Gov. Murphy Signs Bill Approving Fixed Odds at Monmouth

Fixed Odds wagering will be available at Monmouth Park in the coming weeks after Gov. Philip Murphy signed legislation Thursday approving the new bet, with implementation awaiting regulatory approval from the New Jersey Racing Commission and the Division of Gaming Enforcement.

Monmouth Park, working in conjunction with BetMakers Technology Group, will be the first racetrack in the country to offer Fixed Odds wagering, a popular bet in Europe and Australia.

“We appreciate the continued support from Gov. Murphy and the state legislature, as well as Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Steve Sweeney, in advancing Fixed Odds wagering,” said Dennis Drazin, Chairman and CEO of Darby Development LLC, the operator of Monmouth Park. “It provides our patrons with another wagering option that we firmly believe will be a popular one.”

The bill was co-sponsored by state assemblymen Ronald S. Dancer and Ralph R. Caputo and state senators Vin Gopal and Paul A. Sarlo.

Fixed Odds wagering allows bettors to retain the odds at the time of their bet, as opposed to pari-mutuel wagering, where odds are not finalized until betting is completed.

When it is available at Monmouth Park, Fixed Odds will be offered on win, place and show betting at the outset, with a minimum wager of $1. There will be designated Fixed Odds windows throughout the Grandstand and Clubhouse, with televisions displaying the current Fixed Odds.

Monmouth Park will also show the Fixed Odds for each race during the track's in-house televised feed of races.

Fixed Odds wagering will begin with Monmouth Park races, with the expectation that it will expand to other tracks that enter into an agreement to permit Fixed Odds wagering on their races.

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Fixed Odds Wagering At Monmouth Moves One Step Closer To Reality

Fixed Odds wagering moved a step closer to becoming a reality during the upcoming Monmouth Park Thoroughbred meet after the New Jersey State Assembly approved a bill on Thursday by a 74-0-1 vote that would permit the new betting platform.

The bill now moves onto to the State Senate and if successful would then go to Gov. Phil Murphy for a signature.

Monmouth Park's 76th season gets underway on Friday, May 28.

“This is an exciting new wagering opportunity for our fans and we're grateful for the support from our legislators and Governor Murphy, who continue to ensure the success of Thoroughbred racing in the state,” said Dennis Drazin, CEO and Chairman of Darby Development, LLC, the operators of Monmouth Park. “Our hope is that we can be up and running with Fixed Odds wagering in time for the TVG.com Haskell Stakes on July 17 — or sooner if possible.”

The bill was sponsored by Assemblymen Ralph Caputo and Ronald Dancer.

The Senate version of the bill is sponsored by State Senators Vin Gopal and Paul Sarlo and is co-sponsored by State Senators Steven Oroho and Declan O'Scanlon, Jr.

The bill has also been supported throughout the legislative process by Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney.

Fixed Odds wagering allows bettors to retain the odds at the time of their bet, as opposed to pari-mutuel wagering, where odds are not finalized until betting is completed.

The wager has proven to be extremely popular in Australia and Europe. Monmouth Park would become the first track in the United States to offer the wager.

Australia-based BetMakers Technology Group would deliver and manage Fixed Odds wagering at Monmouth Park after entering into an exclusive 10-year agreement with New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and Darby Development, LLC, last year.

Though odds will continue to change as usual as the pari-mutuel pools dictate, bettors have the option of locking into odds at the time of their bet under Fixed Odds wagering.

Monmouth Park's 53-day meet kicks off with four straight days of live racing from Friday through Monday over the Memorial Day weekend May 28-31. Post time on Fridays is 5 p.m. Post time on Saturdays, Sundays and Monday holidays is 12:15 p.m.

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Racing’s Biggest Hope: Embracing Fixed Odds Betting

by Thoroughbred Idea Foundation

Have you noticed the explosion of sports betting legalization around America?

As it stands now, horse racing is offered almost exclusively as a pari-mutuel wagering option, which often renders impossible the co-location of racing with other fixed odds sports bets. Be it Draft Kings, Fanduel, the new Barstool Sportsbook through Penn National Gaming, or any other provider in the growing number of states legalizing sports betting–racing is not amidst those offerings.

That puts U.S. racing at a monumental disadvantage.

In February 2019, the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation published “Horse Racing and ‘Legal’ Sports Betting,” a white paper which suggested racing’s greatest opportunity for growth through increased wagering participation will come from offering fixed odds betting on racing. That is, essentially, a sports betting-like product–with fixed prices, locked-in at the time of the bet on everything from the race itself, to props, futures, or other unique outcomes tied to the race.

“Probably our most fundamental problem, nationwide, is that racing is trying to survive a nearly two decade-long decline in handle, amidst what is the most competitive legal wagering marketplace in American history, all with a product that, mostly by design of its own industry, is increasingly uncompetitive,” TIF Executive Director Patrick Cummings said this week.

Racing needs to present its product adjacent to, not separate from, that which represents the greatest growth spurt in the history of legal, American betting.

“And make no mistake, we need to get our pari-mutuel betting product re-organized, with a relentless focus on improving pricing and finding ways to increase wagering churn. Either we get serious about this as an industry or things get worse. It should be an easy choice.”

With the growth experienced in sports betting and sports betting legalization over these last 20 months since our original publication, we invite you to go back and review our original thoughts and consider the possibilities for American racing.

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Thoroughbred Idea Foundation: Competition From Fixed-Odds Betting Good For Racing’s Customer

Legal, fixed-odds betting on horse racing in America, which has essentially been limited to big races offered by Nevada books, will take a big leap forward this summer when Monmouth Park, in partnership with Australian firm The Betmakers, will introduce a daily fixed-odds market for Monmouth's races and enable other bet-takers in the state to do the same. It is thought that fixed odds on simulcast races imported to New Jersey might be offered soon as well.

There should be little question that this is both a work-in-progress and a potentially massive step forward for racing, presenting customers with a new set of wagering options. Dennis Drazin, CEO of Darby Development, operators of Monmouth Park, has been the driving force behind the fixed odds play. He led a prolonged battle to overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which yielded legal sports betting in New Jersey and other states since.

Pari-mutuel betting has dominated the American landscape for decades. The only routine source of fixed odds betting for Americans on American racing is through “off-shore” options, which generally contribute nothing to tracks or horsemen. The evolution of regulated, fixed-odds wagering on racing in America will serve as a much-needed competitive volley against pari-mutuel options which have done little to modernize their product over the years.

As it grows, fixed odds betting on American racing should improve tote betting on American racing. It should inspire investment to modernize the tote system, to better serve customers and present a better betting experience. Without the competition, the American tote wagering experience has stagnated. Some examples

– Bet pricing is high.

– Tote breakage, the rounding down of tote dividends, is an archaic practice that has long-served as an additional tax on customers.

– Late odds changes make it near impossible for customers to know what they would expect to receive should they win.

– New bet types have favored higher takeout, lower-churn wagers.

– Markets are only visible for short periods, roughly only the 25 minutes between races. A majority of money wagered comes in the last minutes before a race is run.

– Projected payouts in exotic bets like trifectas, superfectas and pick “n” wagers (beyond doubles) are not offered.

In a more competitive landscape, bettors should expect service upgrades.

In Great Britain, a jurisdiction which has been dominated by fixed-odds betting for decades, pari-mutuel wagering (often called pool betting in the UK) has been a minor player. The UK Tote Group, a consortium of key owners and breeders in British racing, completed an acquisition and took-over pool betting in the country in late 2019.

Faced with a market that has been dominated by fixed odds betting, bolstered with a strong retail business through betting shops in nearly every British town and an online product supported by a near endless marketing blitz, the UK Tote Group had to devise a method to attract interest in a more sustainable source of betting for racing through pools betting.

Their idea – guarantee that the final tote win price at least match that of the final “starting price” offered by fixed odds providers on win bets (a single “starting price” is agreed upon for placement in the permanent record of the race). If the tote price falls short, the UK Tote Group will chip in to top-up the win dividend to winning customers, with protections in place to avoid manipulation.

Now, there are some very clear deficiencies with the British racing funding model.

Contributions from fixed-odds bookmakers represent a source of funding for purses, governed by the rules set out by the Horseracing Betting Levy Board (HBLB).

“The Levy on off-course betting…is collected from bookmakers as a percentage of the gross profit on their horserace betting business. The majority of Levy income is expended in direct support of horseracing.

“HBLB is among the most important contributors to horseracing's finances. The original intention of establishing the Levy, and therefore HBLB, was to provide a means of compensating racing for the loss of attendance that was anticipated when off-course betting shops were legalised in 1961. Today, HBLB applies Levy funds to a wide range of schemes in direct support of horseracing.”

Per-race prize money in the UK is some of the lowest in the world. There is no suggestion this funding model should be replicated in America, in fact, the funding model should be the opposite.

Establishing fair splits of existing tote betting and new fixed-odds betting on racing should be the key. New Jersey is seeking to prove and refine the model, the rest of the country should follow along enabling fixed-odds betting on racing.

It should be good for racing and the trickle down benefits felt by all of the sport's stakeholders.​​​​​

It's beyond time.

 

 

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