So the predictions and suggestion for Woodbine’s pick-5 in last week’s column was spot on; how often does a columnist get to say that? I had suggested playing a $38.40 wheel in which you take “all” horses in the last leg so you could “sit back and cheer for the longest shot in the field.” So, if you followed that suggestion, you were in that enviable position after winning the first four legs.
A longshot unfortunately didn’t win that leg—the favourite did—but your $38.40 outlay still earned you $142 — three-and-a-half times your investment. And you were able to revel in the excitement of being alive to every horse in the last leg.
Tomorrow’s early pick-5 will be much trickier, given the fact there are two races for two-year-olds and two bottom-level claiming races of $5,000 and $7,500 where anything can happen. Which points to the possibility of a boxcar payoff. And, hey, maybe you can land it with a ticket costing you mere pocket change!
- RACE 2, $5,000 claimer: With just a month of live racing remaining, this super-low claiming tag tells you these are horses that owners are ready to part with. You can take many of these horses in your horizontal wagers, but the most appealing are the two horses who were previously racing at the tough STARTER level. Those two are #4 Speedy River (5-1) and #9 Gizmo’s B F F (10-1).
- RACE 3, $7,500 claimer: Another low-level claimer at 5 ½-furlongs. One of the rules is to look for the horse that does best at this distance. That would be #8 Where Is Essa (8-1), who has five in-the-money finishes out of six starts at this distance. Add to that the horses who were racing in the tougher STARTER condition: 2,4,6,9,10.
- RACE 4, $25,000 claimer: Let’s make a courageous key here. #1 Volcanic (8-1) is dropping to a straight $25K claimer from AOC (allowance optional claiming) of $50K. Didn’t race that badly at the higher level last time: lost by seven lengths, racing “evenly.” Racing in this lower class, he should be able to turn “evenly” into a gritty finish.
- RACE 5, Maiden race for two-year-olds: Let’s take another key #8 Tiz Her Money (5-2) who almost won last time with the same rider he has this time: leading jockey Sahin Civaci. Has the lowest added-up numbers of six. Comes from the back of the pack but the race is 1/16-mile longer and the track should be kind to closers because of the deep harrowing the track has undergone because of the three breakdowns last Saturday.
- RACE 6, $40,000 optional claimer for two-year-olds: #4 Awesome Rainbow (3-1) has raced in three stakes in a row and has the highest Equibase speed figure in the race. And how about 20-1 longshot #6 Golden Test who is cutting back to this 6 ½-furlong sprint distance after showing brisk early pace in a mile race? He’ll be charging late and if he wins, you’ll be richly rewarded.
So how about this 20-cent pick-5 wheel that will cost you all of $4.80 but has a HUGE upside: 4,9/2,4,6,8,9,10/1/8/4,6 (2 x 6 x 1 x 1 x 2 = 24 divided by 5 = $4.80.)
Go get ‘em!
~ by Ivan Bigg
