Plan Is Nixed by Racing Board

Hollywood Park officials reacted angrily Thursday after the California Horse Racing Board turned down the track’s request to discontinue betting a minute or more before the start of each race.

“Most of my comments would be under the heading of ‘expletives deleted,’ ” said Rick Baedeker, president of Hollywood Park. “I’m surprised and disgusted. The racing board has chosen convenience over integrity.”

In the aftermath of the pick-six scandal at last month’s Breeders’ Cup, and in response to bettors’ concerns that bets on Hollywood Park races were being made after the races started, Churchill Downs Inc. announced Nov. 8 that its tracks, which include Hollywood, would halt betting as the horse-loading process began at the gate. Churchill Downs and other tracks in its family, including Calder Race Course in Florida and Hoosier Park in Indiana, have begun the new system, but Hollywood Park needed racing board approval.

The board rejected Hollywood Park’s proposal by a 5-1 vote. Commissioner Marie Moretti supported the measure and a seventh board member, William Bianco, was absent.

“[The change] is not worth the inconvenience to the relatively few horseplayers that we’ve been able to keep coming to the track,” said Alan Landsburg, the racing board chairman. “This would be a penalty for the players who like to wait as long as they can to make their bets.”

Had the board approved Hollywood Park’s request, the change would not have affected other tracks, several of which support the status quo.

“This is a kick in the face,” Tom Meeker, chairman of Churchill Downs Inc., said by phone. “What also bothers me is that the board didn’t articulate, in my judgment, a good reason to turn us down. The sport has been hit over the head by a 2-by-4, and this is the time for rock-solid leadership. This was one of the things I thought we could fix, but maybe the racing board doesn’t believe that Hollywood Park is a good licensee.”

John Van de Kamp, president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California, said his group felt that the Hollywood proposal needed more study.

“We can’t wait six months to do something,” Baedeker said. “The public isn’t stupid. When they see the odds change when the horses are turning for home, they have a problem, and the industry has a horrible perception problem because of this.”

Baedeker and Brooks Pierce, president of Autotote Systems Inc., said there is no evidence that any bets at Hollywood have come in after horses have left the gate. Baedeker explained that because of late money sent into the pools from off-track players at hundreds of remote sites, it can take as long as 86 seconds before all the bets show up on the Hollywood tote board.

The New York Racing Assn., starting at its Aqueduct track on Dec. 4, will close betting to off-track players once the first horse enters the starting gate. On-track bettors will still be able to bet up to the time the race starts.

There would have been drawbacks at Hollywood Park had the early shutdown been approved. Besides the greater chances of more bettors being shut out, bettors would not have had the luxury of backing another horse if there was a late scratch at the gate, and a bettor could have been stuck with the lesser half of a two-horse entry if the stronger horse had been a gate scratch.

Citing an informal poll of 300 patrons at his track last weekend, Baedeker said customers need positive action to bolster their confidence. The survey showed that 68% felt there are likely to be fraudulent bets after the races start; and that 69% lacked confidence in the tote system. Baedeker said that 53% favored an early betting cutoff, while 40% were opposed.

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Roger Licht, an attorney and racing commissioner since March 2001, was elected to a one-year term, beginning in January, as chairman of the California Horse Racing Board. John Harris was elected vice chairman, a position Licht had held.