Re: How much would 8% takeout move the handle? (582 Views)
Posted by:
mjellish (IP Logged)
Date: September 23, 2015 11:43AM
I dunno Miff. I get it about the game moving more and more online. But I wouldn't throw in the towel on ontrack attendance. If I was the czar at a racetrack with carte blanche I would definitely do things to bring the regular players in (like lower takeout and offer amenities), and I would be doing things to bring the recreational players out as well. Canterbury does a very good job of this. They mail out vouchers that are guaranteed to be a winner (somewhere between $5 and $10,000) but they are only good on certain days, like Travers Day or MN Championship Day, etc. They have pony rides for kids on Sundays. They have free music and dollar hotdogs on Thursday nights. They used to have Golden Gloves boxing in between the races. All that stuff matters. Of course the facility also has to be clean and well managed with minimal hassles such as parking, lines at the bathrooms, traffic, etc.
They give me free admission and valet parking, which is nice. But if they also gave a 5% or a 3% rebate for ontrack wagers I think that would tip some people from playing online to playing onsite. There are other benefits to being on site such as being able to view the horses in the paddock, watch them warm up, note wind and track maintenance, view the entire field during the race, etc. Sometimes there are even hot women around, which never hurts. :)