December, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

The World Poker Tour – Texas Hold ’em Excitement In Your Living Room

The World Poker Tour may be best known for its close up, table level views that show the viewer what each player is hiding in his hole cards. It adds an excitement to viewing poker that’s as close to actually playing with thousand dollar hands as possible. But possibly the true excitement is knowing that you can turn off the television at any moment and enjoy your own poker thrill. Whether you’re anteing with one thousand dollars, or one, you can get juiced up over a few hands of poker yourself.

That’s the beauty of poker and of the WPT. Poker is every man and woman’s game. Anybody can learn to play it, and anyone can learn to master it with a little natural talent, an inkling of smarts, and a lot of practice. In fact, many people playing on the WPC started in their basements or parents’ garage, first learning to take money from their friends and neighbors. They eventually worked their way into the casino circuit, or online these days, and then they found themselves under the bright lights of television.

The World Poker Tour is now part of the whole poker phenomenon that is sweeping the country. It airs every week on the Travel Channel on cable TV. It follows the ups and downs of 14 super high stakes poker tournaments, which are located around the world in some of the most famous gaming spots on the planet. The show even has special features like Ladies’ Night and celebrity contests.

The game of choice for the WPT is no-limit Texas Hold ‘Em. This may be far different than the Texas Hold ‘Em that you play at home or watch at casinos. This style of game heats up the action, since the players can bet as much as they like during any part of a hand. The biggest payoffs, and collapses, happen when a player goes “all in,” wagering his or her bet on one hand. Sounds exciting, right. The World Poker Tour is betting that you’ll think so and tune in.

Turfway Park Releases Winter/Spring Stakes Schedule Worth $3.85 Million

Lucrative purse money and Kentucky Derby qualifying points will be on the line during Turfway Park's annual Winter/Spring Meet, which will begin Sunday, Jan. 1 and feature the Grade 3, $700,000 Jeff Ruby Steaks on Saturday, March 25.

Led by the Jeff Ruby Steaks on the Road to the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve, Turfway Park will offer a total of 20 stakes races across the 48-day stand. Racing will be held Wednesday-Saturday in January-February and Thursday-Saturday March 2-April 1.

Along with the plentiful stakes calendar, Director of Racing Tyler Picklesimer's condition book will offer an average of $188,000 per day.

Jeff Ruby Steaks Day will highlight the meet and feature a total of six stakes events – the Jeff Ruby, the $300,000 TwinSpires Ky Cup Classic (Listed), the $300,000 Bourbonette Oaks – a Road to the Kentucky Oaks Championship Series Race, the $250,000 Animal Kingdom Stakes, the $250,000 Latonia Stakes and the $250,000 Rushaway Stakes.

The Road to the Kentucky Derby's first stop at the Florence oval will be Saturday, March 4 for the $150,000 John Battaglia Memorial. The card will also feature the $150,000 Cincinnati Trophy Stakes on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.

Many of the top trainers in the Kentucky region have stayed home this winter to compete at Turfway including Juan Cano, Greg Foley, Michael McCarthy, Kenny McPeek, Dale Romans and Mike Tomlinson. They will join annual Turfway mainstays Brad Cox, Mike Maker, Bill Morey and Wesley Ward. Cox won the 2021 title 15-12 over Maker and Morey. Ward finished fourth with 11 wins.

Jockey Gerardo Corrales, who dominated the 2021 Winter/Spring Meet with 54 wins, will return to defend his title. Other top jockeys that are scheduled to ride at the meet include Declan Cannon, Vince Cheminaud, Fernando De La Cruz, Jack Gilligan, Chris Landeros, Luan Machado, and Joe Ramos.

Tony Calo will serve as the interim track announcer while regular caller Jimmy McNerney recovers from neck surgery. Kaitlin Free will offer selections and analysis each race day on the simulcast feed.

The 19-day Turfway Park Holiday Meet will run through Sunday, Dec. 31. Racing is Wednesday-Saturday with first posts Wednesday-Friday at 5:55 p.m. and Saturday at 12:45 p.m.

Wagering is available on every race on www.TwinSpires.com, the official wagering provider of Churchill Downs Incorporated.

Ticketing and more information can be found on www.TurfwayPark.com.

Below is the full stakes schedule (purse totals include funds from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund):

Date	Stake	Running	Age	Distance	Purse
Sunday, Jan. 1	The Holiday Cheer	27	4yo & up	6f	$125,000
Saturday, Jan. 7	The Turfway Prevue	28	3yo	6.5f	$125,000
Saturday, Jan. 14	The Likely Exchange	25	F&M 4&up	1m	$125,000
Saturday, Jan. 21	The Leonatus Stakes	33	3yo	1m	$125,000
Saturday, Jan. 28	The Wishing Well	30	F&M 4&up	6.5f	$125,000
Saturday, Feb. 4	The Forego	39	4yo & up	6.5f	$125,000
Saturday, Feb. 11	The Valdale	36	F 3yo	6.5f	$125,000
Saturday, Feb. 18	The Dust Commander	32	4yo & up	1 1/16m	$125,000
Saturday, Feb. 25	The Wintergreen	37	F&M 4&up	1m	$125,000
Saturday, March 4	The Cincinnati Trophy	41	F 3yo	1m	$150,000
Saturday, March 4	The John Battaglia Memorial	41	3yo	1 1/16m	$150,000
Saturday, March 11	The Big Daddy	2	4yo & up	6f	$125,000
Saturday, March 18	The Queen	27	F&M 4&up	6f	$125,000
Saturday, March 25	The Jeff Ruby Stakes (GIII)	52	3yo	1 1/8m	$700,000
Saturday, March 25	The TwinSpires Ky Cup Classic (Listed)	23	4yo & up	1 1/8m	$300,000
Saturday, March 25	The Bourbonette Oaks	41	F 3yo	1 1/16m	$300,000
Saturday, March 25	The Rushaway	36	3yo	1 1/16m	$250,000
Saturday, March 25	The Animal Kingdom	37	3yo	6f	$250,000
Saturday, March 25	The Latonia	41	F&M 4&up	1 1/16m	$250,000
Saturday, April 1	The Serena's Song	2	3yo	6f	$125,000

The post Turfway Park Releases Winter/Spring Stakes Schedule Worth $3.85 Million appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Woodbine Thoroughbred Meet Generates Largest All-Sources Handle In Track History

Woodbine Entertainment announced Wednesday that the 2022 Thoroughbred season produced an all-sources handle of $621,782,346, the largest single-season total in Woodbine history.

The $621 million total smashes the previous record of $533 million set in 2018.

The 2022 Thoroughbred season was the first full season contested at Woodbine since the 2019 campaign. A total of 1,198 races were contested over 132 dates of racing. Both the 2020 and 2021 seasons had delayed starts and interruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We're very happy with the results of our 2022 season, our first full season in a few years,” said Jim Lawson, CEO of Woodbine Entertainment. “At the start of the pandemic, I felt that through determination and resiliency – which is the trademark of this industry – we would emerge stronger and this record all-sources handle is evidence we are on the right track.”

Woodbine continued its sizable gains in the foreign market in 2022, taking in a record $515 million in foreign handle. The previous record for foreign handle in a season was $420 million in 2021.

Woodbine's home market area generated $87.2 million in handle this season.

Woodbine handled on average $519,016 per-race in 2022, higher than any season pre-COVID. The average field size in 2022 was 8.2, which remains above the North America average.

“Our Racing Team did a fantastic job despite challenges in putting together competitive and sizable fields,” said Lawson. “Field size directly impacts our wagering and we're constantly looking at ways to keep our numbers healthy.”

Key Highlights

Highest single-season all-sources handle ($621M) in Woodbine history
Highest single-season foreign handle ($515M) in Woodbine history
Average per-race handle of $519,016 was higher than any season Pre-COVID
Average field size of 8.2 (above North American industry average)
25 race cards topped $6 million in handle (11 in 2019)
Moira captures 163^rd running of The Queen's Plate
Modern Games dominates in Ricoh Woodbine Mile
Reintroducing – The King's Plate

The 2023 Woodbine Thoroughbred season is scheduled to begin on Saturday, April 22. The 164^th running of The King's Plate will take place on Sunday, August 20.

For the latest information on Woodbine Racetrack, visit Woodbine.com or follow @WoodbineTB or @WoodbineComms on Twitter.

The post Woodbine Thoroughbred Meet Generates Largest All-Sources Handle In Track History appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Calo to Sub For McNerney at Turfway

Veteran race caller Tony Calo will fill in as the Turfway Park announcer while regular caller Jimmy McNerney recovers from neck surgery.

Calo, who has been the announcer at Finger Lakes since 2008, began his career in 1997 at Arapahoe Park in Aurora, CO. He also called at Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields.

Turfway is set to begin another four-day race week beginning Wednesday. First post Wednesday-Friday is 5:55 p.m. EST and at 12:45 p.m. on Saturday.

The post Calo to Sub For McNerney at Turfway appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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