About Bowen Turf Club

Bowen Turf Club began holding regular race meets over 160 years ago, with the first recorded race meeting in 1846.  The club became official in 1863, and has been a pivotal race track on the Queensland racing circuit ever since.   Before the advent of television and other technology, the club was the main entertainment venue for the Bowen, Collinsville and greater Whitsunday regions, racing up to 26 times per year.  In recent years, the club races 4 to 8 times per year, with the biggest race days – The Ben Bolt Cup and the famous Bowen Cup, still bringing several thousand visitors to Ben Bolt Park between them.

In recent years, Bowen Turf Club’s home – Ben Bolt Park has undergone several facelifts and modernisation projects, as the committee seeks to retain the club’s status as a premier race venue in Queensland.  These include upgrades to facilities, the track, running rail and more. 

Ben Bolt park is now a TAB accredited race club, meaning additional race days for the club, attracting trainers and jockeys from all over Qld and Northern Rivers.

Since 2017, race day numbers at our premier race day (Bowen Cup) have exceeded 3500 patrons, with Ben Bolt Cup (August) and Whitsunday Cup (June) also attracting huge crowds.  This is an amazing achievement for the club, but also has a flow on positive economic effect to the entire Bowen and Whitsunday community.

As other race clubs have their number of yearly race meeting reduced, Bowen Turf Club retains its minimum 5 races, and hopes to continue securing additional TAB and replacement race days in the coming years.

Special mention to our long serving volunteer committee and our amazing generous local sponsors - all of this would not be possible without your support!