Our Last Race Handicapping Returns Thursday

Thursday will be the fourth day of our new feature "Gettin' Out Alive," in which HRFLA editor Jim Freer handicaps the day's last race at Gulfstream Park.

Our goal is to provide some added advice for you on a race that usually is a claimer with a large and hard to fathom field.

If you have been knocked out of the Rainbow 6 and/or Late Pick 5, hitting the exacta or better on the last race can give your ego and wallet a boost at the end of the day.

Thus far we have bet $75 of our mental bets bankroll, with a total return of $61.80.

Thursday's ninth and final race is a $12,500 maiden  claimer with a $19,000 purse for fillies and mares 3-YO and up. It is five furlongs, and scheduled for turf.

We will post our suggested bets around 12:00 p.m. Thursday, after track conditions and scratches are out.

There are twelve entrants, and that is the maximum field size.

One horse to strongly consider for  the exacta and trifecta is Our Little Devil, a 3-YO daughter of Daredevil.  That horse also is the sire of Shedaresthedevil and of Swiss Skydiver--the winner and second place finisher in the Kentucky Oaks (Grade 1) on Sept. 4.

Our Little Devil has two second place finishes and one third place finish in eight career starts. Past performances indicate she has the best early speed in the race.

She has the 12 post. But races like this often have several scratches, and that would leave her not too far outside and away from early traffic.  Anthony Burgos has the mount for trainer William Deaton.

Sunday's Result

Sunday's tenth and final race was a $12,500 maiden claimer for 3-YO and up. It was one mile and moved to a dried out dirt track that was listed as Fast.

Our mental bets totaled $33, and we got $21.90 back.

We hit one of our exacta boxes with the winner Alejandro's Team, the 8-5 favorite, on top of 9-1 shot Imperial Greatness. Cuy, our WPS bet, finished third.

The race finished a card when most winning times were mediocre, even on a day laden with claiming races and a track that was far from asphalt-like fast.

But these numbers stick out. Alejandro's Team won in a pedestrian-like 1:39.14, and he beat Imperial Greatness by 15 1/2 lengths.

In future handicapping, we suggest considering that when you see a horse with a running line from the maiden claiming race won by Alejandro's Team.

Gulfstream Resumes Thursday With Nine Races; Rainbow 6 Carryover Will Be $375,346

Gulfstream Park will be dark this Monday through Wednesday, giving its turf course a chance to dry out after a wet weekend.

The Hallandale Beach, Fla., track will  resume racing Thursday with nine races and first post of 12:00 p.m.

A highlight will be a Rainbow 6 carryover that has grown to $375,346.

The 20 cents per combination-only bet will be  on races four to nine, with the sequence scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m.

Gulfstream is guaranteeing that the Rainbow 6 pool will be at least $600,000 if there is just one ticket with all six winning horses. Such a ticket would  "take down" the jackpot and win the full carryover and 80 percent of the day's new Rainbow 6 bet (20 percent carryover).

Thursday will be the 100th day of Gulfstream's spring/summer meet. The meet began on April 4 and will  close on Sunday Sept. 27.

The Gulfstream Park West meet, at Calder in Miami Gardens, will begin its annual 40-day run on Oct. 1.

It will be the final year of Gulfstream's lease that allows it to  hold racing at Calder. In days ahead, we will begin previewing the GP West meet, and look ahead to Gulfstream's options for fall racing starting in 2021.

Sunday was the fourth straight race day on which Gulfstream was not able to have turf races due to rain and other wet conditions. 

For Sunday, the dirt track was listed as Fast. 

Each winning ticket in the Rainbow 6 bet paid $4,764.82 on a 20 cent bet. There were 34 such tickets, according to HorseRacingFLA's review of Equibase charts.

Program numbers of the winning horses were 5-5-7-6-5-1.

The relatively low number of winners and relatively high payoff were due largely Gator Fifty Two winning the eighth race at 24-1.  Four of the other Rainbow 6 winners were betting favorites.

Bettors added $291,724 to the Rainbow 6.  Of that Gulfstream took out 20 percent, and then divided 56 percent among the tickets with six winners while adding 24 percent to the carryover.

 

Cuy (10) is our Pick in GP Finale

This is the third day for our new "Gettin' Out Alive" feature in which we handicap the day's last race at Gulfstream Park.

Our goal is to provide some added advice on a race that usually is a claimer with a large and hard to fathom field.

If you have been knocked out of the Rainbow 6 and/or Late Pick, hitting the exacta or better on the last race can give your ego and wallet a lift.

Today's 10th and final race is a $12,500 maiden claimer for 3-YO and up.  It is one mile on dirt, after being scheduled for one mile on turf.

Numbers 3,5,6, 11 and 12 are scratched--leaving a nine horse field.

Cuy (10) has finished fourth or better in three GP turf races at one mile, in-12 horse fields, and could have some staying power. Ron Allen Jr. rides for trainer/owner Elizabeth Dobles, who must always be considered in these nightcap races.

Anima d'Or (2) has a pair of third place finishes at five furlongs on turf at GP and was gaining near the end.

Alejandro's Team (1) has finished no better than seventh, in one mile turf races with big fields. He is taking a big drop and could be the early speed if Emisael Jaramillo can get him  a clean break from the rail.

Imperial Greatness (9) hit the board twice last spring in dirt sprints at Tampa Bay and might have some late run.

Suggested bets:
* $3  WPS  10

* $1 exacta box  1  2  9  10

* $1 exacta box 1  2  9   

*  $1 tri box  1 2 10

Total bet   $33

 

* On Friday our recommended bets totaled $21, and our return was $39.90.

We had $5 to win on favored Rocket Blast, who won and we also had him in an exacta box and on top of a tri part wheel.

On Saturday our recommended bets totaled $21, and our return was zero.

In Honor of Artie, our pick to win, did not hit the board and we did not have the winner Kramden in our exacta box.

We have staked ourselves with a mythical bankroll of $500 through the end of the Gulfstream spring/summer meet that will end on Sept. 27.\

Heading into Sunday, the bankroll is $497.90.

Rainbow 6 Starts With Win by 6-1 Shot

Steadily (5), at 6-1, won Gulfstream's fifth race, starting off the Sunday Rainbow 6.

The carryover coming in was $305,346.  Bettors added $291,723 on the Rainbow 6.

That made the pool almost $600,000 prior to the 20 percent takeout of today's bet.

Gulfstream had guaranteed that today's pre-takeout pool would be at least $500,000, pre-takeout, if there is just one ticket with all six winning horses.