Kentucky Oaks Future Wager

Churchill Downs has set the dates for its trio of three-day betting pools for its 2012 Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KDFW”) and a single pool for the historic track’s Kentucky Oaks Future Wager (“KOFW”).

Dates for the pools for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which is now in its 14^th year, are:

• Pool 1 – Feb. 10-12
• Pool 2 – March 2-4
• Pool 3 – March 30-April 1

 Wagering on each of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools will open at noon (all times Eastern) on Friday and close on Sunday at 6 p.m.  The KDFW Pools will feature both win and exacta wagering.

The single three-day pool for the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager, now in its ninth year, is scheduled for March 2-4 and will run concurrent to Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.  Betting on the KOFW pool will open at noon on Friday and is set to conclude on Sunday at 6:30 p.m., 30 minutes after the conclusion of betting on the accompanying Kentucky Derby Future pool.  The Kentucky Oaks Future Pool will also offer win and exacta wagering.

The wagers provide fans of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks opportunities to bet on potential competitors in those great American races at odds that could be considerably more attractive than those available on the days on which the respective races are run.  Winning mutuel payouts on both wagers are determined by the odds that are in place at the conclusion of each respective betting pool.

The 138^th running of the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), America’s greatest race and the 1 ¼-mile first jewel of the coveted Triple Crown for 3-year-olds, is scheduled to be run on Saturday, May 5 at Churchill Downs.  The $1 million-guaranteed Kentucky Oaks, the nation’s top prize for 3-year-old fillies, will be run on Friday, May 4, the eve of the Derby.  Like the Derby, the Kentucky Oaks has been contested annually since 1875 and its 2012 renewal will mark the 138^th consecutive year that the 1 1/8-mile “Derby for Fillies” has been run beneath the track’s historic Twin Spires.

Both the KDFW and KOFW pools consist of 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, or “all others” interest.  In the Kentucky Derby wager, the mutuel field is made up of all other 3-year-olds – including fillies.  The mutuel field in the Kentucky Oaks bet consists of all other 3-year-old fillies.

All bets in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers are $2 minimum wagers.  No refund will be made on any wager placed during the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future pools.  If it is determined during an individual pool that any of the individual betting interests has suffered an illness, injury or other circumstance that would prevent that horse from competing in either race, wagering on that betting interest will be suspended immediately.

Wagering on the Derby and Oaks Future wagers is available through TwinSpires.com and other advance deposit wagering platforms and at racetracks and simulcast centers throughout North America.

Team Valor’s Animal Kingdom, who went off at odds of 20-1 and paid $43.80 for a $2 win wager in the 2011 Kentucky Derby, was listed as an individual betting interest only during Pool 3 of last year’s Derby Future Wager.  He closed at odds of 31-1 in that pool and a $2 future wager on trainer Graham Motion’s colt returned $64.40 on Derby Day.  As a member of the “all others” mutuel field in the first two pools of 2011, he returned $6.20 for a Pool 1 bet and $9.40 for a Pool 2 wager.  Both Animal Kingdom and Derby runner-up Nehro were part of the “all others” interest (#24), so the KDFW $2 exacta payouts for the three pools were:

• Pool 1 – 24-13 (mutuel field over third-place Mucho Macho Man) for $230;
• Pool 2 – 24-12 (mutuel field over third-place Mucho Macho Man) for $388.20;
• Pool 3 – 1-12 (Animal Kingdom over runner-up Nehro) for $3,074.60.

 The Derby Day $2 exacta payout for Animal Kingdom over Nehro (16-19) was $329.80.

Eventual Kentucky Oaks winner Plum Pretty was not an individual betting interest in the lone Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pool, but returned $21.80 to win as member of the KOFW mutuel field.  The Peachtree Stable filly trained by Bob Baffert returned $14.60 for a $2 win wager on Oaks Day.  Both Plum Pretty and runner-up St. John’s River were members of the mutuel field, so the KOFW exacta paid to 24-23, with third-place Zazu under the top two “all others” finishers, and returned $142.20 for a $2 bet.  The Oaks Day exacta of Plum Pretty over St. John’s River (12-13) paid $163 for a $2 wager.

Wagering for the three 2011 Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pools totaled $1,362,101, the fifth highest total since the Derby bet was introduced in 1999 and its largest three-pool betting total since 2007.  Kentucky Oaks fans wagered $92,902 during the single KOFW pool of 2011, second only to the single-pool total of $117,368 recorded in the wager’s introductory year in 2003.

Wagering interests for the 2012 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks future pools will be announced on the Wednesday prior to the Friday start of each pool.  Real-time odds and other information on the KDFW will be available at the official event Web site at www.KentuckyDerby.com, and information on the KOFW will be available at www.KentuckyOaks.com.

Churchill Downs has established dates for a trio of three-day betting pools in its 2011 Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KDFW”) and a single pool for this year’s Kentucky Oaks Future Wager (“KOFW”).

Dates established for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which is being conducted for the 13th consecutive year, are:

• POOL 1 – Feb. 18-20
• POOL 2 – March 11-13
• POOL 3 – April 1-3

    
    Wagering on each of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools will open at noon (all times Eastern) on Friday and close on Sunday at 6 p.m.  The KDFW Pools will include both win and exacta wagering.

The dates for the single pool for the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will again run concurrently with Pool 2 of the Derby Future.  The 2011 Oaks Future Pool is set for March 11-13.  Betting on that pool will open at noon on Firday, March 11, but close on Sunday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m., which is 30 minutes after the conclusion of wagering on the second Derby Future Pool.

There is a significant change in the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager as exacta betting will be offered as part of that wager for the first time.  The Kentucky Oaks pool, which is being offered for the ninth consecutive year, had previously offered win betting only.  Exacta wagering has been offered on the past five Derby Future pools over the past two years.

The Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers provide fans of those races opportunities to wager on potential competitors in those races at odds that could be considerably more attractive than those available on the day of the respective race.  Winning payouts on the Derby and Oaks Future Wagers are determined by the odds in place at the end of each respective betting pool.

All bets in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers are $2 minimum wagers.  No refund will be made on any wager made during the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future pools.  If it is determined during those pools that any of the individual betting interests has suffered an illness, injury or other circumstance that would prevent that horse from competing in either race, wagering on that betting interest will be suspended immediately.

Both the KDFW and KOFW pools consist of 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, or “all others” interest.  In the Kentucky Derby wager, the mutuel field is made up of all other 3-year-olds – including fillies.  The mutuel field in the Kentucky Oaks bet consists of all other 3-year-old fillies. 

Winning payouts in all three pools of the 2010 Kentucky Derby Future Wager on WinStar Farm’s victorious Super Saver were significantly larger than the $18 mutuel returned for a winning ticket on the Todd Pletcher trainee on Derby Day. A $2 KDFW bet on Super Saver returned $43.20 in Pool 1, $51.20 in Pool 2 and $73 in Pool 3.  The Derby Future bet’s $2 exacta in Pool 3 for 1-2 Derby finishers Super Saver and Ice Box returned $1,077.40 – a record payout in the brief history of the Derby Future exacta.  The exacta that combined those two horses on Derby Day returned $152.40.

The 137th running of the Kentucky Oaks, America’s top race for 3-year-old fillies that will carry a record purse of $1 million guaranteed in 2011, is scheduled for Friday, May 6 at Churchill Downs.  The $2 million guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands will be run on Saturday, May 7.

Wagering interests for each of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will be announced on the Wednesday prior to the Friday start of each pool.  Real-time odds and other information on the KDFW will be available at the official event Web site at www.KentuckyDerby.com, and information on the KOFW will be available at www.KentuckyOaks.com.

Churchill Downs will offer fans of the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) a trio of opportunities in February and March to make a lucrative early bet on the winner of this year’s “Run for the Roses” and one chance to take a stand on the 3-year-old filly that will succeed Rachel Alexandra as the winner of the $500,000-added Kentucky Oaks (GI).

The historic Louisville track has announced dates for three wagering pools for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KDFW”), which is entering its 12th year, and a single pool for the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager (“KOFW”), now in its eighth year.  In a significant change, all Kentucky Derby and Oaks future pools will consist of three days of wagering.  Previous pools for both wagers had been four-day events.

Dates for the three Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools (pending final approval by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission) are:

• Pool 1 – Feb. 12-14
• Pool 2 – March 5-7
• Pool 3 – March 26-28

The single pool for the Kentucky Oaks Future wager will coincide with the March 5-7 KDFW Pool 2.  Betting will open each day of the Derby and Oaks pools at noon (all times Eastern).  The Kentucky Derby pools will close at 6 p.m. on Sunday, while betting on the lone Kentucky Oaks pool will conclude at 6:30 p.m., 30 minutes after Pool 2 Derby Future betting is wrapped up.

Exacta wagering, a popular addition to the Kentucky Derby Future Wager betting menu in 2009, will be offered during all three KDFW pools in 2010.  The exacta option was offered on the latter two Derby Future pools in 2009 along with its traditional win option.  The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will not offer exactas in 2010.

“Last year’s results proved just how unpredictable and exciting the Kentucky Derby and Oaks Future Wagers can be as Mine That Bird, a 50-1 longshot winner on Derby Day, returned a winning payout as an ‘all others’ wager in all three Derby pools, and the dominant Rachel Alexandra was actually a bettor’s bargain as the second betting choice in the only Oaks pool,” said Kevin Flanery, president of Churchill Downs racetrack.   “Exacta wagering was a welcomed addition to the Derby Future pools last year, and we think the shorter three-day future pools we’ve scheduled for 2010 for both wagers will sharpen the focus of our players, generate new excitement and add to the fun of betting experiences that are now a part of the traditions of both the Kentucky Derby and Oaks.”

The KDFW and KOFW pools consist of 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, or “all others” interest.  In the Kentucky Derby wager, the mutuel field includes all other 3-year-olds.  The mutuel field in the Kentucky Oaks bet includes all other 3-year-old fillies.

All bets in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers are $2 minimum wagers.  There are no refunds on any wagers made during the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks future pools.  If it is determined during those pools that one of the individual horses has suffered an illness, injury or other circumstance that will prevent that horse from competing in either race, wagering on that betting interest will be suspended at that point.

The 136th running of the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands is scheduled for Saturday, May 1 at Churchill Downs.   The Kentucky Oaks, America’s premier race for 3-year-old fillies, will be renewed for the 136th time on Friday, April 30.  Both races have been held without interruption since the first racing meet at Churchill Downs was conducted in 1875.  

Kentucky Derby Future Wager Statistics- Download the PDF

Two fillies headed for a showdown in Saturday’s Ashland Stakes (Grade I) at Keeneland – Brereton Jones’ Proud Spell and Stonerside Stable’s Country Star – stood as the top two choices in Pool 3 of Churchill Downs’ 2008 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager as the four-day betting pool reached its halfway point.

Proud Spell, a daughter of Proud Citizen who handed 2-year-old filly champion Indian Blessing her first career loss in the Fair Grounds Oaks (GII), and Country Star, an Empire Maker filly with Grade I victories in Keeneland’s Darley Alcibiades and the Hollywood Starlet, could barely be separated in the closely-matched group at the top of the roster of 24 wagering interests in Pool 3. Proud Spell stood at odds of 7-2 at the end of Friday’s betting and was a narrow favorite over Country Star, who was a 5-1 risk.

The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager offers fans the opportunity to bet on contenders for the $500,000-added Kentucky Oaks (GI) on May 2 at Churchill Downs at odds that could be greater than those they would receive on the day of the race. Fans across North America had wagered $9,335 through the first two days of Pool. Wagering on the pool is set to resume at noon (all times EDT) on Saturday, April 5, and betting in Pool 3 will close on Sunday, April 6, at 6:30 p.m.

The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is a minimum $2 wager and a win bet only. There are no refunds in the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager.

Friday’s betting saw a surge in support for Shes All Eltish, the winner of last week’s Bonnie Miss (GII) at Gulfstream Park. Odds on Shes All Eltish dipped from 17-1 to 7-1 in Friday’s betting, and she was a narrow third choice over the mutuel field, which includes all 3-year-old fillies other than the 23 individual horses in Pool 3. The “all others” wager was the 8-1 fourth choice at the pool’s midway point, and was followed by Eight Belles at 10-1 and Bsharpsonata and Pure Clan, who closed at odds of 13-1.

It will be a busy weekend for fillies among the betting interests in Pool 3 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. Proud Spell, Country Star and Bsharpsonata are among six Pool 3 wagering fillies that will compete in Saturday’s Ashland, while Eight Belles, Pure Clan and French Kiss will run in Sunday’s $250,000 Fantasy (GII) at Oaklawn Park.

Real time odds on Pool 3 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager are available on the official Kentucky Oaks Web site at www.kentuckyoaks.com.

2008 KENTUCKY OAKS FUTURE WAGER POOL 3

1 - A to the Croft: morning line 30-1; 11-1 after day 1; 23-1 after day 2
2 - Absolutely Cindy: morning line 15-1; 11-1 after day 1; 17-1 after day 2
3 - African Violet*: morning line 30-1; 47-1 after day 1; 40-1 after day 2
4 - Ariege*: morning line 15-1; 34-1 after day 1; 26-1 after day 2
5 - Armonk*: morning line 20-1; 28-1 after day 1; 63-1 after day 2
6 - Awesome Chic*: morning line 20-1; 22-1 after day 1; 37-1 after day 2
7 - Bsharpsonata: morning line 12-1; 11-1 after day 1; 13-1 after day 2
8 - Country Star: morning line 5-1; 6-1 after day 1; 5-1 after day 2
9 - Eight Belles: morning line 8-1; 7-1 after day 1; 10-1 after day 2
10 - Elusive Lady*: morning line 20-1; 36-1 after day 1; 51-1 after day 2
11 - French Kiss*: morning line 50-1; 99-1 after day 1; 67-1 after day 2
12 - Gentle Audrey*: morning line 30-1; 99-1 after day 1; 99-1 after day 2
13 - Golden Doc A: morning line 15-1; 18-1 after day 1; 18-1 after day 2
14 - Grace and Power: morning line 30-1; 59-1 after day 1; 54-1 after day 2
15 - Highest Class: morning line 30-1; 82-1 after day 1; 90-1 after day 2
16 - Kadira: morning line 50-1; 73-1 after day 1; 68-1 after day 2
17 - Little Belle*: morning line 30-1; 30-1 after day 1; 50-1 after day 2
18 - My Baby Baby: morning line 50-1; 77-1 after day 1; 99-1 after day 2
19 - Proud Spell: morning line 4-1; 6-1 after day 1; 7-2 after day 2
20 - Pure Clan: morning line 8-1; 13-1 after day 1; 13-1 after day 2
21 - Robbie's Gal*: morning line 50-1; 67-1 after day 1; 68-1 after day 2
22 - Shes All Eltish: morning line 30-1; 17-1 after day 1; 7-1 after day 2
23 - Valentine Fever*: morning line 50-1; 99-1 after day 1; 99-1 after day 2
24 - Mutuel field "All Others:" morning line 15-1; 6-1 after day 1; 8-1 after day 2

Morning Line odds by Mike Battaglia. (*) - New wagering interest in Pool 3.

Churchill Downs, the world’s most legendary racetrack, has conducted Thoroughbred racing and presented America’s greatest race, the Kentucky Derby, continuously since 1875. Located in Louisville, the flagship racetrack of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN) also operates Trackside at Churchill Downs, which offers year-round simulcast wagering at the historic track. Churchill Downs will conduct the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby on May 3, 2008. The track’s 2008 Spring Meet begins on April 26. Churchill Downs has hosted the Breeders’ Cup World Championships a record six times. Information about Churchill Downs can be found on the Internet at www.churchilldowns.com.

Louisville, KY (March 9, 2008) -- A surprise loss in the Fair Grounds Oaks (Grade II) by reigning 2-year-old filly champion and previously unbeaten Indian Blessing threw Pool 2 of Churchill Downs’ 2008 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager wide open, and the resulting scramble saw Country Star and Proud Spell rise to the top when betting on contenders for the 134th Kentucky Oaks (GI) in the four-day pool concluded on Sunday.

Stonerside Stable’s Country Star was the 5-1 favorite at the conclusion of Pool 2, although trainer Bobby Frankel’s winner of the Darley Alcibiades (GI) and Hollywood Starlet (GI) has yet to race in 2008. The daughter of Empire Maker edged Brereton C. Jones’ Proud Spell, who became the 6-1 second choice when she avenged a pair of earlier losses to Indian Blessing with an upset victory for trainer J. Larry Jones over the champion in Saturday’s Fair Grounds Oaks (GII).

There was little to separate the top pair from several of the 23 wagering interests in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. IEAH Stable and Lewis Lakin’s unbeaten Pure Clan was the close third choice a 7-1. She was followed closely at 8-1 by Eight Belles, a 13 ½-length winner of a division of Oaklawn Park’s Martha Washington, and the Bob Baffert-trained Indian Blessing. The mutuel field, which included all 3-year-old fillies other than the 22 individual betting interests remaining in the pool, closed at 9-1. The roster of betting interests in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager was reduced to 23 when wagering was suspended on Tizaqueena (#22) on Friday.

A total of $62,503 was wagered during the four-day pool, the largest total for Pool 2 in the five years since the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager went to its three-pool format. The year’s third and final Kentucky Oaks Future Wager Pool is set for April 3-6. The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is a minimum $2 wager and a win bet only. It offers fans the opportunity to bet on contenders for the Kentucky Oaks at odds that could be greater than those they would receive on the day of the race. There are no refunds in the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager.

The $500,000-added Kentucky Oaks (GI) is set for May 2 at Churchill Downs.

Other fillies that attracted substantial support Pool 2 included Davona Dale (GII) winner Bsharpsonata (12-1), a winner of four consecutive stakes races, and Absolutely Cindy (16-1), who upset males in last week’s John Battaglia Memorial at Turfway Park.

Information on the Kentucky Oaks and the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is available on the official event Web site at www.kentuckyoaks.com.

Louisville, KY (March 4, 2008) -- Hal and Patti Earnhardt’s unbeaten Indian Blessing, the champion 2-year-old filly of 2007 and winner of the $2 million Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (Grade I) and the recent Silverbulletday Stakes (GIII) at Fair Grounds, is the solid morning line choice over rival Proud Spell in Pool 2 of Churchill Downs’ 2008 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager, which is scheduled to open on Thursday, March 6.

Indian Blessing, a daughter of Indian Charlie who is a heavy favorite to win Saturday’s $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (GII), is perfect in five career starts that include two races this year. The Bob Baffert-trained filly has bee installed as the 4-1 choice by Churchill Downs handicapper and racing analyst Mike Battaglia in his morning line odds for the second of three pools in the 2008 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. Brereton C. Jones’ Proud Spell was the runner-up to the champion in both the Breeders’ Cup and the Silverbulletday, but those efforts were strong enough for Battaglia to list her as the 6-1 second choice in the second of three 2008 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager Pools. Proud Spell, winner of Belmont Park’s Matron (GII), will also run in the Fair Grounds Oaks.

Ron McCauley’s Las Virgenes (GI) winner Golden Doc A is next in line at 10-1, and is followed by a group of wagering interests at 15-1 that include Davona Dale (GII) winner Bsharpsonata; Fox Hill Farm’s Eight Belles, winner of a division of the Martha Washington at Oaklawn Park; Las Virgenes runner-up Lovely Isle; Debutante (GIII) winner Rated Fiesty; and the mutuel field, which includes all 3-year-old fillies other than the 23 individual horses on the Pool 2 wagering roster.

The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is a minimum $2 wager and a win bet only. It offers fans the opportunity to bet on contenders for the $500,000-added Kentucky Oaks (GI) at odds that could be greater than those they would receive on the day of the race. There are no refunds in the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. Betting on Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is scheduled to open at noon (all times Eastern) on Thursday, March 6. The pool will close at 6:30p.m. on Sunday, March 9 – 30 minutes after the conclusion of betting in the companion Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

Winning payouts will be based on odds that are in place at the conclusion of wagering in Pool 2.The third and final pool of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is scheduled for April 3-6, while the 134th running of the Kentucky Oaks is set for Friday, May 2 at Churchill Downs.

Wagering interests for Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager include eight fillies that were not members of the year’s first pool. The new fillies in Pool 2 include Lovely Isle; Absolutely Cindy, an upset winner over males in last week’s John Battaglia Memorial at Turfway Park; Highest Class, third in the Silverbulletday; Sky Mom, winner of the Kentucky Cup Juvenile Fillies and a division of the Martha Washington at Oaklawn Park; Vaulcluse, winner of the Suncoast at Tampa Bay Downs; Suncoast runner-up My Baby Baby; Dixie Belle winner Kadira; and She’s All Eltish, a recent allowance race winner at Gulfstream Park.

Wagering interests for the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager are chosen by a committee that includes Brad Free, West Coast correspondent for the Daily Racing Form; Mike Watchmaker, national handicapper for the Daily Racing Form; and John Asher, vice president of Racing Communications at Churchill Downs.

More information and real time odds on Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager can be found on the official event Web site at www.kentuckyoaks.com.