Mackay Cup Calcutta

What is a Calcutta?

Every Mackay Cup Carnival we run a Calcutta on the Friday evening before the Saturday Race Day. The Calcutta is a great night of fun horse bidding action!

How the Calcutta works

  • Each Calcutta ticket sold starts the pool for the Calcutta auction. The more that are sold, the greater the starting prize pool.
  • The Calcutta is for the Mackay Cup Race itself (and the horses in that race only) the next day. Run over 2000m (one of our longest races) with our largest prize money of $150,000.
  • Once all of the horses are drawn, then the fun begins with the auction.
  • When a horse sells in the auction, “The Drawer” gets half of the ‘bidded value’ and the other half goes into the prize pool. If “The Drawer” wants a chance to win the prize pool, they must buy their horse or another horse in the auction. If they buy their own, they pay only HALF the ‘bidded value’ which goes into the prize pool. The fiercer the auction – the bigger the prize pool in the end.
  • The race the next day (Mackay Cup Race Day) then determines the winners of the prize pool – adding that little bit more excitement as they watch their Calcutta horse coming down the home straight!