State Regulators Clear the Way for Richer Claiming Purses at New York Tracks

New York's horsemen who make their living in the claiming ranks got good news from the state capital on Friday. The State Gaming Commission, without a dissenting voice, agreed to let the New York Racing Association's tracks and Finger Lakes raise the ceiling that governs how much purse money may be attached to a horse offered at a given claiming price. In plain terms, a claiming race at those tracks may now carry a larger pot relative to the tag on the horses entered than the old limit permitted. For the owners and trainers who fill the bulk of the state's daily cards with claiming stock, that is the kind of quiet administrative decision that shows up in the condition book long before it shows up in the headlines.

With reporting from Thoroughbred Daily News.