When Tampa Bay Downs opened for its 79th season Saturday it was up against some stiff competition for the gambling dollar. Classier horses were busy running the same day at some of the nation's more prestigious racetracks–Aqueduct, Fair Grounds, Hollywood Park, Calder. But thousands of horseplayers around the country and on sight at the track in Oldsmar, Florida wagered heavily on the Tampa product. They bet $3,158,999, further evidence that little Tampa Bay Downs is the sport's fastest growing racetrack.

Ten years ago, that didn't seem possible. Tampa was a cheap track with no turf course and nothing really to offer the horseplayer that he couldn't get anyplace else. It one just one more bad track that was easy to overlook in the glutted simulcasting market.

The transformation has been remarkable. Someone at Tampa Bay Downs figured out they key to success is to give the horseplayer what he or she wants: grass racing, big fields and competitive races that produce sizeable payoffs. More so than perhaps any track in the country, Tampa Bay Downs offers a nice portion of all three.

That was among the main reasons that Tampa enjoyed double-digit increases in on-track attendance (11%) and all-sources handle (24%) last year. Those numbers may have seemed unsurpassable this year, but, based on the opening day figures, which were up substantially from a year ago, they will be shattered. Apparently, more and more bettors are discovering what Tampa has to offer.

The track, which put in its turf courses seven years ago, ran two grass races Saturday and 11 races in all. The average field size was 10 horses per race and there was a superfecta payoff of $30,423.80, a trifecta payoff of $2,114 and an exacta that returned $285.40.

The numbers were consistent with last year's meet when average field size was 9.94 starters per race, well above the 2003 North American average of 8.30. The track has the advantage of being one of the few places in the winter where cheap horses can be competitive while racing in a good climate. Horses from places like Suffolk Downs, Finger Lakes and Great Lakes Downs don't have any place else viable to go.

Tampa held a record 191 turf races during the 2003-2004, which included dozens of wide-open races with big fields that helped produce a steady string of large payoffs. According to the Daily Racing Form, at last year's meet, the average exacta paid $122, while trifectas averaged $1,050 and daily doubles averaged $153. A $122 exacta is a rarity at a place like Hollywood Park, where small fields and short-priced favorites rule the day. The first two races at Hollywood Saturday included a total of 12 horses and the double paid $5.

The one thing Tampa does not have is a lot of classy horses. Though the racing product has been substantially upgraded in recent years, the meet is dominated by cheap claiming races. Apparently, there are a lot of horseplayers who don't mind.

"We averaged two turf races a day over a 94-day meet last year," said Tampa's vice president and general manager Pete Berube. "The grass races are very popular. The large fields are another big plus for us. The other thing that is attractive to handicappers and betters is having different horses. You don't have the same horses meeting each other again and again from the same circuit. We have horses coming from 25 different racetracks and that makes for a very interesting betting prospect."

On opening day the entries included horses that had competed at 27 different tracks in their previous starts, places as different as Aqueduct and Hoosier Park. That makes handicapping Tampa difficult, but the upside is that the races can be so puzzling that you are all but guaranteed a juicy payoff if you do figure out the riddle.

Tampa Bay Downs is not the only track doing well in the handle department. With the horseplayer having such easy access to a bet, whether it be at a simulcast location, over the internet or with a phone betting account, getting people to wager on the races hasn't been a huge problem. It's getting them to the track that has. But Tampa Bay Downs has defied the trend, actually getting new fans to come out for a day at the races.

"One of the things we have tuned into is our location," Berube said. "The surrounding neighborhoods around the track have developed and there are a lot of fairly affluent dollars. It would be crazy for us not to go after those people, try to nurture them and get them to the track. We put in a number of amenities to get those people to come visit us. I don't care if you come out and bet or not. I just want you to see the facility."

People are coming and they are betting. Tampa Bay Downs is what it is, a small track where the fields are big and the races are unpredictable. It's a simple formula, but one that works.