By T. D. Thornton
The weeks-long rumored sale of Ellis Park got a step closer to reality on Tuesday, when the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) approved the transfer of Ron Geary's 70% ownership to Saratoga Casino and Hospitality Group (SCHG).
With the deal expected to close within days, the message to the Ellis backstretch community from leadership in the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association is to expect an untroubled management transition, largely because SCHG is a known entity. The gaming and hospitality company, based in Saratoga Springs, New York, has owned a 30% minority stake in Ellis since 2012.
“We're excited with the sale. We worked with Saratoga in the past when they purchased a portion of Ellis Park, so it would seem like this is the most seamless way to continue on a pretty good meet,” Marty Maline, the KHBPA executive director, told TDN via phone shortly after the commission meeting concluded.
“Any time you have any kind of situation where you get new [racetrack] management, you can kind of be a little bit disjointed and lose your continuity,” Maline said. “But with them already being familiar with Ellis Park, I think it will be a smooth transition. We understand it will be fairly soon, and I think it will work very well. I think it will be business as usual.”
When TDN attempted to contact Ellis general manager Jeff Hall to discuss short-term expectations, he said he was involved in a meeting with attorneys about the pending sale and would not be able to speak on the record. SCHG officials in New York could not be reached for comment prior to deadline for this story.
But Geary, Ellis's outgoing owner, said via press release that it is his understanding that SCHG's intent is to keep the current Ellis management team intact.
“That's what I recommended,” Geary said.
As for his reason for selling, Geary said this: “It's been 12 years, and I just turned 71. My wife and my two kids and my nine grandkids for years have asked me to slow down. I think it's time. I've enjoyed working with Saratoga over the years. It's been a really fun and fast-moving 12 years. I feel like we've had some great successes and we've brought it a long ways with so many people's help. I know Saratoga will be focused on continuing the progress.”
When Geary teamed with SCHG in 2012, the 30% stake cost $4 million. Geary then invested that money into the launch of historical race gaming at Ellis.
The terms of the pending deal for the remaining 70% stake were not disclosed.
This year Ellis is offering a record $230,000 a day in purses, made possible in part because of a relationship with Kentucky Downs in which the KHBPA facilitated the transfer of $2.9 million in purses from Kentucky Downs to Ellis to bolster purses and encourage horsemen to stay in Kentucky for the summer.
“With the extra purse money that we were able to provide from Kentucky Downs, we've been able to entice more horsemen from areas such as Churchill and even Chicago in maiden-allowance and allowance races,” Maline said. “Even our claiming purses have allowed us to have a better body of horse, and obviously with the fuller fields, the race meeting is going very well.”
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