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Kentucky Sports Betting Sign-ups Begin This Month

Online sportsbooks in Kentucky won’t be open until the end of September, but officials said today that residents will be able to register for accounts by the end of this month.

Kentucky sports betting
On March 31, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (seated) held a ceremonial signing for House Bill 551, which legalizes sports betting in the state. This week, the governor announced a timeline for sportsbook sign-ups. (Image: Gov. Andy Beshear/Twitter)

“The countdown is on. We are just three weeks away from sports wagering in Kentucky,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news release Thursday. “We are ready to deliver the quality entertainment experience Kentuckians asked for while bringing money to the state to support pensions and free up funds that can be used to build a better Kentucky.”

Seven online sportsbooks submitted license applications earlier this month: Bet365, BetMGM, Caesars, Circa, DraftKings, FanDuel, and Penn Sports Interactive.  Kentucky’s sports betting law allows up to 27 online licenses, three for each of its nine-horse racetracks.

Seven racetracks submitted applications for brick-and-mortar sportsbooks: Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ellis Park in Henderson, Oak Grove Gaming and Racing in  Oak Grove, The Red Mile in Lexington, Turfway Park in Florence, and two soon-to-open racetracks, Cumberland Run in Corbin, and Sandy’s Gaming and Racing in Ashland.

Winners Decided Next Week

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission will decide on which operators to approve at its Aug. 22 meeting. Sign-ups for approved online sportsbooks will begin by Aug. 28.

Betting in the Bluegrass State begins a week later, on Sept. 7, but only at in-person facilities. Beshar, a bipartisan sports betting law champion, has said he will be proud to place the first bet that day, which is the first of the NFL season.

Online sportsbooks will be able to begin accepting deposits from customers on Sept. 7, but actual betting will have to wait three weeks, until Sept. 28.

Tiered Implementation

Kentucky is taking a tiered approach to implementing its new sports betting law to test policies and procedures at brick-and-mortar sportsbooks before mobile applications begin accepting bets.

The KHRC is excited to open sports wagering and is working efficiently to meet the necessary deadlines,” Chairman Jonathan Rabinowitz said in a statement. “This is a careful process dedicated to wagering integrity and protecting bettors in the state of Kentucky.”

Officials estimate Kentucky will earn $23 million in annual tax revenue once its sports betting law is fully implemented. Online sportsbooks are taxed at a rate of 14.25%, while brick-and-mortar facilities pay 9.75%.

Kentucky will send 2.5% of the proceeds to a newly created problem gambling fund.

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Road to the Kentucky Derby: Forte Remains Solid Favorite as Field Solidifies

We’re now four weeks away from the Kentucky Derby, and with the final three major prep races occurring Saturday, we now have a fairly clear picture of who will be running for the roses on May 6.

Tapit Trice
Tapit Trice, left, runs past Verifying down the stretch of Saturday’s Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland in Lexington, KY on Saturday. The win gave Tapit Trice 100 points toward qualifying for next month’s Kentucky Derby. (Image: Keeneland/Twitter)

Despite exciting wins by a pair of favorites, Tapit Trice in the Blue Grass Stakes and Practical Move in the Santa Anita Derby, neither of them looked as impressive enough to bump Forte from the mantle of presumptive Kentucky Derby favorite. (The other Derby prep, the Wood Memorial, featured 59-1 shot Lord Miles edging favorite Hit King for the upset win.)

Honestly, it was going to take a lot for that even to be considered. Assuming he stays healthy, Forte will likely be a strong betting choice as the horses head to the starting gate at Churchill Downs.

All the Todd Pletcher-trained colt has done to earn that is win five straight races. Not only have they been graded stakes wins, but that streak includes four Grade 1 wins. The last came last weekend in the Florida Derby in stirring fashion as Forte rallied from fifth place and well outside in stretch to score the victory.

Pletcher will actually come into Louisville with three contenders. Besides Forte, he also trains Tapit Trice and Kingsbarns, an undefeated colt who won the Louisiana Derby two weeks ago.

“We’re blessed,” Pletcher told reporters at Keeneland Saturday after Tapit Trice’s victory. “We’ve had a good spring, and now we got to hopefully have another good four weeks.”

The Case for Forte

Favorites have had a little bit of a dry spell recently in the Derby. The last to win was Triple Crown winner Justify in 2018, but the bettors’ choices have come close in recent years, with Epicenter, last year’s favorite, finishing second.

What I think helps Forte’s case this year is how he won the Florida Derby.  He had an outside post – 11th out of 12 – and found himself stuck in traffic for most of the race and looked to be out of contention when he finally made his move. Those conditions are about as close as you can get to a Kentucky Derby environment, where Forte could find himself battling 19 other competitors.

Pletcher had said the major prep race at Gulfstream Park would serve as a good test for his prized colt. The trainer came away pleased that Forte’s best part of the 1-1/8 mile Florida Derby was the final sixteenth, which would indicate he’d do well in the 1-1/4 mile Kentucky Derby.

What was impressive… was when he did make the lead, he kind of pricked his ears again which we’ve seen him do a number of times,” Pletcher said. “It kind of makes you believe there’s a little more in the tank there.”

After Saturday’s races, Circa Sports in Las Vegas kept Forte as favorite, with odds of +315, meaning a $100 wager would net $315.  Tapit Trice and Practice Move are next at +550 each, and Verifying, who lost by a neck to Tapit Trice Saturday, and Kingsbarns are +950.

If Not Forte, Then…

With up to 20 horses in the field, the Kentucky Derby is definitely not a conventional horse race, and with that large a field, it does present bettors with opportunities for value.

If you’re looking for an intriguing long shot possibility, one horse to consider is Two Phil’s, who won the Jeff Ruby Steaks two weeks ago at Turfway Park. Turfway, a Churchill Downs track in Florence, KY, has a synthetic tapeta track, which is different from the dirt track at Churchill.

But Two Phil’s won at Churchill last year on a sloppy track.

If there’s one thing that’s consistent about Louisville in May, it’s that the weather is anything but consistent. It can be 80 and sunny or gloomy and 50 or anywhere inbetween. Sometimes even in the same week. Over the last seven Derby days, it’s rained on five. However, only two of those led to sloppy track ratings, the last coming in 2019.

“I’m hoping it rains,” trainer Larry Rivelli told reporters after the Jeff Ruby.

So, that’s something to keep in mind should the clouds turn dark on May 7. Two Phil’s could be your silver lining.

At Circa, Two Phil’s Derby futures odds are +3000.

Who Will Run in the Kentucky Derby

The field for the Derby is based on points horses accumulate in prep races. Saturday’s races each awarded 100 points to the winner, with the runners up getting 40, the horses in third getting 30, and the horses finishing fourth receiving 20.

Those with the 18 highest point totals are guaranteed spot in the race, with slots also available for horses in Japan and Europe. If an owner withdraws a qualifying horse from contention, the horse with the next highest total of points becomes eligible.

Churchill Downs Senior Director of Communications Darren Rogers tweeted the updated point totals Saturday evening.

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Kentucky House Passes Sports Betting Bill By Nearly 2-to-1 Margin

The Kentucky House passed a bill to legalize sports betting in the state early Monday evening.

Meredith
State Rep. Michael Meredith discusses House Bill 551, which would legalize sports betting in the state, on the House floor Monday. The bill passed by a nearly 2-to-1 margin and now heads to the Senate. (Image: Casino.org)

The 62-34 vote on House Bill 551 cleared the three-fifths majority supporters needed to get since the bill generates revenue and makes appropriations in a non-budget year.

The bill would allow Kentucky’s nine racetracks to offer retail sportsbooks at its tracks and simulcasting facilities. It also would allow tracks to partner with up to three mobile operators each.

Tracks would pay $500,000 for a license, with an annual renewal fee of $50,000. Operators would pay a $50,000 license fee and an annual renewal fee of $10,000.

Retail sports betting revenues would be taxed at 9.75% of adjusted gross revenues, while online operators would pay a 14.25% tax. The only deductions allowed would be for the .25% federal excise tax the federal government places on each wager.

It’s the second straight year the House has passed a bill. Once again, the bill now heads to the Senate, where last year’s bill died after failing to get a committee hearing or a floor vote before the session ended. This year, the bill will need 23 yes votes to pass in the 37-member Senate.

However, supporters are expressing optimism for this year’s bill, even as just five legislative days remain in the session.

State Rep. Michael Meredith, R-Oakland, the bill’s primary sponsor, believes they are about a couple of votes away from the 23 they need to pass the bill in the Senate this year.

Problem Gaming Fund Added to Bill

One reason for Meredith’s optimism is what was included in a House floor amendment Monday. That bill included a provision for a problem gaming fund, with that fund receiving 2.5% of the tax revenue generated annually.

That was explicitly added, Meredith said, because a couple of senators requested it.

Hopefully, that’ll shore up those (votes), and we’ll narrow it down,” Meredith told Casino.org after the bill’s passage.

The problem gaming fund was one that state Rep. Al Gentry had championed, D-Louisville, who has been the primary co-sponsor on sports betting legislation in the House.

Gentry had filed a bill earlier in the session that would have created a problem gaming fund that would have received money from all sectors of legal gaming in Kentucky. While this fund would only be covered by sports betting tax revenue, he told Casino.org he was still delighted to see it inserted.

Kentucky is one of a few states that does not have a problem gambling fund.

“I put a lot of work into pushing that for a few years now and glad to see it’s in there,” he said.

In addition, both Meredith and state Rep. Matt Koch, R-Paris, have talked about bringing up a more comprehensive problem gaming fund for next year’s session.

The problem gaming fund was the second significant positive change for the bill. Last week, the House Licensing, Occupations, and Administrative Regulations Committee approved a substitute bill that removed a 12-month, in-person licensing requirement for mobile account registrations.

While the House passed Meredith’s floor amendment, two others brought by a bill opponent failed.

State Rep. Josh Calloway, R-Irvington, sought to ban the use of credit cards for sports betting deposits and raise the minimum age to place a wager on a sporting event from 18 to 21. Both failed, with the age change falling by a 39-48 vote.

Calloway, after his amendments were defeated, said on the floor that he would not stop fighting for Kentuckians, especially against things that can “destroy people’s lives permanently.”

Time Running Out in Kentucky General Assembly

Supporters of the sports betting bill received good news last week when an advanced agenda for Tuesday’s Senate Licensing and Occupations Committee hearing included HB 551. However, Meredith said , after Monday’s vote, the committee may not take up his bill until possibly Wednesday. The Senate L&O Committee is also expected to take up the gray/skill games bill that passed the House last week and a bill that would legalize medical marijuana.

While Meredith and other supporters express optimism about the bill’s chances, the clock is running out on this year’s session.

After Monday, there are just five legislative days remaining. Three of them take place this week, with lawmakers recessing starting on Thursday for Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto consideration period.

The session will conclude on March 29-30.

Another thing the bill has in its favor is Beshear’s support. He campaigned four years ago on legalizing sports betting and reiterated that support earlier this year in his State of the Commonwealth address.

“I don’t think you’re going to see a veto,” Meredith said. “So, I think everybody’s pretty comfortable sitting it down until after the veto period.”

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