For Immediate Release
Contact: Jim Miller – 708-780-3700
December 28, 2020
Successful Fall
Hawthorne Meet Wraps Up
STICKNEY, IL – In a year that saw a break during the summer
harness meet for racing, limited to no fans in the facility, and uncertainty throughout
the industry with virus concerns, the fall thoroughbred meet
at Hawthorne wrapped up with strong handle and field size increases. While the vast majority of handle came from
locations off-site due to Covid-19 restrictions, great support from the
horsemen in the entry box, beautiful weather, and support of the wagering
public made for sizeable gains during the 34 day fall meet.
For
handle, with restrictions in place throughout 2020, the only true comparison comes
with total handle as $65,658,122 was wagered over the 34 racing days in 2020.
This was compared to $44,763,380 wagered on the 30 cards in the 2019 October
through December timeframe. This translated to a 29% per card increase in
handle of $1,931,121 wagered per card in 2020 compared to $1,492,112 in the
fall of 2019. For the 2020 meet, 15
cards surpassed $2 million in handle, compared to just one in 2019.
Field
size greatly increased as well. With 298 races run in 2020, compared to 277 in
2019, a total of 2,694 horses started this fall, compared to 2,251 last season. Total average field size for the meet increased from
8.13/race in 2019 to 9.04 in 2020. The nice weather paid off for turf races as
49 races were run on the grass in 2020, compared to just 19 in 2019.
On the
track, jockey Victor Santiago won his second Hawthorne riding title, winning 32
races. 2019 champ Jareth Loveberry had another strong
meet, finishing with 28 wins. Loveberry was followed
by Chris Emigh, Julio Felix, and newcomer Francisco
Arrieta, each with 27 wins apiece.
Trainer
Hugh Robertson took his second consecutive training title, winning 26 races
this fall. Scott Becker finished second with 16 wins. A strong first Hawthorne
meet from Karl Broberg had him in third with 14
victories, tied with Brittany Vandenberg.
A big
closing day pushed Novogratz Racing Stables to the
owner’s title, winning 16 races, followed by William Stritiz
with 13 victories and End Zone Athletics, Inc. with 10 wins.
Two
horses won five races during the fall meet as Wake Up Joe and Verrazano First
both accomplished that feat. Readthecliffnotes scored
four times during the fall racing season.
“2020 has
been a year unlike any other at Hawthorne,” stated Hawthorne President and
General Manager Tim Carey. “We faced uncertainty with the racing schedule, fans
on-site, and working around casino construction at our facility. Working hand
in hand with our horsemen made a great difference though. They are excited
about what is just around the corner at Hawthorne for racing and showed their
support all meet long. While 2020 turned
out to be a strong fall meet for us, I cannot wait for what we can do for
racing in Illinois in 2021 and beyond.”
Hawthorne Race Course, Chicago’s
Hometown Track, returns for live thoroughbred racing on March 6, 2021. Spring
thoroughbred racing will take place through April 25. The Suburban Downs summer
harness meet kicks off on May 7, racing through September 26. Fall thoroughbred
racing returns October 1, racing through December 26. For information on Bet
and Go wagering at Hawthorne Race Course as well as PointsBet Sportsbook wagering, visit www.Hawthorneracecourse.com.
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