An apparent tote company equipment failure led to pari-mutuel wagering being open until several minutes after Monday's third race at Zia Park in Hobbs, N.M., had been run.
As first reported at Horseracingnation.com, the stop-wagering command did not shut down betting when it was supposed to, permitting on-track, off-track, and advance-deposit wagering to continue for 3 1/2 minutes after the one-mile, 70-yard race began. According to Horseracingnation, the start came at 1:03.39 p.m. Mountain Time and betting did not stop until 1:07.09. (The Equibase chart lists the race's start time of 1:07 p.m.) The race was run in 1:41.72.
The race was won by 4-5 favorite Playthemaker (2-1 on the morning line), with Henry On the Run finishing second at 6-5 odds (he was 9-5 favorite on the morning line).
Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission, said the commission has requested a written report from both Zia Park and the tote company, Global Tote, a New Jersey-based division of Betmakers.
Trejo said on-track bets placed on the winning horses at Zia Park prior to the mistake being realized were honored. The vast majority of wagers were made at out-of-state, off-track betting facilities or with ADW companies. “All ADW companies were notified,” Trejo said. He added that ADW companies should be able to confirm whether bets were made before or after the start of the race.
“Nothing stood out whatsoever as far as (betting) volume goes,” Trejo said of the race. A total of $24,388 was bet in the win, place, and show pools, with $23,015 wagered on exactas, $19,457 on trifectas, and $11,487 on superfectas.
Trejo said he received a preliminary statement from Penn Entertainment, owner of Zia Park, which read: “There was failure on the main tote-locking system…and the track back-up mechanism at the main Global Tote hub in New Jersey.”
At Zia Park, Trejo said, the stop-betting command is made via computer keyboard by a placing judge situated next to the stewards.
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