searching my laptop bag, looking for a bomb. If you take off your bracelet, you get harassed. And when you take off your bracelet, it pulls off the hair on your wrist.

It's an impossible place to like if you're a simulcast horse player.

This is spot on. Make the OTB's into destinations by themselves and people will pick up the game. They also would be better congregation spots for regular horseplayers, since racetracks are usually out of the way and too hard to commute to regularly. NYCOTB did a ton to set back the game in public perception. Off-track betting parlors, when they're clean, have booze, good food and no riff-raff, will be places of interest in a city dying for somewhere to legally gamble and socialize.

I'm completely sympathetic to those who grew up with and loved Suffolk being sad to see it go. But the product was miserable and deteriorating further every year. The disappearance of a track from an urban area doesn't need to equate to the disappearance of horseplayers from there. It can mean just the opposite, if a track left behind by time and casinos is replaced by well-run OTB parlors that will get players off their ADW accounts now and then and can make playing the horses seem glamorous and cool again to the uninitiated.