Breaking the Bank: High Fives
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Breaking the Bank - featuring data courtesy of Equibase - highlights the biggest scores of the past week in racing. (Crowd photo by Eclipse Sportswire)
Picking six winners is usually the best way to trigger a windfall of cash.
But sometimes five will do quite well, thank you.
On May 30 at Belmont Park, the Pick 5 provided a straight line to riches as it took a sledgehammer to the bank by breaking it for an astronomical payoff of $185,140 for a $2 bet (or $46,285 for the 50-cent minimum wager).
The winning sequence was laden with longshots as only the first horse in the quintet, maiden winner Kitty’s Pearl ($8.30), paid less than $17.60. The rest of the ticket was rounded out by Momameamaria ($17.60), Kensington Court ($20.80), Iced Over ($19.20) and This Hard Land ($25.40) to create a payoff that could in quite handy for some simple, everyday tasks – such as buying a new house.
Ironically, the same day’s Pick 6 returned a handsome price, though it totaled half of the Pick 5 for the same $2 bet.
The sequence started with This Hard Land at 11.70-to-1, and then finished up with horses priced at $10.40, $8.60, $4.20, $6.30 and $18.20 to return a glittering $71,105 for $2.
Churchill Downs handicappers enjoyed a Fab Five of their own on May 25 when the Pick 5 paid $39,554.50 for a 50-cent wager.
The sequence started off with a bang when Tampa Bay Downs shipper Factory of Faith won the seventh race at 18.70-to-1 odds, paying $39.40. After that came winners paying a lucrative $14, $18.60 and $17.60 and then some sanity in the form of heavily favored 6-to-5 shot Anusara ($4.40), who was coming off losses by a head and neck in her last two starts. Combined they accounted for a payoff of slightly less than 40 grand from a 50-cent wager.
Overall, it was such a challenging day for handicappers that the Pick 6 paid off for just four winners with a $52 mutuel.
Showing how even picking two can reap a sweet reward, the fifth race exacta at Pimlico Race Course on May 25 paid $2,339.50 for $2.
Those who cashed on the race earned their money as they needed to come up with Righteous Intent on top of any winning tickets. Beaten by 23 ¾ lengths in her previous race (although she was second prior to that), the 4-year-old filly paid $134 while breaking her maiden and kicking off the combo that also included 19.20-to-1 shot Smuggling in the bottom half of the wallet-stuffing exacta. The rest of the horizontal exotics in the race were also quite substantial as the $2 trifecta was worth $9,039 and the $1 superfecta lit up the toteboard for $14,885.60.
Surprisingly, Righteous Intent did not take home this week’s “how did you come up with that one?” award. That honor went to the even more improbable Making Fire, a 7-year-old gelding who improved off an 11 1/4-length loss in his 2015 debut and won the sixth race at Emerald Downs on May 31 and paid a whopping $153 for a $2 win bet.
Like the folks who recently hit the Pick 5 at Belmont Park and Churchill Downs, the holders of winning tickets on him were no doubt engaging in some deliriously happy high fives.
Top Payouts for the Week Ended May 31
Wager
Wager Amount
Payoff
Track
Date
Race#
Win
$2.00
$153.00
EMD
5/31/15
6
Place
$2.00
$115.60
WRD
5/26/15
4
Show
$2.00
$44.00
WRD
5/26/15
1
Exacta
$1.00
$548.50
EMD
5/31/15
6
Exacta
$2.00
$2,339.60
PIM
5/25/15
5
Quinella
$2.00
$496.00
MD
5/29/15
4
Trifecta
$0.50
$2,124.20
IND
5/26/15
5
Trifecta
$1.00
$4,881.80
GG
5/25/15
9
Trifecta
$2.00
$16,596.00
LS
5/30/15
1
Superfecta
$0.10
$14,654.30
IND
5/26/15
5
Superfecta
$1.00
$41,900.50
RUI
5/30/15
9
Superfecta
$2.00
$129,109.20
LS
5/30/15
1
Daily Double
$1.00
$401.00
CD
5/30/15
5
Daily Double
$2.00
$1,710.80
PIM
5/29/15
6
Pick 3
$0.50
$6,748.55
PIM
5/25/15
7
Pick 3
$1.00
$6,837.20
PRX
5/30/15
3
Pick 3
$2.00
$4,436.00
BEL
5/29/15
9
Pick 4
$0.50
$9,667.65
IND
5/26/15
5
Pick 4
$1.00
$12,042.70
LS
5/30/15
10
Pick 4
$2.00
$25,984.00
BEL
5/29/15
9
Pick 5
$0.20
$21,206.35
WO
5/29/15
6
Pick 5
$0.50
$39,554.60
CD
5/25/15
11
Pick 5
$1.00
$5,525.00
DEL
5/25/15
7
Pick 5
$2.00
$185,140.00
BEL
5/30/15
5
Pick 5 Jackpot
$0.50
$266.25
LAD
5/30/15
8
Pick 6
$0.20
$186.02
LS
5/25/15
10
Pick 6
$1.00
$2,720.00
PID
5/27/15
7
Pick 6
$2.00
$71,105.00
BEL
5/30/15
10
Pick 6 Jackpot
$0.10
$4,958.77
PIM
5/29/15
9
Pick 6 Jackpot
$0.20
$8,540.06
GP
5/28/15
8
Super High Five
$0.10
$1,833.07
LS
5/25/15
10
Super High Five
$0.50
$3,840.05
EVD
5/27/15
5
Super High Five
$1.00
$27,671.10
SA
5/30/15
9
Super High Five
$2.00
$439.40
MNR
5/25/15
9
Click here for a complete list of racetracks with abbreviations.
© 2015 Equibase Company LLC, all rights reserved. Data provided or compiled by Equibase Company LLC generally is accurate, but occasionally errors and omissions occur as a result of incorrect data received by others, mistakes in processing and other causes. Equibase Company LLC disclaims responsibility for the consequences, if any, of such errors, but would appreciate their being called to their attention.
Commonly Used Gambling Terms
Account wagering – Betting by internet or phone, in which a bettor must open an account and deposit money with which to bet.
Across the board – A bet on a horse to win, place and show. If the horse wins, the player collects three ways; if second, two ways; and if third, one way, losing the win and place bets. Actually, three bets.
Bounce – An especially poor performance on the heels of an especially good one.
Box – A betting term denoting a combination bet whereby all possible numeric combinations are covered for certain horses.
Bridge jumper – A person who wagers large amounts of money, usually on short- priced horses to show, hoping to realize a small but almost certain profit. The term comes from the structure those bettors may seek if they lose the bet.
Chalk – Betting favorite in a race.
Chalk player – Gambler who wagers on favorites.
Daily Double (or Double) – Type of bet calling for the selection of winners of two consecutive races.
Exacta – A wager in which the first two finishers in a race, in exact order of finish, must be picked.
Exacta box – A wager in which all possible combinations using a given number of horses are selected.
Exotic (bet) – Any bet other than win, place, or show that requires multiple combinations. Examples of exotic wagers are trifecta, Pick 6, Pick 4.
Handle – Amount of money wagered in the pari-mutuel system on a race, full day of races, or entire racing season at a track.
In the money – A horse that finishes first, second or third.
Key horse – A single horse used in multiple combinations in an exotic bet.
Morning line – The starting odds set by the track handicapper.
On the board – Finishing among the first three.
On the nose – Betting a horse to win only.
Overlay – A horse whose odds are greater than its potential to win.
Pari-mutuel – System of wagering where all the money is returned to the bettors after deduction of track and state percentages.
Parlay – A multi-race bet in which all winnings are subsequently wagered on a succeeding race.
Part wheel – Using a key horse or horses in different, but not all possible, exotic wagering combinations.
Pick (6 or other number) – A type of multi-race bet in which the winners of all the included races must be selected. Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, Pick 6 are commonly used by tracks in the United States.
Place bet – A bet on a horse to finish first or second.
Quinella - Bet in which the first two finishers must be picked in either order.
Show bet – A bet on a horse to finish in the money; third or better.
Speed Figure – A metric that rates a horse’s performance in a race, which is determined by a combination of the horse’s performance and the level of competition he/she competed against.
Trifecta – A bet in which the first three finishers must be selected in exact order.
Trifecta box – A trifecta wager in which all possible combinations using a given number of horses are bet upon.
Underlay – Horse whose odds are more promising than his potential to win.
Win – A bet on a horse to finish first.
Wheel – Betting all possible combinations in an exotic wager using at least one horse as the key.