Horse Betting

With racing's temporary opportunity as the only game in town, the TDN's Katie Ritz took a poll of some industry insiders known to like a good bet and asked them: what is one simple way that tracks could make betting more friendly for existing horseplayers and/or more effective at bringing in new players? As you'll see, none of them could stop at just one. Number 1: Horseplayer Ombudsman Racetracks should hire a horseplayer ombudsman who would--to steal from legendary Washington Post Editor Ben Bradlee's description of the role at his...

Thoroughbred Idea Foundation Two weeks ago, Microsoft announced the launch of its "Open Data Campaign," in their words, "to help address the looming 'data divide' and help organizations of all sizes to realize the benefits of data and the new technologies it powers. "We believe everyone can benefit from opening, sharing and collaborating around data to make better decisions, improve efficiency and even help tackle some of the world's most pressing societal challenges." Now, it is obvious that it is in Microsoft corporate's interests to convince others of this, but...

Much has been said and written about racing's opportunity during the coronavirus pandemic to capture wagering dollars typically directed towards sports betting or spent in casinos, and I'm happy to report that two of my closest friends have done their part in contributing to handle over the past month or so. Neither are complete rookies, but they don't regularly bet races. We actually started betting horses at the same time--early in our college careers, but they never got hooked on the sport like I did. They've been to Saratoga, will...