TLDR
- NYRA introduced new rules in February 2026 to limit computer-assisted wagering (CAW) in betting pools
- CAW’s share of handle at Aqueduct dropped from ~22% to ~13% after the changes
- Total handle at Aqueduct’s winter meet fell 24%, partly due to fewer races and weather
- CAW accounts for roughly 30% of the $11 billion U.S. racing handle annually
- Experts warn the sport is losing casual bettors, comparing it to how Las Vegas drove away recreational gamblers
Horse racing is trying to win back everyday bettors by cracking down on the algorithms and software used by high-volume gamblers. The question is whether it’s working — and whether it’s too late.
Computer-assisted wagering, or CAW, lets wealthy bettors place large volumes of bets using data models and algorithms. These tools are not available to regular fans at the track. Critics say CAW drags down payouts by shifting the odds sharply in the final seconds before a race.
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy voiced frustration on X last fall. He said gamblers now need to win twice as often to get the same payouts they received two years ago.
NYRA Tightens the Rules
The New York Racing Association announced new limits on February 6, 2026. CAW accounts are now blocked from placing batch wagers across all betting pools, including exotic bets like exactas and trifectas, within one minute of post time.
A previous rule, in place for five years, had already blocked those accounts from high-volume win-pool bets at two minutes to post. The new rules extend that restriction further.
Any bettor, including CAW users, is also now capped at six bets per second once the one-minute mark hits. NYRA also bars CAW accounts from late pick-5 and pick-6 bets entirely.
Early results show movement. At Aqueduct, from February 11 to May 25, CAW’s share of total betting handle was around 13%. That figure had previously hovered near 22%.
The influence CAW has on exacta prices dropped by more than 50% under the new rules.
Jack Jeziorski, president of NYRA Content Management, said CAW’s share of handle was also down for the first two days of the Belmont Racing Festival at Saratoga in June 2026.
Handle Is Down
Overall betting is also lower. Aqueduct’s winter meet handle came in at $194.6 million, down nearly 24% from $255.6 million the year before, according to the Daily Racing Form.
NYRA attributed about 5% of that drop to the CAW limits. The rest came from 35 fewer races, mostly due to bad weather and fewer horse entries.
The spring meet at Aqueduct totaled $82.2 million, a 19.3% drop from 2025. On a per-day basis, average handle fell from $6.4 million to $5.5 million.
Jeziorski said NYRA is seeing early signs that the retail market is responding to a better wagering experience.
What’s at Stake
CAW accounts for roughly 30% of the U.S. racing handle. That’s about $3.3 billion of the $11.04 billion wagered in 2025, per data reported to The Jockey Club.
Smaller tracks depend on that volume to stay financially viable, said Dr. Marshall Gramm, economics chair at Rhodes College. He also owns racehorses and has written academic papers on the sport.
Gramm pointed to the Churchill Downs Stakes on Kentucky Derby Day as an example of CAW’s reach. Winner T O Elvis entered at 12-1 odds. Last-minute CAW bets pushed those odds down to 5-1 by the time the race ended.
The win pool for that race totaled around $4.5 million — about 80% of what was bet on the entire Breeders’ Cup Classic the year before.
Gramm compared horse racing’s current path to Las Vegas casinos that tightened slot payouts and changed blackjack odds. Revenues rose briefly, then customers stopped coming.
“I think horse racing is in this same boat,” Gramm said. “We’re just driving away potential new horse players.”
Fixed-odds wagering is gaining some support as an alternative. Kentucky lawmakers passed a bill in 2026 to allow it, but Churchill Downs has said it has no plans to offer it anytime soon.
