Hawthorne Racecourse (10/1/11)
Contact: Jim Miller
(708) 780-3700
Opening Day at Hawthorne
We’re back! We have beautiful weather, a fast main track and only one scratch as of 11:00 am on our Opening Day card. We are looking forward to a great fall meet as our overnight purses have been raised 50 percent from last fall. What that means for the horsemen is better purses and more race options for better horses. What it means for the bettors is a five day racing week, running live every Wednesday-Sunday and a Hawthorne fall meet staple….full fields!
Today is what you can expect to see all meet long as we average nearly 10 starters per race to kick off the meet. We wanted to play it safe with the recent weather this week and chose not to card any turf races today, but I fully expect we will be on the grass tomorrow and be able to utilize the turf greatly over what looks to be a gorgeous next two weeks.
For the players, we have made some changes. This fall we have lowered the takeout on the Pick 6, Place Pick 9 and High-5 wager from 25 percent to 20 percent. That means more money in the pockets of the players! Also, we are introducing the $.50 Pick 5 Wager with a super low 14 percent takeout. The Pick 5 will take place on the final five races of the day. Also, we have lowered the minimum on the Pick 6 from $2 to $1.
For this meet, we have some new faces for trainers and some others that are staying all meet long. Trainers Mike Stidham and Bret Calhoun are back. We have new barns from Tim Ice, John Haran and Gennadi Dorochenko. In addition, horses from the barns of Dale Bennett, Wayne Catalano, Tammy Domenosky and Larry Rivelli will remain through the end of the meet to help keep fields large.
Today’s feature is the 8th race with a fine field of nine. The only scratch today is in the race as #8-Conchacer is out. Look to Illinois-bred stakes winner Mighty Rule to be tough from the inside, but youngsters Papa Tango and Southern Dude each pose threats.
It will be a great meet, and best of luck to everyone on our opening day!
Hawthorne Race Course opens for live racing on Saturday, October 1 and races live through Saturday December 31. Live racing will be conducted five days a week, racing Wednesday-Sunday. Live racing will also take place on Monday, December 26. First post daily is 1:35 pm. On Fridays through November 25, first post will be 3:00 pm. Hawthorne Race Course is located in Stickney IL at 3501 S. Laramie Ave. For information on live racing or groups at Hawthorne Race Course, contact Hawthorne at 708-780-3700 or visit Hawthorne online at www.Hawthorneracecourse.com.
