New Luckity.com Gambling Site Targets Women 35+ Who Like Slots, Lottery

Churchill Downs Inc.’s newly launched gambling website Luckity.com is “an attempt to attract a broader gambling audience that is less interested in horse racing, generating revenues to result in fatter racing purses and bigger payouts,” according to a front-page piece by Gregory Hall of the Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL. Luckity.com gamblers can “bet their lucky number or have the game choose a number for them.” Rather than "spinning wheels, horses in races running live somewhere around the world determine a winning bet.” Churchill Downs Interactive President & CDI Senior VP/Business Development Ted Gay said that the “target demographic is women over 35 who enjoy slots, the lottery and social networking games.” The game is "more aimed at the gambler who couldn't be bothered by the difference between a filly and a mere." Gay added that the target customer is “more likely to attend night racing and bet casually on their favorite names or jockeys.” Gay “declined to specify the amount invested in Luckity or discuss revenue projections.” But he said that “horse owners and true horse bettors stand to see bigger purses and payouts as more money goes into the betting pool.” Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association Exec Dir Marty Maline said that it “remains to be seen whether this effort by Churchill pays off commercially.” Hall notes overnights and early weekdays “will be slower for Luckity because of the limited number of races available.” Weekends will be “the peak time, as more races run domestically and internationally.” The site “offers 24 cash games, with more planned” and “attempts to reduce pari-mutuel wagering to simpler terms.” Luckity.com “benefits from some of the more than $200 million Churchill invested in its TwinSpires.com online pari-mutuel betting site” (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 10/17).