The Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course is a

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

track and

casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

which is located in

Grantville, Pennsylvania Grantville is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in East Hanover Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, East Hanover Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Harrisburg, ...

, east of

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

. It is owned by

Gaming and Leisure Properties Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. is a real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in casino properties, based in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. It was formed in November 2013 as a corporate spin-off from Penn National Gaming. The company ow ...

and operated by

Penn Entertainment Penn Entertainment, Inc., formerly Penn National Gaming, is an American entertainment company and operator of integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gambling. It operates 43 properties in 20 states, under brands including Hollywood ...

. This track is also home to Eclipse Special Award winner Rapid Redux and his trainer David J. Wells.

History

The track opened on August 30, 1972. It consists of a dirt course and a seven-

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

turf course. It is unusual among United States thoroughbred tracks in offering racing fifty-two weeks each year. It features the $200,000 Pennsylvania Governor's Cup Handicap for horses three-years-old and up which run five furlongs on the turf. In 2009, Cardashi, ridden by

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

David Cora, won in a 29–1 upset. In 2013, the inaugural Penn Mile on turf was run. Its first winner was three-year-old Rydilluc, which finished with a time of 1:33.99. As of 2017, this race is now the only

Graded stakes race A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level (I, II, III or listed) is th ...

event at the track that is classified as a Grade II race with stakes of $500,000.

Controversies

This racetrack has been under ongoing investigations through the years by the FBI for race fixing, which included people working in the race office, trainers and vets.

Stakes Races

The following Graded events were held at Penn National in 2019. Grade II * Penn Mile Stakes ;Other Stake races *Lyphard Stakes (PA Bred) *Danzig Stakes (PA Bred) *New Start Stakes (PA Bred) *Penn Oaks *Penn Ladies Dash * Pennsylvania Governor's Cup *Robellino Stakes (PA Bred) *Fabulous Strike Stakes *Swatara Stakes *Blue Mountain Stakes (PA Bred)

Casino

The Hollywood Casino opened at Penn National on February 12, 2008. On July 13, 2010, table games began operation. As of July 2010, Hollywood Casino has over 2,480 slot machines and fifty-four tables. Table games include: fourteen Poker tables, Black Jack, Roulette, Craps, Pai-Gow Poker, Three and Four Card Poker, Mini-Baccarat, and Let-It-Ride. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board approved a

sports betting Sports betting is the activity of predicting sports results and placing a wager on the outcome. Sports bettors place their wagers either legally, through a sportsbook or bookmaker (colloquially known as "bookies"), or illegally through priva ...

license for the Hollywood Casino on October 3, 2018. On November 15, 2018, sports betting began at the Hollywood Casino with a two-day test; official sports betting began on November 17, 2018. This casino then became the first casino in Pennsylvania to offer sports betting. On July 15, 2019, the Hollywood Casino conducted a soft launch for

online gambling Online gambling (also known as iGaming or iGambling) is any kind of gambling conducted on the internet. This includes virtual poker, casinos, and sports betting. The first online gambling venue opened to the general public was ticketing for th ...

, with the full launch occurring on July 18, 2019 after a testing period. Online gambling offered by Hollywood Casino consists of slot machines and table games, with online poker to launch at a later date. In the summer of 2020, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board ruled that smoking was banned in the casino, ensuring smoke-free gaming; however, there are two covered places in front of the casino where smoking is still permitted. Penn National Gaming also operates other casinos under the Hollywood Casino brand.

References

External links