The West Virginia Legislature has passed a bill legalizing fixed-odds wagering on horse and greyhound races, becoming the third state to authorize the practice.
According to legislative records, the bill passed out of the State Senate on Saturday after being amended on Friday in the House. Under the bill, West Virginia racetracks will be able to offer fixed-odds betting on their races with the consent of groups representing trainers and owners. Five percent of the “adjusted gross” revenue from the betting will go towards purses at the tracks.
Fixed-odds wagering has long been discussed among U.S. racing constituents as a possible growth area due to its popularity in other racing jurisdictions, particularly Great Britain and Australia, where fixed-odds betting was introduced alongside parimutuel wagering a dozen years ago. But experience with fixed-odds betting in the U.S. has been mixed at best. Two states, Colorado and New Jersey, have regulations allowing for fixed-odds betting, but the practice has yet to generate significant returns. This is largely because few U.S. tracks have reached consent agreements with fixed-odds providers, limiting the product that the providers can offer.
Supporters of fixed-odds betting are hopeful that a critical mass of content could push the returns higher. Under the fixed-odds system, bettors receive the price on a horse that is set by the provider, similar to wagering on most other sports. Conversely, the parimutuel system allows for odds fluctuations until the start of a race that are dependent on the mix of bets within each parimutuel pool.
The West Virginia Lottery Commission will need to draft and approve rules allowing for fixed-odds betting before the wagers an be accepted, a process that is expected to take at least several months.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.