I just read this from Thoroughbred Times...
Surprisingly low pick three raises eyebrows at Gulfstream
Posted: Thursday, January 05, 2012 5:47 PM
by Frank Angst
Bettors who expected a monster payout when they hooked a pair of longshots in a pick three sequence on Thursday at Gulfstream Park were left wondering what happened when the payout was much less than expected.
While exotic payouts can surprise or disappoint on a daily basis at the races, the $1 pick three sequence at Gulfstream Park ending in the eighth race on Thursday seemed particularly low. Bettors who wagered $1 on the correct pick three sequence seemed to be in very good standing after Water of Life scored at 4.50-to-1, Matt’s a Giant won at 23.80-to-1, and Gentlemen’s Bet capped the sequence by winning at 33.70-to-1. However, the $1 pick three wager returned only $246.60.
Late Thursday Gulfstream Park officials determined a bettor at a Canadian-based platform had wagered a $110 pick three wager in which he singled the winner of the first race of the sequence, selected all of the horses in the second leg, and played two horses in the final leg, including the winner. Total cost of the ticket would have been $1,908 and the bettor received $27,126 for his efforts.
The massive winning wager made for some odd payouts, considering a $1 win parlay would have returned $3,609 and one expert bettor said sequences like these routinely return more than $5,000.
To put things in perspective, a $1 daily double for the final two races in the sequence returned $635.30, which is 258% higher than the $1 pick three return. The $1 pick three ending in the following race, in which 9-to-10 favorite Miss Netta won, paid $3,178.90. So that sequence, in which the $2 win payouts for the horses were $49.60, $69.40, and $3.80 paid 12.89-times as much as the sequence that started with the $11 winner and ended with longshots paying $49.60 and $69.40 for $2 win wagers, respectively.
Frank Angst is senior writer for Thoroughbred Times
