Emerald Down's 2023 live racing season concluded Sunday as it began over 4 1/2 months ago, with perfect weather in Auburn, Wash. During the 52-day meet conducted over 20 weekends, the track was rated Fast on 51 of the 52 days.
Attendance was up 16 percent over 2022, averaging 3,078 per race day. The biggest crowd of the year was on July 3 when over 9,100 people showed up for racing and fireworks. Over 8,000 attended live racing on July 23 when Corgi Races were the featured promotion.
Overall handle was $60,475,522 for an average of $1,162,991 per day. While this was a decrease of 10.6 percent over 2022, the track's retention from handle increased 3.7 percent due to changes in host fees. Total Takeout decreased from 19.56 percent in 2022 to 18.87 percent in 2023.
A total of 709 horses started 2,847 times over 435 races for an average field size of 6.54. There were 282 horses who started at least five times at the meet.
Total purses distributed was $7,064,322, an average of $135,852 per race day. Purses for the 2023 race meet were generated as follows:
*12% from Live Racing *60% from ADW and Simulcast Revenue *3% from fees *25% contribution from the Muckleshoot Tribe who own and operate the track
Emerald Downs will announce the race meet dates for 2024 in October, but the plan is to open on Saturday, May 4, Kentucky Derby Day.
The post Emerald Downs: Handle Down 10.6 Percent In 2023, Attendance Up 16 Percent appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
