Breaking the Bank: Divine Intervention

Breaking the Bank - featuring data courtesy of Equibase - highlights the biggest scores of the past week in racing. (Fair Grounds photo by Eclipse Sportswire) 
Regardless of the religious affiliation of the person, whoever bought the only winning ticket on Fair Grounds’ Black Gold Pick 5 Jackpot had to thank “Heaven” for breaking the bank.
Fair Grounds’ version of Gulfstream Park’s Rainbow 6 came up with a single winner on Jan. 10 when a carryover of roughly $177,000 ignited a gargantuan $199,192.65 payoff for a 50-cent wager placed by the only person who used the winning 5-4-2-4-1 combination.
Jackpot bets pay out only when there is one unique winning ticket. If there is more than one winning ticket or if nobody correctly selects the winners of all of the races in the sequence, a percentage of the jackpot carries over to the next card until there is a unique winning ticket.
There were no favorites in the five-race sequence on Jan. 10, with the smallest payoff $9 on 7-to-2 second choice Ruefully in the eighth race. But what no doubt pared the $34,076 worth of wagers down to one winning ticket was Help From Heaven, who won the sixth race at 32.10-to-1 odds and paid $66.20 to win.
The value of the six-figure carryover was best reflected in the Pick 4, which started with Help From Heaven but returned a “mere” $10,478.70 for 50 cents.
While some assistance from heaven or any other spiritual entity would have been helpful in making Help From Heaven your top choice, the 3-year-old colt merited at least minor consideration in the about 1 1/16-mile turf test. Though sixth in both of his turf races, Help From Heaven was beaten by less than five lengths in both of those races and the Beyer Speed Figure for his last race was the third highest in the race.
Using him lightly in the exotics, though, is one thing, while including him with Madd Exchange ($12), Te’s Live Action ($19.60), Ruefully and Valid Pursuit ($21.80) on the golden Pick 5 jackpot ticket was either a stroke of genius or divine intervention.
In either case, with a $199,192.65 payoff, we know who should have been buying drinks in the French Quarter on Saturday night after not just breaking but shattering the bank.
Click here for the Equibase charts from Jan. 10 at Fair Grounds
Meanwhile, this week’s “head for the exits happy” award goes to the ninth and final race at Turfway Park on Jan. 11.
If you tried to bail out by backing 65.50-to-1 longshot Most Wanted, you cashed to the tune of $133 for a $2 bet. Even better if you also liked 44-.50-to-1 shot Four and Five Red in the exacta – or used the "All" button – the payoff was an extremely healthy $1,809.60 for a $2 bet.
With 18.30-to-1 Arctic Sky and 12.20-to-1 shot Hathraan rounding out the improbable order of finish, the other exotics were a longshot player’s delight with payoffs of $24,166.80 for the $2 trifecta and $24,719.41 for the one person fortunate enough to have a 10-cent superfecta on the 6-8-4-7 combo.
The “how did you come up with that one?” award for the week’s most unlikely winner went to Salty Music who paid a spicy $168.60 to win as an 83.30-to-1 longshot in the sixth race at Mahoning Valley in Ohio on Jan. 10.
Picking him off of losses by 26 lengths and 15 ½ lengths in his last two races took some courage … or perhaps some help from heaven.
Top Payouts for the Week Ended Jan. 11

Wager
 Wager Amount 
 Payoff 
Track
Date
Race#

Win
 $2.00
 $168.60
MVR
1/10/15
6

Place
 $2.00
 $63.20
GP
1/7/15
8

Show
 $2.00
 $34.60
GP
1/7/15
8

Exacta
 $1.00
 $221.30
TUP
1/6/15
7

Exacta
 $2.00
 $1,809.60
TP
1/11/15
9

Quinella
 $1.00
 $124.90
TUP
1/6/15
7

Quinella
 $2.00
 $7.50
AQU
1/9/15
2

Trifecta
 $0.50
 $808.50
DED
1/8/15
1

Trifecta
 $1.00
 $3,826.30
GP
1/7/15
8

Trifecta
 $2.00
 $24,166.80
TP
1/11/15
9

Superfecta
 $0.10
 $24,719.41
TP
1/11/15
9

Superfecta
 $1.00
 $42,377.20
LRL
1/10/15
9

Superfecta
 $2.00
 $13,506.20
CT
1/10/15
6

Daily Double
 $1.00
 $140.30
DED
1/10/15
4

Daily Double
 $2.00
 $1,162.00
FG
1/10/15
7

Pick 3
 $0.50
 $1,628.45
FG
1/10/15
8

Pick 3
 $1.00
 $3,161.00
GP
1/11/15
8

Pick 3
 $2.00
 $4,428.80
CT
1/8/15
9

Pick 4
 $0.50
 $10,478.70
FG
1/10/15
9

Pick 4
 $1.00
 $3,141.00
GG
1/8/15
7

Pick 4
 $2.00
 $9,602.80
TAM
1/10/15
6

Pick 5
 $0.20
 $378.92
PM
1/11/15
10

Pick 5
 $0.50
 $25,046.00
TP
1/11/15
7

Pick 5
 $2.00
 $834.00
AQU
1/11/15
5

Pick 5 Jackpot
 $0.20
 $151.48
LRL
1/9/15
9

Pick 5 Jackpot
 $0.50
 $199,192.65
FG
1/10/15
9

Pick 6
 $1.00
 $412.00
TUP
1/5/15
8

Pick 6
 $2.00
 $22,436.20
SA
1/9/15
8

Pick 6 Jackpot
 $0.20
 $19,614.68
GP
1/11/15
11

Super High Five
 $0.50
 $1,999.55
FG
1/8/15
9

Super High Five
 $1.00
 $15,219.10
GG
1/11/15
9

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.