FAIR PROFIT.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXIV, Issue 670, 25 January 1933, Page 10

FAIR PROFIT.

Wellington Racing Club’s Meeting. PLACE TOTE’S EFFECT. (Special to the Star.”) WELLINGTON, January 25. A notable aspect of the Wellington Racing Club’s summer meeting this year has been the inauguration of the win-and-place system of betting, and the popularity of the new mode must have been very evident indeed to all racegoers who attended the meeting on any day, especially on the holiday on Monday. A system that provided four dividends on every one of the twenty-four races contested oyer the three days, and actually five dividends in two races on the middle day—ninety-eight dividends in all, and not one of them \ under £l—could not but commend it- ! self to the race-going public. I Had the club had time to instal a j win machine in or adjacent to the j main totalisator building, -instead of j having to place it in a remote corner ;of the lawn enclosure, there is little i doubt that increases in turnover would I have been registered: for, wherever else the system has been adopted the win and place betting have closely approximated each other, whereas at Trentham the place betting aggregated more than twice what the win betting did. As it is the club has experienced only a small decline cf roughly 8 per cent in its turnover, most of which was registered on the first day, when the public had to be educated to the new system. Last year the decline was a shade over 20 per cent on the previous year’s turnover. Both this year and last year there was excellent weather, but two years ago the weather was dull and showery for each day. Heavy Loss in 1931. Two years ago the, club was a heavy loser over its summer meeting, when £11,500 was paid out in stakes, but last year, with only £6285 provided in stakes, the result was much more satisfactory. As another drop to £5685 was made in this year’s stake offering, the result should again be satisfactory to the club, for in addition to the totalisator’s holding up well there is the rebate of 1 per cent taxation for the Government to be taken into account this year. To cover its stakes the club looks to its share of totalisator turnover, now 8i per cent, less totalisator running expenses, which naturally, with the additional work involved in the win-and-place pools, will be somewhat larger this year than previously. The club’s' share .of turnover is £8027 (including the rebate), so that the stakes £5685) should be well covered. Taxation Over £BOOO. With other items of income, which have all been satisfactory, it is clear that a fair profit will be made over this year’s meeting. Such a profit, however, must always be made at this meeting to recoup losses likely to be made on other meetings during the year held on less favourable dates, and also to cover at least one quarter of the annual management expenses of the club, such as salaries and other office expenses, the cost of upkeep of the course and its appointments, interest payments, etc. The following table gives tne amounts to be paid out in taxation for the meeting just concluded, with toe figures for the last two years appended for purposes of comparison:

Besides these items there is also a sum payable as amusement tax, out the amount of the tax this year will not be available for some days vet It is a comparatively small item, however, and would not appreciably affect the comparisons made in the taDle.

1931. 1932. 1933. £ £ £ Totalisator tax 6.460 5,160 3,777-1 Dividend tax .. 5.652 4,515 4,1311 Stakes tax 575 314 284 Totals £12,687 £9,989 £8,193