In a sign of the tough economic times, purses have been cut and two races eliminated from one of Gulfstream Park's premier horse racing events -- the Sunshine Millions.

The bicoastal Sunshine Millions program matches horses bred in Florida against horses bred in California in a series of races, half at Gulfstream Park and half at Santa Anita Park in Southern California. This year's event is scheduled for Jan. 30, a key time for Gulfstream as it tries to lure  crowds in the area for the NFL's Pro Bowl and Super Bowl games.

Officials of Magna Entertainment, owner of both tracks, said cutting the purses for the eighth renewal of the popular event was necessary and reflects troubling economic realities. Magna is in the midst of a messy bankruptcy which has seen the company sell off its tracks in Oklahoma and Texas. Other sales are pending.

For this year's iteration, the normal program of eight races will be trimmed to six with the elimination of the $250,000 Dash, a six-furlong race for 3-year-olds, and the $250,000 Oaks, a six-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies, the Daily Racing Form is reporting.

The other six races will see reduced purses with the largest cut coming in the Classic, a 1 1/8-mile event for 4-year-olds and up over Santa Anita's artificial surface. That purse is being cut from $1 million to $500,000.

Overall, the reductions and race eliminations will leave the Sunshine Millions with $1.8 million in purses, half of last year's $3.6 million.

At Gulfstream, the Distaff, for older fillies and mares at a mile and 1/16 on the main track, and the Turf, for older horses at a mile and  1/8 miles on the grass, each will carry a purse of $300,000, down from $500,000. The Sprint, for older horses at six furlongs, will have a purse of $200,000, down from $300,000.

"Given the current state of the economy, I think everyone understands why these purse reductions are necessary," said Ron Charles, the president of Santa Anita, in a statement. "It's just something that we had to do at this time, and we feel these adjusted purses will remain very, very lucrative to horsemen and will thus ensure another first-class day of competitive racing."

For the Daily Racing Form's report, go to: http://www.drf.com/news/article/108943.html