Breaking the Bank: Closing Day Fireworks in Canada

Breaking the Bank - featuring data courtesy of Equibase - highlights the biggest scores of the past week in racing. (Woodbine photo by Eclipse Sportswire) 
The importance of finishing strong in sports can’t be underestimated.
A Game 7 in the World Series or NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs is a must-see event and on the flip side everyone knows how tough it is to keep a party entertained during a Super Bowl blowout.
Closing day on Dec. 7 at Woodbine obliged both the sports fan and the bettor with a Grade 3 stakes race on the card and some of the biggest payouts of the entire meet.
The sixth race itself was responsible for plenty of fireworks, including the top superfecta payout of the week. The reported payout was $181,826.50 for a $1 bet, but given the total pool was much less than the payout we can conclude that there was one winning ticket that paid $36,365.50 for the 20-cent minimum.
Royal Intrigue controlled the pace at 20.20-to-1, edged clear and was fully extended to hold off fast-closing, 65.40-to-1 bomb Mattangel by a neck in the 1 1/16-mile allowance race on the synthetic Polytrack surface.
Kavika closed from 10th with a sweeping bid to take third at 12.85-to-1, three-quarters of a length in front of 3.75-to-1 Absolute with favored Niigon’s Turn sixth in the 12-horse field.
In addition to a 36-grand superfecta payout for 20 cents, the race also produced a $2 exactor of $1,585.10 and a $2 triactor payout of $67,171.70. It’s possible that there was only one winning triactor for a $2 bet, but it’s far more likely there were multiple winning tickets for the 20-cent minimum that paid $6,717.17.
The triactor would have ranked atop this week’s list of payouts for the trifecta. It’s the same wager but because of the different name is not listed among trifecta bets.
Royal Intrigue would have been tough to come up with as the winner, having been defeated in 10 straight starts before his Dec. 7 win. However, he was coming off a couple of pretty solid performances that included a new career-best Equibase Speed Figure of 88 in a third-place finish on Nov. 9. Mattangel also toted a 10-race winless stretch into the race, having last won in a maiden-claiming race on June 28 after going winless in his first 19 races.
Mattangel serves as a reminder that the “all” button can be a gambler’s friend.
The sixth race on Dec. 7 at Woodbine also served as one of the key races in a pair of multi-race sequences that produced monster scores.
The $1 Pick 3 for Races 4-6 paid a reported $11,337.60 (or $2,267.52 for the 20-cent minimum), while the $1 Pick 4 for Races 4-7 returned a reported $213,192.70 ($42,638.54 for the 20-cent minimum). With less than $130,000 in the Pick 4 pool, we can surmise that were a couple of winners at the minimum bet.
Both sequences got off to a flying start when 67.95-to-1 longshot Major Production struck in the fourth race, a 1 7/8-mile marathon on the main track. Major Production rallied from eighth, took control near the top of the stretch and drew away to a 5-length runaway win. In the middle race of the Pick 3 sequence, Sly Aspios won at odds of 4.80-to-1.
The Pick 4 closed with another longshot as Mavis Road prevailed at 20.30-to-1 as the anchor leg of a 20-cent bet that paid 42-grand.
Favorites won three of the final five races on the card, so it’s safe to say the grand finale came a few races early on the final card of the 2014 Woodbine meet. 
Click here for the Equibase charts from Dec. 7 at Woodbine

Wager
 Wager Amount 
 Payoff 
Track
Date
Race#

Win
 $2.00
 $162.20
LRL
12/5/14
3

Place
 $2.00
 $81.40
TP
12/4/14
2

Show
 $2.00
 $59.00
AQU
12/5/14
6

Exacta
 $1.00
 $468.50
LRC
12/6/14
9

Exacta
 $2.00
 $1,719.80
TP
12/4/14
8

Quinella
 $1.00
 $204.00
TUP
12/6/14
8

Quinella
 $2.00
 $79.00
AQU
12/7/14
2

Trifecta
 $0.50
 $662.05
DED
12/5/14
3

Trifecta
 $1.00
 $16,352.70
GP
12/7/14
3

Trifecta
 $2.00
 $13,072.00
TP
12/4/14
2

Superfecta
 $0.10
 $14,736.00
FG
12/6/14
9

Superfecta
 $0.20
 $8,817.30
HAW
12/6/14
6

Superfecta
 $1.00
 $181,826.50
WO
12/7/14
6

Superfecta
 $2.00
 $119,027.20
TP
12/6/14
9

Daily Double
 $1.00
 $399.00
DED
12/4/14
8

Daily Double
 $2.00
 $3,202.20
LRC
12/6/14
9

Pick 3
 $0.50
 $1,670.30
FG
12/6/14
9

Pick 3
 $1.00
 $11,337.60
WO
12/7/14
6

Pick 3
 $2.00
 $15,862.20
PEN
12/6/14
4

Pick 4
 $0.20
 $576.00
HAW
12/6/14
5

Pick 4
 $0.50
 $6,081.80
DED
12/6/14
4

Pick 4
 $1.00
 $213,192.70
WO
12/7/14
7

Pick 4
 $2.00
 $106,911.00
TP
12/4/14
4

Pick 5
 $0.20
 $1,843.40
HAW
12/6/14
5

Pick 5
 $0.50
 $34,526.20
LRC
12/4/14
5

Pick 5
 $1.00
 $3,127.10
TAM
12/3/14
9

Pick 5
 $2.00
 $22,281.00
AQU
12/7/14
5

Pick 5 Jackpot
 $0.20
 $479.80
LRL
12/3/14
9

Pick 5 Jackpot
 $0.50
 $1,881.45
FG
12/7/14
9

Pick 6
 $0.20
 $31,026.04
GG
12/7/14
9

Pick 6
 $1.00
 $1,031.80
TUP
12/3/14
8

Pick 6
 $2.00
 $110,732.80
LRC
12/7/14
9

Pick 6 Jackpot
 $0.20
 $2,157.14
GP
12/7/14
10

Pick 6 Jackpot
 $1.00
 $17.80
SUN
12/7/14
10

Super High Five
 $0.50
 $2,451.65
FG
12/6/14
10

Super High Five
 $1.00
 $13,774.80
ZIA
12/2/14
11

Click here for a complete list of racetracks with abbreviations.

© 2014 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.