KY: Higher purses as Ellis Park meet opens

Daily Racing Form

A welcome rite of summer returns Friday to Ellis Park when the western Kentucky track begins its 2015 meet with an eight-race card.

Turf racing and 2-year-old racing – often at the same time – will characterize a 31-day meet that runs through Labor Day, Sept. 7. Purses will be better than ever, according to racing secretary Dan Bork, with some $150,000 per day being paid out to horsemen, including bonuses from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund.

“The Instant Racing machines that are open year-round are a big help toward purses,” said Bork, who has led the Ellis racing staff since Louisville businessman Ron Geary bought the track from Churchill Downs Inc. in September 2006.

Ellis has reported a 70 percent increase in Instant Racing gross receipts over the same period last year, and on Monday the track was granted permission by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to add 52 machines to its facility, bringing the total to 179. Purses for the live meet are boosted by 1.5 percent of gross take. Ellis officials are predicting a sizable increase in purses for 2016.

The opening-day card drew 88 horses, not counting also-eligibles, which translates to 11 per race. The featured seventh race is a $32,500, second-level allowance that drew an oversubscribed field. Three of the eight opening-day races are scheduled for turf. There are no 2-year-old races Friday, but the condition book is filled with opportunities for them.

“We’ll probably have at least three or four turf races every day, weather permitting,” said Bork. “The course is in great shape, and I’d say fans will see a lot of good 2-year-olds from top stables running here as the meet unfolds.”

Many of the same jockeys who competed at the recently ended Churchill spring meet will be at Ellis, with top riders such as Robby Albarado, Jon Court, Brian Hernandez Jr., Joe Rocco Jr., Miguel Mena, Francisco Torres, Jesus Castanon, and Victor Lebron being available most days.

The first of four stakes comes Saturday with the $50,000 Ellis Park Turf for fillies and mares. Entries for the 1 1/16-mile turf race were to be drawn Wednesday. The draw rotation changes next week, with entries being taken as far ahead as six days out.

The meet highlight comes Aug. 8 with the Grade 3, $100,000 Groupie Doll, a one-mile filly-and-mare race formerly known as the Gardenia.

The ever-popular weiner-dog races will be held July 11, 12, and 18, and ostrich and camel races are scheduled for July 25. Sundays are dollar days and often bring out the biggest crowds.

Racing will be conducted on a Friday-through-Sunday basis, with first post set for 12:50 p.m. Central every day except the final Saturday of the meet (Sept. 5), when the track will experiment with a twilight post.

Jimmy McNerney, a top jockey agent on the circuit, will be the regular race-caller at his hometown track for the first time. Since former race-caller Luke Kruytbosch died in 2008, that job had been handled by Bill Downes and Keith Nelson.

After midweek rain in the Henderson, Ky., area, the opening-day forecast calls for a 50 percent chance of showers and a high temperature of 80.

◗ One leftover piece of business from the Churchill meet: Shaun Bridgmohan has been suspended three racing days (July 10-12) for a June 26 riding infraction. Bridgmohan, along with Corey Lanerie and Julien Leparoux, is headed to the Saratoga meet that starts July 24.