Twice this month, horse racing fans will have an opportunity to witness and wager on harness racing at a pair of Illinois tracks.
Pari-mutuel harness racing will be on the schedule at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield from Aug. 8-15. Then again from Aug. 26-28 at the DuQuoin State Fair.
Bets can also be placed from a simulcast location at Hawthorne Race Course, as well as at select off-track betting sites in Illinois and other states that permit pari-mutuel betting.
After August events, pari-mutuel races will return in October
The pari-mutuel races will be held at the following times:
- Illinois State Fairgrounds: 11 a.m. on Aug. 9, 10, 14, and 15 (rain out)
- DuQuoin Fairgrounds: 4 p.m. on Aug. 26, 27, and 28
Illinois limits parimutuel horse race betting. These are the only two options this summer. Pari-mutuel races return in October when Hawthorne Race Course opens its fall season.
Non pari-mutuel races will also be on tap in Springfield and DuQuoin in September. They run through October. Consult race schedules for each venue for details on those events. FanDuel Sportsbook IL offers online betting for most major horse racing events.
Bettors don’t know how much they’ve won until race is over
Tony Somone, executive director of the Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association, said pari-mutuel races are important for state fairs.
“It’s much more exciting. The races are a draw for the state fairs. We still get good crowds.”
Pari-mutuel betting is markedly different than odds-based wagering. In a pari-mutuel system, money taken in from all bets is pooled together. That pool (after deductions for taxes, fees, and the cut for the venue) is divvied among the winning bets.
Bettors won’t know how much they’ve won until the race has concluded. With many horses in a harness race, the eventual winning pool can reach into the hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars.
