WAGER NEWS: .50 NYRA P4; GP .10 P6 dispersal 4/23; HOL adds .50 P5
 

http://www.drf.com/news/gulfstreams-...rsed-day-early

http://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/stories/Apr132011e.shtml

I was just going to post about the Belmont p4....great move

Kudos to NYRA for implementing this change.

Hollywood Park will offer a reduced takeout Pick 5 on its wagering menu when the Spring/Summer meet begins Thursday, April 21. The Pick 5, which will have a takeout of 14%, the lowest for any multiple race wager in California, will be a 50 cent minimum bet. It will consist of the first five races daily.

Formerly available on the first four races, the early Pick 4 will now cover races 2-5. The late Pick 4 remains on the final four races.

http://hollywoodpark.com/news/reduce...-wagering-menu

Great news with the fifty cent pk4!

It makes weighted pk4 plays a lot more realistic (especially at Saratoga) without cost getting out of hand. Having the option of a $.50 cover ticket with some real bombs is awesome.

Calder is going to offer a 50-cent pick five with a 12% takeout this meet...

http://www.calderracecourse.com/news...nu-calder-2011

Quasi related...
 

is this surprising?

When the track isn't hosting live race meets, the Meadowlands is the nation's highest-volume simulcast betting site.
http://sboanj.com/index.asp?Key=2061

A fity cent pick 5 at the SPA this summer would be very awesome.

Since the article on the Rainbow 6 dispersal wasn't totally clear, am I assuming that the PK 6 will remain a 10 cent minimum wager on Saturday?

Earlier, I thought they bump it back up to a $2 minimum wager when they have a mandatory payout.

I agree with you on this, but it is likely never to happen since the pk6's in NY are second only to California and are big pools. I can't imagine NYRA would institute the pk5 since I doubt they would chance reducing the pk6 pool.

Hollywood is competing against their P6 with a P5... Interesting to see how that will work out.

That is an excellent point, jms, I didn't put that together. I suppose if it doesn't reduce the pk6 pools substantially in California, New York might give it a try. I would really love the opportunity to go after 50 cent pk5's at Saratoga!

It will be interesting to see how it works out at HOL but putting it on the first five races gives them some leverage on 9-10 race cards. On a weekday card you could have a lot of people who are 2-2 in a Pick 5 and decide against playing the Pick 6.

Hopefully they opt against offering a consolation payout. I think that Monmouth did it best by not having a conso. It eats up too much of the pool and the reward for those going 5-5.

If you look at how Keeneland did this year on Blue Grass day vs. 2010 the numbers are as follows:

2010

All-Stakes Pick 4 (Races 6-9): $417,334
2nd Pick 4 (Races 8-11): $298,071
Pick 6 (Races 6-11): $37,239
TOTAL: $752,644

2011

All-Stakes Pick 4 (Races 6-9): $338,426
2nd Pick 4 (Races 7-10): $319,649
Pick 5 (Races 6-10): $180,513
TOTAL: $838,588

Clearly, for a place like Kee where Pick 6 handle was low, the Pick 5 was a great move. At a place where Pick 6 handle is regularly 30k on non-carryover days (NYRA) or closer to 100k (CA) the impact is unknown.

I hate that Hollywood is adding that. California is one of the last places that has a large P6 pool and they are going to eat away at it with this P5 crap.

I love the P5 idea, for tracks without a steady P6 pool.

This is just panic setting in. I really wish that they would argue with the takeout hounds about how they have the lowest takeout in the nation on WPS wagers, I haven't seen them mention it once.

The Hollywood Pick 5 seems a bit aggressive between the small field sizes and their unfortunate tendency to having to cancel cards due to the lack of entries. Not sure what it's going to do to the pick 6, but you would have to think that the early pick four is going to take it on the chin.

With so many tracks looking to bolster their wagering menu, I still find it amazing that it's impossible to put together some kind of multi-track wager like the Magna 5, Sixty Minute 6, or the National PK 4's that have all fallen by the wayside.

I assume the only thing prohibiting it is tracks not wanting to cooperate with one another.

I just can't see a P5 and P6 existing without hurting the P6. I think NYRA should consider eliminating the P6 and replace it with a P5. I would venture to guess that the P5 would consistently outperform their P6. An all-graded National P5 held on Saturdays would work for me. Calif, New York, Chicago, Fla and the best of whoever is left.

They do?

I don't know if they would be able to do it, but what about NYRA just rolling out a pick 5 on big days when they have at least 11 races.

Move the early pick 4 to be races 1-4
Pick 5 could be races 3-7
Pick 6 races 6-11
Late pick races 4 8-11

This way there is only a 2 race overlap with the bets for the pick 5 and pick 6.

Speaking for myself I usually only get involved in the P6 when it is a million+ but I'll throw a hundo at a P5 usually every Sunday at Monmouth and have participated at Keeneland each Sat and the carryover day. I would welcome a Saratoga P5 with an open wallet.