06 Aug 2025 501 Hometown Hall of Famers: Eric Jackson

Posted at 9:29 PMh in Sports by

By David Grimes

Meet the man who has guided Oaklawn Park race track in Hot Springs in adapting with new products and services for almost four decades, helping the facility become one of the premier horse racing venues of the 21st century.

Jackson was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) in 2024 as part of the 66th class, along with Carla Crowder, Glen Day, Al Flanigan, Butch Gardner, Jeff Glasbrenner, Ed Harris, Peyton Hillis, Ryan Mallett and Jason Peters.

Jackson was born in Hot Springs in 1950. After graduating from Hot Springs High School, he graduated in 1972 from Hendrix College, where he studied business and economics.

He became Oaklawn’s director of operations in 1978. He then served as general manager from 1987 until 2017, when he was named senior vice president. He has also been on Oaklawn’s board of directors since 1994. 

In the late 1980s when I became old enough to legally place a bet, Oaklawn became a favorite place to go with friends and gather with Arkansans from all corners of the state. In those days, Oaklawn charged a nominal admission fee. It was $2 if I remember correctly. However, the track provided passes that were mainly given to state legislators to dole out to constituents. So, if you could get your hands on one, you felt like a bigwig flashing it to the person working the gate even if it did only save you a couple of bucks.

Founded in 1904, Oaklawn survived the Great Depression and two world wars. But as the 1980s were winding down, the racetrack began facing new challenges that threatened its very existence. Lotteries and casinos began popping up in neighboring states, siphoning off a large number of patrons and their betting dollars. Tunica, Mississippi, became the hot new destination for my friends and many other Arkansans to go for both gambling and entertainment.

So Oaklawn had to get creative, and this is where Jackson stepped up. In 1989, they convinced the state legislature and then the local voters to allow Sunday racing, which gave more people around the state another weekend opportunity to make the drive to Hot Springs to enjoy a day at the races.

Hot Springs native Eric Jackson has devoted his career to guiding Oaklawn Park race track to success. He met his wife, Lynda, when they were students at Hendrix College. An autographed Season Pass by Jackson given to track patrons, who would feel like VIP’s as they saved $2 each visit.

They then expanded into simulcast racing. This allowed patrons at Oaklawn to wager on live races at other tracks, while also allowing bettors at other tracks to gamble on races at Oaklawn. Eventually, thoroughbred races run in Hot Springs were simulcast to more than 1,000 locations in North America. However, the Holy Grail was historic racing. Better known as instant racing, this allows players to bet on random races that have already occurred.

Many had tried and many had failed, but Jackson figured it out and was actually awarded a patent for it. Introduced in 2000, it revolutionized Oaklawn and put it on a path to be among the most successful racetracks in the United States.

In 2005, casinos in Arkansas were still illegal, but a public vote allowed Oaklawn to expand into what were called “electronic games of skill,” which was basically video poker and blackjack. So in 2008, the racetrack added a “casino,” which was immediately a tremendous success, attracting new visitors and new money. 

This new money from these new revenue streams allowed Oaklawn to increase the purses on the thoroughbred races, attracting better horses and better trainers and better jockeys, thus attracting more bettors.

So while many other tracks around the country were still in decline, Oaklawn was rising to new heights in the world of thoroughbred racing.

In 2018, a ballot amendment finally allowed Oaklawn to operate a full casino, and it is now officially known as Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort. Jackson has been at the forefront of all these innovations. His ingenuity not only earned him a place in the ASHOF, but he was also inducted into the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame in 2024.

Jackson has also found time to be involved in his community, serving on numerous boards over the years, including St. Joseph’s Hospital, the Hot Springs A&P Commission, the Garland County Economic Development Corporation, the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Hot Springs National Park and the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce.

Levi GIlbert
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