Total purses pass the $1-billion mark in 1999 with strong increases again in average earnings per runner and average purse per race

THOROUGHBRED racing passed a major milestone in 1999 when the sport distributed more than $1-billion in total purses in North America. Purses in North America broke the $100-million barrier in 1962, and it took 19 years to pass the $500-million mark, doing so in 1981. It took another 18 years for total purses to double from that point.

The total purse money distributed last year is another reminder of how large the Thoroughbred industry is and how important it is to the economies of many states. The $1-billion paid in purses largely was provided by bettors through a percentage of the pari-mutuel wagering handle. In 1999, handle in North America reached a record $13.7-billion, increasing 4.7% from 1998. Pari-mutuel handle was not the sole source of purse money. Also contributing were subsidies from states' portion of handle, revenues from slot machines or video lottery terminals, state taxes on other forms of gambling, and money from race sponsors, among other sources.

No matter the source of the increase, the bounty in purses has helped to spur confidence in the sport and has attracted record investment in racing and breeding stock. In 1999, the total amount spent at auction in North America-$986.6-million-almost equaled purses. On racing prospects-weanlings, yearlings, and two-year-olds-$691-million was expended. Buyers in 1999 spent $154-million on two-year-olds in training, which is $42-million more than all money distributed in purses to juveniles for the year.

The strong increase in total purses occurred while total races declined 1.7%. That resulted in average purses increasing at a faster rate than total purses. The average purse rose 5.9% in 1999 to a record $16,770, the eighth consecutive annual advance.

Another major factor influencing averages positively was the number of runners competing for purses. Because the total number of runners remained relatively flat from 1998, average earnings per runner increased 4.1%, the same percentage as purses. Average earnings per runner rose to $14,732, marking the 13th straight year that this benchmark has increased.

Median earnings per runner-half the runners earned more than this amount and half earned less-rose even faster than average purse or earnings per runner. Median earnings climbed 7.5%, to $5,310. Median earnings per runner also have increased 13 straight years.

Highlights of 1999

Highlights in this annual review of purses and runners in North America include:

• A record $1,008,162,608 in purses was distributed in 60,118 races, the fewest races held in North America since 1972;
• Average purse increased to $16,770, an increase of 40.2% since 1995;
• Average earnings per runner increased to a record $14,732, a 30.6% increase since 1995;
• Real average earnings per runner-adjusted for inflation-increased 2.6% from 1998;
• Median earnings per runner continued to soar, rising 7.5% in 1999 and 123.5% over the last ten years;
• A total of 7,470 runners-10.9% of all starters-failed to earn any part of a purse;
• More than half of all starters-50.3%-failed to win a race;
• Winners earned an average $26,771, nonwinners an average $2,846;
• Horses that won a stakes race earned an average $131,668;
• Winners collectively earned 90.3% of all purse money;
• 15.7% of all runners earned $25,000 or more and collectively won 66.1% of all purse money;
• 73.7% of all runners earned less than $15,000;
• Races at 1 1/4 miles accounted for just 0.4% of total races but distributed 2.6% of all purse money;
• Stakes races constituted 4.3% of all races and offered 23.6% of total purses;
• More than half of all races offered a purse of less than $10,000;
• Claiming races-maiden claiming and straight claiming-accounted for 65.6% of all races run;
• Almost half of all races were carded at six furlongs or less;
• The average number of starts per horse continued its long decline, falling to 7.2 in 1999, the fewest ever; and
• Average field size declined to 8.2, matching its lowest ever.

This is the 27th year All About Purses has been published. The analysis started in The Thoroughbred Record in 1973 and has been published in Thoroughbred Times since 1990. As in the past, the data reflect all Thoroughbred purses distributed to racehorses in North America in 1999, excluding Mexico and Puerto Rico, and were provided to Thoroughbred Times based on data obtained from the Jockey Club Information Services Inc. Steeplechase races are excluded. Errors always occur due to omissions, processing problems, and other causes. While this publication must disclaim any liability for any such errors that might occur, we would appreciate readers calling them to our attention.

Record purses

The most significant number in 1999 was the $1-billion distributed in total purses. The record amount was distributed in 60,118 races. With 1,023 fewer races run in 1999 than in 1998, average purse increased once more, by a healthy 4.1% after a jump of 13.2% in 1998. Average purse has risen strongly since the beginning of the decade and accelerated when the sport began its full-fledged adoption of whole-card simulcasting. Since 1991, average purse has increased 73.3%. In 1998, total purses had increased 9%, the second-largest annual increase in total purses in 30 years.

Table 1 presents the big picture of racing in 1999 and over the last ten years in detailing total and average purses, number of races and runners, average earnings per runner, median earnings per runner, and percentage of runners earning purses.

While total purse money has increased and the number of races has declined every year in the last nine, the number of runners has declined in near tandem with the number of races. Since 1990, the number of runners has declined 23.7%, closely tracking the 24.8% decline in total races in that same period. In 1999, the number of runners was 68,435, almost exactly level from the 68,419 runners in 1998. The negligible increase of 16 runners marked the first time in ten years the number of runners has not declined. The number of runners in North America peaked in 1989 at 91,436. From 1989 to '99, the number of runners has declined 25.2%.

It is no wonder then that the overall averages-earnings per runner and purse per race-are improving so much. With fewer runners competing for far more dollars per race, it is just what the doctor ordered after the sport had been overrun by races and foals in the mid-1980s. The peak in the North American foal crop-51,296 in 1986-resulted in a record number of starters three years later in 1989.

A decade-long decrease in races and runners while handle and purses have increased explains in large part why demand for racing stock has been so strong over the past six years. Average prices for yearlings sold at auction doubled in that time, from an average of $25,143 in 1993 to $50,263 in 1999.

Just as averages have risen, so too have median earnings, and by an even larger percentage. Median earnings increased 7.5% in 1999.

That is the good news. The bad news is that 50% of all runners in North America in 1999 earned $5,310 or less. If the cost of training a horse is $50 per day at a midlevel track, median earnings come nowhere close to covering the annual training costs, let alone the cost of the horse itself. Even average earnings of $14,732 fell short of the annual expense of keeping a horse in training.

Table 1 also reports that 89.1% of all starters in North America earned some part of a purse last year. That is up marginally from 1998 and up 6.1% since 1990, as more tracks have paid purses down to minor placings. In practice, paying minor awards does little to enrich owners of those horses that fail to win. As will be seen later, horses that win at least one race earn 90.3% of all purse money offered.

Real earnings up

Table 2 outlines data in Table 1 in real dollars-adjusted for inflation-over the same ten-year period. Most significant observation is that inflation has been benign over the past five years. In deflated terms, purses were still $965.95-million last year, roughly equal to current-dollar purses in 1998. In short, horse owners did not lose ground in buying power last year.

That is the good news about recent years. In looking over a longer time frame, however, deflated total purses have not increased much in the last decade; deflated purses are up just 8.2%, from $892.6-million in 1990.

But, as with current dollars, the powerful trend of fewer runners and fewer races has been a boon to averages. Average deflated purse has risen 44%, or five times more than total deflated purses, since 1990. And average earnings per runner have risen similarly, 41.9%, in that same time.

Average earnings in real, inflation-adjusted dollars were a robust $14,115 in 1999. That is the highest level it has been since 1970, when we first began to compile such statistics. In 1970, deflated average earnings per runner were $12,999, and that figure generally trended down until bottoming out in 1991. It has risen every year since. Granted, it is not much of an increase in a 30-year period, but it does show that average earnings per runner now are keeping up with inflation.

Deflated median earnings per runner escalated 6% last year and 86% over the decade. Still, half of all runners earned $5,088 or less in real dollars.

Changing the deflator

As a caveat, it should be noted that the inflation-adjusted data presented this year will not be comparable with last year's. As the federal government is wont to do every three or four years, it recently changed the gross domestic product implicit price deflator, changing the base year from 1992 to 1996. While in last year's review 1992 was the base year, equaling 100, now 1996 is the base year. In the 1995 All About Purses article, 1987 had been the base year.

According to the new inflation-adjusted numbers, 1998 total purses were a record, but we did not know that until this year. In the review of purses last year, 1989 had offered the highest total deflated purses. With the new deflator, 1998 was a record, as is 1999, by an even wider margin.

In fact, the new deflator makes the big picture look even better than last year when compared by constant dollars. For instance, in last year's review, the deflated average earnings per runner had been $12,558. Now, that 1998 figure is $13,759, or 9.6% higher.

This ever-changing shifting sand makes it hard to compare data from one year to the next when it differs so dramatically from previous years, Whatever the case and no matter which figures you care to believe, the important point for horsemen is that total purses, average earnings, and average purses are all going up in both current dollars and deflated dollars. That is good news any way that you slice it.

Smaller picture

Tables 1 and 2 look at the macroeconomic view of the racing picture. Beginning with Table 3, we break down earnings and purses into the microeconomic view-how individual classes of runners fared within the vast opportunity afforded at racetracks across this country.

Table 3 breaks down the runners by how much they earned in 1999. As can be seen, average earnings per runner in 1999 came to $14,732, but there is a broad range of distribution because median was $5,310. At one end of the spectrum, 7,470 runners-10.9% of all runners-did not earn anything. At the other end, 144 runners-0.2% of the total-earned $300,000 or more each. Those 144 runners won $87.45-million, or 8.7% of the year's total purse money.

As seen in Figure 1, the distribution at the top end of the earnings range is sparse. Just 1.6% of all runners earned $100,000 or more (combining $100,000 to $199,999 and $200,000 or more), and just 2.9% earned $75,000 or more. Largest earnings category was $1,000 to $4,999, accounting for more than 20% of all runners. The 1,127 that earned $100,000 or more (out of 68,435 starters) won $234,958,659, or 23.3% of all purse money.

Table 4 reorganizes the data in Table 3 to present cumulative percentages and running totals for earnings by range in a less-than/more-than format. The data are organized around the earnings levels in the middle column, with the left column showing cumulative statistics of runners earning less than stated amounts and the right column showing cumulative statistics of runners earning more than stated amounts.

In the middle column, for example, is the earnings figure of $20,000. To find information pertaining to horses that earned more than that amount in 1999, refer to data on the right side of the table. The column immediately to the right of $20,000 indicates that 13,660 runners earned more than that amount in 1999. The cumulative earnings of those runners-20% of all runners-totaled $732,012,860, representing 72.6% of all earnings and average earnings per runner of $53,588.

On the left side of the table, the percentages are the obverse and the averages are recalculated. In 1999, 54,775 runners-80% of the total-earned less than $20,000, with average earnings per runner of $5,042.

If training costs are $15,000 a year, data in Table 4 indicate that 73.7% of all starters in 1999 earned less than that amount.

At the bottom of Table 4, it can be seen that 7,470 runners earned less than $1. The right side of the table indicates that 16,537 runners earned more than $1. Average earnings of the latter group came to $16,537.

The highest earnings category in Table 4, $3,020,500, belongs to Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Cat Thief.

Stakes winners

Everyone wants to campaign a stakes winner, to be in the winner's circle after the track's featured race. There is a good monetary reason for this: Stakes winners earn more on average than any other class of runners. Table 5 presents information relating only to the 1,796 horses-just 2.6% of all runners-that won a stakes race (a stakes race being any added-money event regardless of added value) in 1999. Those 2.6% of all runners earned 23.5% of all purse money.

As can be seen, stakes winners on average earned $131,668 last year. That is almost nine times more than the average earnings per runner for all starters. In fact, when taking out the $236.47-million earned by stakes winners, the other 66,639 runners earned an average of $11,580, or 11 times less than stakes winners.

While averages present the big picture of being a stakes winner, not all stakes winners are equal. Table 5 breaks down earnings by stakes winners into categories.

In 1999, 112 stakes winners, or 6.2% of the total, earned less than $15,000 each. At the other end of the spectrum, 7.8% of the stakes winners earned $300,000 or more and averaged $614,637 each. Those 140 stakes winners accounted for 36.4% of all money won by stakes winners last year. The 744 stakes winners that earned $100,000 or more accounted for 78.2% of all earnings by stakes winners.

A number of nonstakes winners earned $100,000 or more, as can be seen by referring to Table 4. Since 1,126 runners earned $100,000 or more (Table 4) and 744 stakes winners earned $100,000 or more, 382 nonstakes winners earned six figures in 1999.

As nice as it was to have a stakes winner in 1999, earnings of the average stakes winner actually did not keep up with inflation last year. In 1998, stakes winners earned an average of $131,645, meaning the increase of just $23 in current-dollar earnings was negligible.

Table 6 (on page 21) breaks down distribution of the 1,796 stakes winners by age and sex. By showing the disparity of earnings by age and sex, it illustrates the differences in opportunity afforded each group by age and sex.

Two-year-old stakes winners earned an average of $95,063 in 1999, or 27.8% less than the overall average for all stakes winners of all ages. The disparity in the overall average earnings for the other age brackets is not as large, though four-year-olds earn slightly more on average. That has been true for the last four years.

One reason two-year-old stakes winners earn less on average than their older counterparts is because they start less often and not because they lack opportunity. As can be seen in Table 11, two-year-olds start an average 3.5 times, less than half the overall average for all ages. Table 12 shows that average purses for two-year-olds are the highest for any age bracket.

Table 6 also illustrates that there is a difference between the sexes when it comes to stakes earnings. Male stakes winners earned an average $140,222, while female stakes winners earned an average $120,774.

Starts and wins

Getting into the starting the gate is the first step toward winning purse money. Until that happens, an owner has no chance of recouping his or her training expenses. (Note that this study comprises only starters; many horses in training last year never made a start in a sanctioned pari-mutuel race.)

Table 7-which examines earnings as a function of number of starts-illustrates how important it is to earnings potential to get a horse into the starting gate as many times as possible. Horses that start the most earn the most.

As seen in the table, horses that made one start in 1999 earned an average $1,644; horses that made five starts earned an average $11,927; and horses that made ten starts earned an average $22,554. Average earnings per start in 1999 were $2,044.

Horses that started more than ten times each earned an average $24,772. Those 24.8% of all runners collectively earned 41.8% of all purses. Their average earnings per start of $1,748 were weighed down in part by the horses that started more than 13 times each. As can be seen, average earnings per start declined noticeably for those horses that started more than once a month on average.

It should be noted that in 1999 the average number of starts per horse was a historic low of 7.2 (Table 15). In 1989, with the highest number of runners and the greatest competition for spots in the starting gate, 30.7% of all runners made more than ten starts. That clearly shows the decline in the soundness of horses, a change in the way horses are campaigned, or both.

Table 7 also shows that averages are merely averages. Though the average number of starts per horse in 1999 was 7.2, just 6.6% of all starters last year made seven starts and just 6.1% made eight starts. The largest groups were one and two starts, 19.6% of all horses, and 11-to-15 starts, 18% of starters.

While starting is the first step toward earning money, Table 8 clearly illustrates that winning is the most important factor affecting earnings. Horses that won one race in 1999 earned an average $15,356, or slightly more than the overall average of $14,732 per starter for the year. However, those horses that did not win, 50.3% of all starters, earned an average $2,846 and just 9.7% of all purse money.

Each additional win added significantly to the top-line revenues for an owner. Horses that won two races last year earned an average $29,602, or nearly twice as much as horses that won one race. Horses that won three races earned an average $44,191, or about 50% more than two-time winners. Average earnings per runner jumped by more than $22,000 for those horses that won four races. The biggest jump occurred with six wins, to $100,893, and eight wins, to $152,897.

As owners of 50.3% of runners that failed to win can attest, winning even one race is tough. Table 8 shows that winning subsequent races is equally hard.

While 26.9% of all starters won one race, only about half as many, 13.1%, proved capable of winning two races. That steep drop-off-with about half as many horses being able to win another race-holds true as you go up the ladder. Just less than half as many horses are able to win three races as two, and less than half as many are able to win four races as three.

Table 8 also shows how difficult it is to win a lot of races. Just 119 horses-less than 0.2% of all runners-were able to win more than six races. It was the first time since 1996 that at least one horse has not had at least 13 wins in a single year; ten victories each by two horses topped the list.

The effect of wins on earnings is dramatic. While half as many horses won two races as won one race, the earnings of the 8,987 horses winning two races ($266.0-million, or 26.4% of all purses) approached that of the 18,380 one-race winners ($282.2-million, or 28%).

Since the 1980s, the percentage of horses winning a specific number of races has remained relatively constant. Starters able to win one race constitute 25% of all runners; two races, 13%; and three races, 6%.

Table 9 presents the data of Table 8 in the not-more-than/more-than format. The data at the bottom of the table on the left indicate that 50.3% of all runners could not win more than zero races and 77.2% of the runners could not win more than one race.

The figures in the table are cumulative; they include all horses falling into the not-more-than category. For example, the average earnings per runner of $13,841 for the 98.6% of the runners that could not win more than four races include data for all horses that won four, three, two, one, and zero races.

The right side of the table presents cumulative not-more-than data. Those horses that won at least one race (more than zero) earned an average $26,771, while those that won at least two races (more than one) earned an average $40,204.

As in Table 8, average earnings per win rise dramatically, as they do in Table 8, with each successive victory. While only 9.7% of all runners won more than two races, those that did earned an average $54,574. Those runners that won more than five races earned an average $103,382.

Gotta win

As shown in Tables 8 and 9, winning is vital to earning enough purse money to pay training bills. Table 10, which details money earned by best finish position, shows even more emphatically why in racing winning is everything.

Table 8 showed that horses unable to win earned just 9.7% of all purse money. Obversely, as shown in Table 10, horses that won a race collectively earned 90.3% of all purse money. As the line for horses that were able to finish first shows, 49.7% of the runners that were able to win a race earned 100% of first-place purses, 78.1% of second-place money, 75.3% of third-place money, and 72.9% of fourth-place money.

While winners averaged $26,771, 14% of the horses that could finish no better than second earned 7.1% of total purse money, an average of $7,463 each. Horses that finished first and second collectively earned 97.4% of all purse money.

Table 10 implies that awarding token fees for the minor placings will do little to help an owner pay the bills. Unless a horse is able to win a race, the earnings on average are going to be too little to make much of a dent in training bills.

Table 10 also shows that the national average paid to first place was 60% of the purse, with 19.9% to second and 11.1% to third.

The data in Table 10 are presented as a pie chart in Figure 2. The distribution of money to horses based on best finish position has not changed much over the last several decades. In racing, to the victor go the spoils.

Starts and earnings

As has been stated before, getting into the starting gate is the first step toward the winner's circle. It naturally follows that the more times a horse starts the greater his or her chance of success. Table 11 details starts and earnings for all age groups and is broken down by three major categories: winners, nonwinning earners, and nonearners.

The data in Table 11 emphasize how important starts are to earning money. Simply put, winners start about twice as often as horses that fail to win but earn money, and winners start almost five times more often as horses that fail to earn any part of a purse.

Two-year-olds started just 3.5 times each on average, compared with 7.2 overall for all starters for the year. Two-year-old winners started an average 4.9 times, while juveniles that failed to win but earned money started an average 3.3 times, and nonearners started just 1.7 times each.

A more dramatic difference exists in the earnings of each category. Two-year-olds that won earned an average $5,483 per start, while nonwinning earners earned an average $942 per start. Two-year-old winners earned the most per start, by almost exactly twice as much as the overall average for all winners for all ages.

The differences between winners and nonwinners holds true for the other age brackets. Three-year-old winners started almost twice as often as three-year-olds that did not win, and three-year-olds that won a race earned more than four times as much per start than nonwinning earners.

Clearly, getting into the starting gate as often as possible is a key to winning and earning purse money.

Table 11 also shows the composition of winners by age. Of the 33,998 winners in 1999, 10.4% were two-year-olds, 31% were three-year-olds, and 25.2% were four-year-olds. That means of the 10,957 two-year-old starters in 1999 (as listed in Table 13), 3,536 were winners, or 32.2% of the juvenile starters. The overall totals at the bottom of Table 11 are for the averages for all categories for the year. That is, 49.7% of all starters won, 39.4% of all nonwinning starters earned some portion of a purse, and 10.9% of all starters earned nothing.

Age, sex differences

How races and purses were actually distributed by age and sex in 1999 is outlined in Table 12.

While the overall average purse per race in 1999 was $16,770, the average purses for races for two- and three-year-olds were much higher. Two-year-olds ran for an average purse of $24,551, and three-year-olds for a purse of $24,483. Races for three-year-olds and up and four-year-olds and up both offered average purses almost 40% less than for two- or three-year-olds.

The high average purse for three-year-old races reflects the disproportionate amount of money allocated to races for sophomores. Races solely for three-year-olds account for 11.6% of all races but distribute 16.9% of total purse money.

Two-year-olds had the smallest proportion of races in 1999-7.6%- but they received 11.1% of all purse money. The category with the most races was three-year-olds and up, with 64.4% of all races and 57.6% of purses.

Races solely for fillies accounted for 40.5% of the total, although they had the opportunity to run in open company the majority of the time (an additional 58.7% of the races were open to either sex).

Table 13 presents data on performance by age and sex according to runners and earnings. The data in this table suggest that fillies do not have equal opportunity on the track even if they can run in open company. As can be seen from the totals, while fillies made up 43.8% of all runners, they earned just 42% of all purses (and only 40.5% of the races were for females, as seen in Table 12).

In every age bracket but four-year-olds, males earned more on average than females. In the three-year-old category, males earned an average $18,295 per runner compared with $15,967 for fillies. Overall, males earned an average $15,197 while females earned an average $14,134.

Three-year-olds were the largest group by age, with 29.2% of all runners, followed by four-year-olds. Three-year-olds also earned more on average than any other age group, taking 34% of all purse money available. The average earnings of $17,138 is in part due to the fact that purses for three-year-olds (Table 12) are higher than for any other age bracket, plus three-year-olds have the opportunity to compete outside their age division, especially in the fall.

Two-year-olds earned on average less than all other age groups, $10,232, which is 30.5% less than the $14,732 overall average earnings per runner. Again, that was largely because two-year-olds start less often.

Class and field size

As has been the case for decades, claiming races are the most common type of race in North America. Last year, 65.6% of all races-roughly two of three-were claiming races. Class of races in North America in 1999 is detailed in Table 14. Data in the table are broken down by key statistics that provide a snapshot of racing in America on any given day.

The average purse in a claiming race-maiden claiming or straight claiming-was $9,328, or 44.4% less than the overall average purse. While claiming races were abundant, claiming purses did not receive anywhere near the same proportionate amount of funding. Claiming races distributed just 36.5% of all purse money. Claiming contests averaged 8.3 starters per race.

The percentage of claiming races as a whole has declined rather markedly in the last decade. In 1989, before whole-card simulcasting took off across this country, claiming races constituted 73.8% of all races. That represents a 11.1% decline in claiming races in ten years.

While the percentage of claiming races is declining, maiden races, stakes races, and starter allowance and optional claiming races have been filling the void. In 1989, straight maiden races accounted for 8.3% of all races; in 1999, it was 10.3%. In 1989, stakes races accounted for 3.3% of all races; in 1999, it was 4.3%. In 1989, starter allowance and optional claiming races made up 1.3% of all races; in 1999, it was 1.8%.

Allowance races are the second-most common races, constituting 15.9% of all races held in North America last year. Allowance races featured an average purse of $23,680 and distributed 22.4% of all purses. Third-most common race was the straight maiden race, with 10.3% of all races and 12.3% of total purses.

Stakes races distributed the greatest percentage of money for the number of races-23.6% of all purse money from 4.3% of the races. The 2,608 stakes races distributed an average purse of $91,350. In the last ten years, the average stakes purse has climbed by 23.5%, from $73,972 in 1990, when 25.5% of total purse money went into stakes. The rise in average stakes purse in ten years is roughly one-third of the 73% overall increase in average purses in that same period.

Figure 3 presents the data in Table 12. It shows that approximately three out of every four races held is a claiming race, maiden claiming race, or maiden race.

The average number of starts per horse in 1999 was an all-time low of 7.2. The historical trend of starts per horse and average field size is detailed in Table 15.

In 15 years, the average number of starts per horse declined 13.3% at a time when opportunity has expanded due to fewer horses competing for spots in the starting gate. Average field size has declined to 8.2 runners in 1999 from 9.1 in 1985, when 86,022 runners competed in 77,732 races.

Field size has remained relatively stable over the last six years, and it historically has been affected by average number of starts per horse. In 1985, horses were making 1.1 more starts per year on average. in 1966, horses were starting an average of 10.5 times a year. In 1960, horses were making slightly more than 11 starts per year.

Distance and purses

Getting a good horse that can run long is the best path to potential riches in racing because races at longer distances have higher than average purses. Table 16 presents the distribution of races and purses by distance (excluding all two-year-old races since most of them are at sprint distances).

In 1999, races farther than a mile had an average purse of $25,488, while races at less than a mile had an average purse of $12,564, or half as much. Races at one mile had an average purse of $16,726, almost exactly the average for all races, $16,130 (when excluding two-year-old races). In 1999, 13,116 races were staged at more than one mile and 35,564, almost three times as many, at less than a mile.

The most common distance of races in 1999 was six furlongs, with 18,527, almost exactly one in every three races held in North America for horses older than two. When including the 8,689 races at less than six furlongs, almost half-49%-of all races were conducted at six furlongs or less.

Though six-furlong races were the most common, they offered purses of $13,247 on average, 17.9% less than the overall average.

Figure 4 illustrates the relationship between distance and purses. For all distances of less than one mile, the percentage of races exceeds the percentage of purses. At all distances of one mile or more, the percentage of purses exceeds the percentage of races. (The exception, as detailed in Table 16, is for the distances of one mile and 40 yards and one mile and 70 yards, which are combined with 1 1/16 miles in the bar chart.)

Highest average purse per race is 1 1/2 miles, with an average of $122,008. Though just 0.2% of all races were at 1 1/2 miles, those races distributed 1.5% of all purses. However, there were only 107 races in that category, and taking out just two of the races-the $2-million Breeders' Cup Turf (G1) and $1-million Belmont Stakes (G1)-reduces the average purse in that category to $95,760. That is another way to show that all opportunity is not average.

Second-highest average purse per race was at the American classic distance of 1 1/4 miles, $110,057. That distance also includes a number of rich races, such as the Kentucky Derby (G1), Breeders' Cup Classic, and Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1). That reinforces what everyone already knows: If you get a top horse, the sky's the limit.

Table 17 presents all races held in North America in 1999 by purse value. It shows once more that an owner needs a horse that can successfully compete for the larger purses. But those opportunities are not plentiful, so competition in those races is tough.

Just 59 races, or 0.1% of the 60,118 conducted, offered purses of $500,000 or more in 1999, with an additional 693 races, or 1.2%, offering purses from $100,000 to $499,999. Those 752 races offered $159,661,752, or 15.8% of all purse money. That is a rich concentration of opportunity at the upper end of the scale.

At the other end of the purse spectrum, 1,407 races, or 2.3% of the total, offered purses of less than $2,000.

Still, things are much better today than they were five years ago. For example, races with purses of $5,000 or less have gone down almost 60% from 1995. In 1995, races with purses of $5,000 or less accounted for 40.3% of all races. In 1999, those races accounted for just 16.2% of all races.

Figure 5 illustrates that, despite the improvement of purses just mentioned at the lower end, opportunity is not equal. More than half of all races-52.4%, to be exact-offered purses of less than $10,000. Those 31,509 races distributed $189.69-million, or just 18.8% of all purse money.

In summary

Total purses passing the $1-billion mark is an important milestone, but it should be remembered that it took 18 years for total purses to double, with purses having reached the $500-million mark in 1981. Most successful business owners would not be content with revenue doubling every two decades.

The good news, though, is that purses have doubled over those years while number of races has declined 11.9% in that time, dramatically improving the average purse per race and the average earnings per runner.

This rapid increase in averages-especially in real terms, adjusted for inflation-has created one of the best environments for owning racehorses in decades. The decade-long upward trend has made ownership of racehorses a far better proposition today than in the mid-1980s, when a surplus of runners and races pushed down the averages in real dollars.

Still, no matter how much improvement has been made in the averages, racehorse ownership is still a tough game. Just a small percentage of runners every year cover their training costs for their owners.

But every owner-well, at least the majority of them-gets involved in racing for reasons other than having to show a profit on one individual racehorse. Some do it for the love of racehorse ownership and of racing; some for the chance to hit the home run.

And the chance to hit the home run is still there, perhaps a bit more attainable than ever as a result of the increase in purses. Today, as the owner waits for that one good horse, he or she has a better chance than ever to cover the overhead.