By Lucky Kalanges
As sub $1.00 bet minimums spread across tracks around the country, wise bettors are taking notice and cashing in big-time. Take the $0.50 Pick 4 at Churchill Downs – home of the Kentucky Derby - as a prime example. On the biggest day of the fall meet – Clark Handicap Day – Nov. 27, one Youbet.com member took down the entire Pick 4 pool by playing it for the 50-cent minimum. The Texas man took home $179,882.70 from an investment of just $96.00. His ticket sequence was 1,3,4,5,6,9 with 1,5 with 1,5,8,12 with 2,3,7,8.
By getting into the Pick 4 at half the normal price, he was able to spread six deep in the 1st leg, four deep in legs 3 and 4, while keying on a pair of horses in the 2nd leg. The ability to use twice as many horses than he would have for a $1.00 base value ticket gave him the ability to corral 56-1 shot Rahystrada ($115.80) in the 9th race, the first leg of the Pick 4. After High Spirit ($55.60), the longest price of two picks in the 10th race, scored at odds of 26-1, the longtime Youbet member knew he was sitting on a monster ticket provided he could get past the final two legs using four horses in the 14-horse Clark and four in the 12-horse nightcap. As luck would have it, both winners were on his ticket (Blame at $10.80 and Cavan Thunder at $54.20) with the latter setting him apart from the entire field of players in the mutuel pool.
So when playing multi-leg exotics or Superfectas that are offered for less than a $1 minimum, it is always a good idea to play for the minimum amount and use as many horses as you can, particularly if you think the race or sequence of races is likely to produce multiple longshot winners. You never know when you might take down the entire pool for whatever the minimum may be – a dime, quarter or fifty cents.
Lucky Kalanges is the Director of Track Marketing at Youbet.com, Inc. Since 1998, he has been providing Youbet members with his unique insight to handicapping and the world of horse racing. His most recent claim to fame is cashing Win tickets on Dancing in Silks (25-1) and Furthest Land (21-1) on his Youbet.com account on Breeders’ Cup Day. You may contact him via email or through his Twitter account.
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