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Meadowlands: Saturday Night’s Pick 5 Pool Guaranteed At $100,000

With the stars in perfect alignment, wagering at The Meadowlands has been booming of late. In fact, with the track dark each of the last two holiday-season Fridays, the Saturdays (Dec. 26 and Jan. 2) that followed saw cumulative handle batter the $8-million barrier.

After $3.7 million – the fourth-highest day or night of business during 2020 – was pushed through the windows Dec. 26, an incredible $4.5 million was put in play on Jan. 2, which sets a high bar to leap over on a “non-event” card during 2021.

Last Saturday's program started with a loud bang and the noise kept on coming as players fired away for all 15 races. The first race 20-cent Pick-5 had a well-publicized carryover and $150,000 guaranteed pool that ended up with a total pool of just over $360,000. In addition, because the $46,000 carryover was not subject to the already low 15 percent takeout, bettors got back precisely 99.87 percent of the Pick-5 action, instead of the usual 85 percent.

Given the tremendous success of one week ago, Big M management – along with the Standardbred Owners Association of New Jersey – will provide $25,000 in seed money and a $100,000 guaranteed pool for the Saturday night 20-cent Pick-5 wager.

In addition – on both Friday and Saturday night – each 50-cent Pick-4 (which begin in races six and race 10, respectively) have guaranteed pools of $50,000.

“The Meadowlands is offering horseplayers a challenging and beatable game featuring low takeout and large pools driving the insatiable demand for these wagers,” said Meadowlands' Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “We thank horseplayers around the world for their increasingly positive response to New Jersey racing at The Meadowlands.”

Big pools were the norm throughout the Saturday card. Four times during the program betting on a single race exceeded the $300,000 mark, with the first-race total of $565,076 representing the evening's most vigorous play on a single dash.

“Historically speaking,” said Settlemoir. “Wagering over $300,000 a race without a stakes event on the program is completely off the charts. We are proud of everyone at The Big M who worked so hard to make a $4.5-million night possible. With no racing either of the last two Fridays, there was obviously a large demand for the Saturday program, and, fortunately for us, the momentum from the last Saturday in December carried over into the first Saturday of January. Another factor was our media relations people helping to fuel a social media fire that burned all night long.”

Other big Saturday pools included the track's two signature Pick-4s, which averaged $111,597 per pool, as well as the mile oval's always popular Exacta, that averaged better than $84,000 a pop. Total Exacta play for the night was better than $1.25 million.

“The Pick-5 carryover of $46,000 brought everyone to the party early,” said Settlemoir. “The Pick-5 pool grew to $360,000 and the first race handle of $565,000 could possibly be a Meadowlands record for an opening race. In addition, now that we are offering free program pages on all Big M races, that provides something else that appeals to our regular customers and may bring us some new clientele as well, and, during the winter months, we have moved our post time to 6 p.m. In essence, we have traded the 11 p.m.-to-midnight hour for the 6-7 p.m. hour. We certainly are happy with the overwhelming response from our racing fans the last two weeks.”

The Big M's six 15 percent takeout wagers accounted for 14 percent of the evening's action on Saturday, with a total of over $650,000. In addition to the Pick-5 and two Pick-4s, players can also choose to get in on the track's 20-cent Survivor Pick-7, 20-cent Pick-6 and 10-cent Hi-Five.

THE SCHEDULE: Live racing at The Meadowlands will be conducted every Friday and Saturday night. First-race post time is 6 p.m.

TUNE IN: Be sure to watch the live “Racing from The Meadowlands” pre-game show, which now begins at 5:27 p.m. every race night.

On Friday, Dave Brower and Dave Little will be at the main desk on the Sam McKee Memorial Broadcast Set while Jessica Otten will be the featured handicapper on the live Television Games Network (tvg.com) presentation. Shades Demsky will provide interviews from the back paddock.

On Saturday night, Demsky will be alongside Brower, Little will shift to TVG and Otten will not only be on interview duty, but will also provide an in-depth look at the 20-cent Survivor Pick-7 after the conclusion of the replay of race two.

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Equibase Analysis: Never Be Enough Poised To Upset La Canada

Saturday's running of the Grade 3, $100,000 La Canada Stakes at Santa Anita Park features a field of seven mares, most of which have made their mark in similar stakes recently. Leading the field in terms of career earnings is Hard Not to Love, who won the one-turn Grade 2 Santa Monica Stakes 11 months ago and who has three runner-up finishes in graded stakes since, most recently in the G2 Zenyatta Stakes last fall. Fighting Mad is a two-time G1 winner, having captured the Santa Maria Stakes at Santa Anita last May, as well as the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes last August at Del Mar, both at the distance of the La Canada.

Proud Emma just won the identical G3 Bayakoa Stakes at Los Alamitos last month, with Message finishing second and Miss Stormy D fourth. Never Be Enough is the new face in the older female dirt division, running on conventional dirt for the first time after eight races on turf or all-weather following coming to the U.S. from Great Britain. Sanenus rounds out the field and also appears to fit with these off a runner-up effort in the G3 Chilukki Stakes in November.

Although she has never run a race on a conventional dirt surface, I believe Never Be Enough can run well enough to post the upset in this year's La Canada Stakes. This hard knocking mare leads the field by far in races run in her career (29), having won seven and finishing second in five others, including a four for 10 record in 2020. Shipping from trainer Manuel Badilla's Golden Gate Fields base last fall, Never Be Enough (GB) won the Kathryn Crosby Stakes (111 Equibase Speed Figure) on the turf at Del Mar then two races later was closing strongly late and ended up second in the Robert J. Frankel Stakes, ending up beaten just three-quarters of a length at the end by Mucho Unusual (a grade 1 stakes winner). That 111 figure matches up perfectly with the 112 figures Fighting Mad earned winning the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes and with the 112 figure Hard Not to Love earned when second in the Santa Maria Stakes. As such, if Never Be Enough can transfer her form to the main track, she has every right to run well enough to win this race

Fighting Mad hasn't been seen since finishing third as the prohibitive favorite in the Zenyatta Stakes last September, a disappointing effort which led to her skipping the Breeders' Cup Distaff and taking time off to prepare for her five year old campaign. Prior to that, Fighting Mad led from start to finish and dominated against short five and six horse fields in the Santa Maria Stakes (117 figure) and Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (112 figure). In the La Canada, I expect Fighting Mad to secure the lead at the start and try to control the pace to the finish, which is certainly possible. However, horses like Message, Sanenus and Miss Stormy D may also want the lead or to be very close to the front, which may see Fighting Mad run more like she did in the Zenyatta when passed late in the stretch.

Proud Emma just won the identical Bayakoa Stakes at Los Alamitos with a 104 figure and three races before that won the Tranquility Lake Stakes with a 105 figure. In both races, Proud Emma closed from off the pace so in the La Canada she has a chance to save ground from the rail and close into the pacesetter in the stretch although she would need to improve to get to the 112 figure level it appears the winner of this race will need to earn to win.

Hard Not to Love is certainly a contender but I don't think she can win the La Canada. In three of her four races around two turns she managed second place, but all were in short fields of six or less. The best of those earned a 112 figure when second in the Santa Maria. However, Fighting Mad won that race after leading from the start and that's a more likely scenario in my opinion than Hard Not to Love turning the tables on her foe.

The rest of the La Canada Stakes field, with their best Equibase Speed Figures, is Message (105), Miss Stormy D (111) and Sanenus (97).

Win Contenders, in preference order:
Never Be Enough (GB)
Fighting Mad
Proud Emma

La Canada Stakes – Grade 3
Race 8 at Santa Anita
Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021 – Post Time 6:30 PM E.T.
One Mile and One Sixteenth
Fillies and Mares, Four Years Old and Upward
Purse: $100,000

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Gulfstream Park: Guaranteed $1.4-Million Rainbow 6 Jackpot Thursday; Mandatory Payout Saturday

The 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool will be guaranteed at $1.4 million Thursday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The popular multi-race wager went unsolved for the 11th racing day in a row Wednesday, when multiple tickets with all six winners were each worth $14,488.28.

A mandatory payout of the Rainbow 6 pool is scheduled for Saturday.

The Rainbow 6 carryover jackpot is usually only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day's pool usually goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool. However, on mandatory-payout days, the entire pool is paid out to the bettor or bettors with the most winners in the six-race sequence.

Thursday's Rainbow 6 sequence will span Races 5-10, highlighted by the Race 9 feature, a five-furlong optional claiming allowance on turf. Tiger Blood is scheduled to seek his 20^th career victory against six rivals.

There will also be a carryover of $12,612.49 in the $1 Super Hi-5 wager for Thursday's opener going 1 1/8 miles on the grass.

WHO'S HOT: Leading rider Luis Saez made three visits to the Gulfstream winner's circle after scoring aboard Raulito ($5.40) in Race 1, Corey ($7.60) in Race 6 and Shootin the Breeze ($7.80) in Race 8.

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‘Home Away From Home’: 60-Year Handicapping Veteran Wins Tampa’s Online Contest

The first time Frank Mazur came to Tampa Bay Downs – 57 or 58 years ago, when the track was called Sunshine Park – he made money. He took numerous vacations to the area over the years to escape the Chicago winters, and developed an enduring affection for everything the Oldsmar oval had to offer.

“It felt like a home away from home. How do you explain something like that. … it was like I belonged there,” he reminisced. “Everybody was real friendly, and I always felt comfortable there.”

Mazur's passion over the decades was duly rewarded on Dec. 24 when he won the track-sponsored “10 Days of Festivus” Online Handicapping Contest, finishing with a final bankroll amount of $113.30. His selection of Whispering Rose proved the difference when the (then)-3-year-old filly won the fourth race on Christmas Eve by a head, paying $8.60, $5.40 and $3.

Before settling on Whispering Rose, he asked two friends for their input, and both told him to choose her.

The victory enabled Mazur, an 81-year-old retiree now living in Henderson, Nev., with his wife Dana and son David, to edge contest runner-up Bob Diver of Niagara on the Lake in Ontario, Canada by $3.50.

Mazur collected $1,000 for the victory and Diver won $500. They topped a field of more than 700 handicappers who competed in the event.

“It's a hard contest to win, and if you're a horse player, it's a great accomplishment,” said Mazur, who never had to use a lifeline since each of his picks finished in the money over the 10 days of the contest.

“The racing at Tampa was very formful during that period, and I think a lot of people got eliminated going for long shots. Obviously there is an element of luck involved, but for whatever reason things fell into place. There were two or three times I had to make a hard decision between horses, and I guessed right,” Mazur said.

Mazur looks at class and speed when handicapping and doesn't pay much attention to the jockeys.

“When the horses start riding the jockeys and trainers, I'll pay more attention to that. The only thing you want from the jockey is not to fall off,” he said.

Mazur, who has entered “eight or 10” handicapping contests at Tampa Bay Downs, said it remains his favorite simulcast signal.

“I'd say 90 percent of the bets I make are on Tampa. I hold my own,” he said. “My losses would be very minor, and the entertainment value would be way ahead.”

And the memories? Those are priceless.

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