Showing posts with label jackpot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jackpot. Show all posts

  • $260,003 winner forgot he was alive in Pick 6

    POSTED Dec 5, 2012 By Unknown
    Ron from Michigan was live to three horses in a $.50 Pick 4 that he didn’t expect to pay much since the first three winners were 3-to-1, 3-to-2, and 3-to-2.

    Still, he got excited when 17.1-to-1 English Puddin nosed even money favorite Bwanadada to win the night cap and complete $1,011.05 Pick 4 that would have paid considerably less had the favorite held on.

    The real excitement came when he checked his TwinSpires.com account balance and saw $199,153.05 in there instead of $1,171.05. Turns out English Puddin’s nose also landed Ron the Pick 6, a bet he thought he was out of after the second leg. Ron had forgotten that he had used 10.3-to-1 Cloudy Moon, who went gate to wire to win race 5, as part of a $144 Pick 6 play that returned $260,003 before taxes.

    “I was sitting in my office at home and didn’t realize I was live in the Pick 6,” Ron said. “I was excited when I won that photo to hit my best possible Pick 4, but when I checked my account balance I was like, ‘Hey! OK!’ Then I remembered.”

    Ron isn’t a big Pick 6 player—the veteran recreational horseplayer said he typically sticks to $.50 Pick 4s—but things came together on Sunday for him to take a stab at Hollywood’s one-day carryover.

    “The money was right to play,” Ron said. “I hit some other races earlier on the day and just spun that into the Hollywood card. I started out East and ended up out West. If I look at the Pick 6 and it’s going to take $500 or $1,000 to play it then I’ll pass. $144 is pretty much my max to play, so this fit.”

    Ron said he’s gotten more into betting Southern California racing the past few years because trainer patterns are easier to spot with most conditioners starting their horses on one circuit. Ron also uses Brisnet.com Ultimate Past Performances to handicap with special attention to top BRIS Speed Ratings from the past two or three races and trainer statistics.

    Ron’s entrée to Thoroughbred racing far predates the internet let alone Brisnet.com, but speed ratings have been a part of his arsenal since the beginning when trips to River Downs while attending the University of Cincinnati.

    “My first major score was buying some guy’s homemade figures for live racing at River,” Ron said. “There was a horse in the last race who was just a complete standout. The horse won and paid $40 or $50. It was a lot of money for me at the time, and that’s what kept me going back.”

    Ron not only kept going back to River Downs but also found a way to Keeneland in Lexington by hitchhiking.

    Ron served overseas in the Army but returned to racing immediately following his return to the States and retirement from the service. He’s currently involved in a Dogwood Stable partnership, and he has campaigned horses on his own that have won in Michigan and at Chicagoland tracks.

    He is not sure which animal(s) he will buy with his winnings.

    “My dog passed away a few months ago, so I might get a new one,” Ron said. “He passed of old age, and maybe the time is right now. Maybe I’ll buy another horse with Dogwood, too.”

    Whatever else he decides to do with the money, Ron is committed to keep playing the horses as well.

    “I’ve been playing horses all my life,” Ron said. “It’s a hobby, but it’s all about trying to make a profit.”

  • TwinSpires.com bettor plays name game to scoop Pick 6 at Del Mar

    POSTED Aug 27, 2012 By Unknown
    A name he liked coupled with a jockey he recognized led Mr. Hariri to scoop Thursday’s Pick 6 at Del Mar for gross winnings of $495,060.80 on a $146 play.

    Playing through TwinSpires.com, the West Coast resident took a stab at Thursday’s $89,785 Pick 6 carryover by crafting nine separate tickets, including a main $96 play that hit six of six plus six consolation (5/6) payouts. A separate $4 play in which he singled the seventh race (fifth leg) winner but missed the third race (first leg) also cashed a consolation payoff of $1,790.60.

    The seventh race (fifth leg) single in question was Zimmer, who shipped to Del Mar from Churchill Downs for trainer Pat Byrne and was dismissed at 14.9-to-1, the longest shot in the seven-horse field of optional claimers. Hariri was initially attracted to the horse because of his name and decided to gamble on the Empire Maker colt when he saw Racing Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith listed to ride.

    “The way I play horses is by name,” Hariri said the morning after his big score. “I don’t care about odds; I play names I like. The longshot who led to me getting the whole pot was Zimmer. When I saw his name I said, ‘That’s a pretty cool name.’ Normally I’ll just go with names, and if I like it I’ll play it, but when I saw Mike Smith was riding I knew I had to include this horse.”

    The only single on Hariri’s winning ticket was Orientatious in the fourth race (second leg). The Orientate filly paid $20.20 to win and helped key separate wins for Hariri in the double, Pick 3, and Pick 5 that brought the day’s gross winnings to more than $500,000.

    “This is what it’s like to be hit by lightning,” Hariri said. “I didn’t believe it until I saw the money in my account. I couldn’t sleep last night.”

    Despite being live through two races with $12 and $20.20 horses (first-time starter Carving in the third race [first leg] and Orientatious, respectively), Hariri also played the late Pick 4. However, by the time the final race rolled around, he was too nervous to watch following Zimmer’s upset score.

    “I couldn’t watch it live, and I didn’t look at the will pays,” Hariri said. “I watched it on replay and even when I knew I won I thought since it was the favorite in the last leg [even money Bev N Bud] I thought it might pay $40,000 or $50,000.”

    In addition to his Pick 6 riches, Hariri also hit the Pick 5 on a $63 play that returned $4,020.85 and the Pick 4 three times on a $49 play that returned $1,618.05.

    “You never know what will happen,” Hariri said. “Sometimes horses just have their day, and yesterday was my day. I’m sharing my strategy so others can use it and win too.”

    Hariri said he opened a TwinSpires.com account shortly after his initial trip to the racetrack, and although he loves the convenience and excitement of playing online he said that his favorite part of racing is when the horses turn for home.

    “The stretch run is very exhilarating,” Hariri said. “I love horses, and I love watching them run.”

    Hariri is planning a trip to Chicago with some of his winnings, but the big windfall did not keep him away from this past weekend’s action featuring the Travers Stakes at Saratoga and the Pacific Classic at Del Mar.

    “It’s a big weekend with Saratoga and Del Mar,” Hariri said. “I’m not greedy, though. I’ll still play, but I won’t go crazy just because I won.”

  • TwinSpires player scoops $71k Arlington Pick 9

    POSTED May 24, 2012 By Unknown

    Wayne Morgan never had an anxious moment on Wednesday at Arlington Park when cheering home his ninth winner of the Pick 9 sequence.

    One of his three picks, even money favorite Party Vision, opened a clear lead in the stretch, and the only two horses running late were the others on his ticket.

    Party Vision was one of five favorites to win on the nine-race card, including a quartet at 3-to-2 or less, so even with the $54,510 carryover going into Wednesday’s dime Pick 9, Morgan was not expecting a big pay day. Indeed, a $2 parlay on the nine winners would have returned about $25,000, which is only $1,250 for a dime.

    “I figured it’d be something because of the carryover, but I was thinking maybe a few thousand,” said Morgan whose two singles were even money favorite Mai Tai Mama in the first race and 3-to-2 favorite Dreams Die First in the fourth race. “I figured if I hit it on my ticket with all those favorites then other people probably did too.”

    Well, other people didn’t hit it, and Morgan’s $144 play returned $71,334.46 for nine of nine plus another $431.28 for a dozen eight-of-nine consolation tickets worth $35.94 each. By comparison the $1 Pick 6 returned $535.60 despite a parlay value of $835.21.

    “My only other big score was also on a Pick 9,” Morgan said. “That was a Place Pick 9 at Balmoral and paid about $5,000, so I’ve never experienced anything like this.”

    Morgan is a TSC Elite Gold member who wagers through TwinSpires.com and used TwinSpires.com’s mobile interface when placing his winning wagers on Wednesday. Still, the 59-year-old Air Force veteran and father of four says he enjoys making it to live racing when he can.

    “We’ve gone to the Trackside OTBs a few times, but Arlington is a real nice track,” said Morgan, who lives in Naperville, Illinois, about 28 miles southwest of Arlington Park. “I left work early on Wednesday so I could get out there. I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Allison Sharfman [in Arlington marketing] for all her help when I attend the races or bring my family.”

    Morgan said that he takes a holistic approach to handicapping and doesn’t really favor any particular angle over another, though when pressed said he always takes class into consideration.

    “I like to look at the horses in the race and see what types of horses they’ve been running against—whether they’ve been facing better or worse than this race,” Morgan said.
    Morgan was alone as his score unfolded, and even though he thought he was probably sitting on a decent score going into the last race, he resisted the urge to call anyone because he didn’t want to jinx it. Even when he did call people, though, the veteran horseplayer said most didn’t believe him at first.

    “No one believed me when I told them how much I won on a dime bet,” Morgan said. “To tell the truth, I know it’s a lot of money, but it hasn’t sunk in yet just how much. I know we’ll find something to do with it, but we have no plans yet. I’m sure my kids are thinking of ways.”

    Morgan’s big score follows a similar windfall for TwinSpires players who took down the Solo 6 on April 17 at Sunland Park. One of those players, Julia Kring of Frankfort, Kentucky, hit the bet twice for $31,517.04 each way.

  • Kentucky Derby EXACTA morning line

    POSTED Apr 30, 2012 By Unknown
    Anyone can make a morning line for win odds, but what will the exactas pay (for a dollar)?

    Don't worry, I didn't put as much thought into this as it looks like. I basically took the approach that certain groups of horses are going to be similarly bet and then made tweaks based on running style. E.g., I have Hansen and I'll Have Another as similar price in the win slot of the exacta but favored the latter slightly in the place spot because some might consider Hansen more a win threat based on running style.

    I also didn't take a stand on whether Bodemeister or Union Rags will be favored. It's possible that one could take more money in the win pool but not in exotics. The big question I tried to answer with them is, How low will the chalk-chalk exacta pay? I'm pretty comfortable with the $30-$35 range and went with $30.

    Not surprisingly, I figure Trinniberg to be the longest shot in both the win and exacta pools. With the largest exacta payout of $9,500 projected to occur if he defeats either Prospective or Rousing Sermon in 2nd.

    Speaking of the projected payouts, to make the formula work that spits out the percetage of the pool and odds, I input $9,999 for the combo that would include the same horse in first and second, which of course can't really happen.