WestChase
BREEDING
INTRODUCTION
Racing and Wagering Western Australia (RWWA) funds racing industry breeding incentive schemes to foster and promote the local racing animal product.
Benefits of these schemes include:
- Potential to increase the financial rewards associated with owning and racing a locally bred horse or greyhound and therefore encourage owners to remain in the industry longer and possibly extend the level of their investments
- Encouragement for local breeders to source quality sires and/or dams in order to develop well-bred progeny and improve Western Australian bloodlines
- Provide breeders with the opportunity to access an on-going revenue stream from the racing animals they’ve previously sold, via their racing performances
- Maintenance and possible growth of local support industries, eg veterinarians, feed merchants, product suppliers, service providers etc.
WELCOME TO WESTCHASE
The WESTCHA$E Incentive Scheme is the breeding incentive scheme for greyhound racing in Western Australia. The aims of the scheme are to provide;
- an on-going incentive for the breeding and purchase of City Class greyhounds with a view to ensuring the on-going strength and competitiveness of city racing in Western Australia
- an incentive to local breeders and thereby foster the development of a significant, sustainable and responsible Western Australian greyhound breeding industry.
WESTCHASE, formerly known as the Breeders and Owners Incentive Scheme or BOIS, was first introduced in August 1999.
Since then the Scheme has been extended to pay bonuses on a range of events such as Provincial and Country Class Juveniles and Maidens over various distances. The owners and breeders of WA bred greyhounds have been further rewarded for their success against the elite in WA Group Races, their fellow WA bred progeny in select WA Bred Only Feature Events and more recently in Feature Finals not classified as Group Races or WA Bred Only Features.
BOIS was reviewed for 2005/06 to bring estimated payments up to the new RWWA benchmark of 5% of total stakes, whilst attempting to maintain the initial strategy of the Scheme. This provided RWWA with the opportunity to make the individual bonuses far more substantial and more relative to the actual event stakemoney than in previous years. Since then, total bonuses paid have nearly met or surpassed the 5% benchmark each racing year and breeders and owners of WA bred greyhounds have been rewarded to the tune of over $4.4M.
| Year |
Bonuses Paid |
% of Total Stakes |
| 2001/02 |
$54,250 |
1.35% |
| 2002/03 |
$74,660 |
1.68% |
| 2003/04 |
$163,000 |
3.43% |
| 2004/05 |
$127,600 |
2.50% |
| 2005/06 |
$356,700 |
5.23% |
| 2006/07 |
$353,100 |
4.66% |
| 2007/08 |
$461,300 |
5.53% |
| 2008/09 |
$509,250 |
5.83% |
| 2009/10 |
$488,850 |
5.68% |
| 2010/11 |
$455,150 |
5.40% |
| 2011/12 |
$490,550 |
5.55% |
| 2012/13 |
$570,750 |
5.78% |
| 2013/14 |
$733,250 |
7.00% |
| 2014/15 |
$735,250 |
6.83% |
| 2015/16 |
$835,250 |
|
| 2016/17 |
$1,096,250 |
|
In 2006/07 the Scheme underwent a name change from BOIS to WESTCHASE, a new logo was developed and an increased emphasis was placed on the promotion of the Scheme and the performances of WA bred greyhounds in Western Australia.
HOW DOES WESTCHASE WORK?
All WA bred greyhounds are eligible for the WESTCHA$E Incentive Scheme. Greyhounds are classified as WA bred as long as they were whelped in Western Australia, irrespective of the location of the sire and dam or where the actual service took place.
All WA bred greyhounds winning City Class Maiden events are eligible for a significant initial reward for winning their first ever race. All WA bred greyhounds winning Provincial or Country Class Maiden, Juvenile and Novice events are also eligible for a smaller WESTCHA$E bonus.
WESTCHA$E bonuses are paid to the owners and breeders of all WA bred greyhounds winning any City Class event for the full duration of their racing career.
WA bred Feature Event Final winners are eligible for a Feature Final WESTCHA$E bonus. The value of the bonus is based upon the Class of the event. This bonus is applicable to all Feature Finals that are not Group Races or WA Bred Only Feature Events, which both have a specific bonus. A smaller bonus will apply to Non Feature Event Finals.
WA bred Group Race Heat and Final winners are eligible for a Group Race Heat or Final WESTCHA$E bonus respectively. The value of the bonus is based upon the Group status of the event.
Finally, the breeders of greyhounds winning select WA Bred Feature Events qualify for a substantial WESTCHA$E bonus. The value of the bonus is based upon the Class of the event. These features are specifically open to WA bred greyhounds only, with events scheduled across all three race classes and a variety of distances throughout the year.
The scheme’s signature event – “The WESTCHA$E” is the premier WA Bred Only Feature Event in bonus terms, with connections of all runners competing in the final receiving bonuses.
This is the only event conducted in WA where WESTCHA$E bonuses are payable to non-winners.
There is no registration process whatsoever for the scheme and bonuses are managed by the racing system and paid to the registered owners and breeders in the same manner as stakes. Whilst WESTCHA$E bonuses are registered against individual greyhounds they are not combined with a greyhound’s career earnings.
WHAT ARE THE RETURNS FROM WESTCHASE?
| WESTCHASE Bonuses Based on Race Class / Type |
Returns to Connections of WA Bred Winners |
| Group Race Finals |
Owners |
Breeders |
| Group 1 |
$12,500 |
$12,500 |
| Group 2 |
$5,000 |
$5,000 |
| Group 3 |
$3,000 |
$3,000 |
| Group Race Heats |
| Group 1 |
$3,000 |
$3,000 |
| Group 2 |
$1,500 |
$1,500 |
| Group 3 |
$1,000 |
$1,000 |
| Feature Finals |
| All non-Group Race, non-WA Bred City Class Finals |
$2,000 |
$2,000 |
| All non-Group Race, non-WA Bred Provincial Class Finals |
$1,000 |
$1,000 |
| All non-Group Race, non-WA Bred Country Class Finals |
$500 |
$500 |
| Non-Feature Finals |
| City Class |
$750 |
$750 |
| Provincial Class |
$500 |
$500 |
| Country Class |
$250 |
$250 |
| City Class |
| All City Class winners |
$750 |
$750 |
| Maidens |
| City Class |
$750 |
$750 |
| Provincial & Country Class |
$500 |
$500 |
| Shortcourse (275m, 297m & 302m) |
$250 |
$250 |
| Novices |
| City Class |
$500 |
$500 |
| Provincial & Country Class |
$250 |
$250 |
| WA Bred Only Feature Events |
City Class
WA Bred Championship, “The Peter Thomas” & “The Sandi’s Me Mum”” (520m) |
$750 |
$3,750 |
Provincial Class
“The Shorts” & “The Great Western” (405m); “The Sandgroper” (490m) & “The Claude Powell” (Cannington – 520m) |
|
$2,000 |
Country Class
WA Bred Country Cup (509m) |
|
$1000 |
| The Scheme’s Signature Event – “The WESTCHASE” |
| Winner |
$750 |
$7,500 |
| Second |
|
$5,000 |
| Third |
|
$2,500 |
| Fourth |
|
$1,000 |
| Other Unplaced Runners |
|
$500 |
HOW IS WESTCHASE FUNDED?
WESTCHASE is fully funded by an industry contribution from RWWA. It is currently entirely non-contributory for industry participants, one of very few such schemes in Australia.
HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT WESTCHASE?
Just contact Racing and Wagering Western Australia during office hours on (08) 9445 5287.
ARTICLES OF INTEREST
FOCUS ON WESTCHASE
Last Month’s WESTCHASE datails are included in the following link:
