Belmont Sweetser
January 13th, 2006by Jude T. Feld
My friend Rob Sweetser is a real racetrack character. He can be seen at racing emporiums all over the country, wearing a natty sport coat, his signature bow tie and a baseball cap. When he worked for the NTRA, the baseball cap was always sponsor-related; now, any horse racing themed cap will suffice.
Robby loves to wager. He dabbles in pick sixes and pick fours, but his favorite bet is the superfecta. One horse more difficult to select than the trifecta, the super offers five and six-figure payouts on occasion, with one or two grand being the normal return.
Obviously, the more horses you use, the more likely you are to collect. The rub is that every additional horse grows your ticket exponentially. A four-horse $1 box is $24 but a five-horse box is $120 and six-horse box is $360. Playing every possible selection in a 12-horse field would set you back $11,880 and you might show a profit if all the longshots come in but if the first three betting choices all hit the board, you will cash your ticket but lose a small fortune.
With nine races a day, playing a five-horse box in every race requires a bankroll of $1080. Now Robby is not “down to his last two camels,” as Sheik Mohammed would say, but that is a hefty chunk for a working man.
“I wanted to play for the big money every time a super was offered,” Robby said. “But it added up to a lot of money at the end of the day. I decided that I could still use five horses if I handicapped my ticket to reflect the most probable results.”
He came up with the following formula for his superfecta ticket: 2 x 3 x 4 x 5.
“You take the two horses you like best and play them on top,” Robby said. “Then you add a horse in the second spot, add another in the third spot and another in the fourth. The result is a five-horse ticket that costs $16 as opposed to $120. That’s a $144 during the course of the afternoon instead of a grand. At tracks that offer a dime superfecta bet, you can gamble all day for 14 bucks and maybe win several hundred. Betting a little to win a lot is just good wagering sense.”
A “Sweetser,” as my friends have come to call this style of bet would look like this: 2-5 with 2-5-6 with 2-3-5-6 with 2-3-5-6-8.
Last summer, my daughter Rian called me for some advice.
“Daddy,” she said. “I’m gonna be at Del Mar all summer, baby sitting for the Desormeauxs. I’ll be going to the races a lot but I don’t have much money to bet. I want to have some fun though. What should I do?”
I told Rian about the dime super and how to play a “Sweetser.”
“Just pick the horses you like and put them in order on your ticket. It will cost you $1.60 per race that you bet. I’m sure you can afford that.”
A couple of days later, I got another phone call.
“Daddy, you won’t believe it,” Rian said. “I just hit a Sweetser for $54!”
The very next day, it was more of the same.
“Oh my God, Daddy!” I just made 120 bucks on a dime Sweetser!”
That was enough money in two days to keep her going all meeting long. Rian hit several more during the summer and ended the meet with a tidy profit.
The Belmont Stakes (G1) is Saturday. It is a great test of distance ability and this year’s edition is a tremendous handicapping puzzle as well. Let’s see if we can hit a winning Sweetser.
Aaron and Marie Jones’ Kentucky-homebred Sunriver (#2) could have conceivably been in the money in the Kentucky Derby (G1) if he had been able to draw in. Winning the Peter Pan was a small consolation prize compared to the Derby but winning the Belmont Stakes (G1) would etch his name in Triple Crown history. His jockey, Rafael Bejarano is among the finest riders in the nation and his trainer Todd Pletcher is tops in the country. He will be one of our top two picks.
Oh So Awesome (#6) hails from the Team Valor Stables. Barry Irwin, the master of Team Valor, is one of the sharpest guys in our game. He picked this horse out specifically for the Belmont Stakes (G1) after an impressive maiden victory at St. Cloud and his excellent prep race in the Matchthehatch over the track points him out as a major contender.
Amerman Racing’s Sacred Light (#12) has been crying out for more real estate. His trainer David Hofmans is one of the cagiest guys in the business. He has been preparing Sacred Light for this race since he found out the Derby was not an option due to the graded earnings rules. Jockey Victor Espinoza does his best work in major races and should have this handsome grey colt in a good position turning for home.
Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin loved Jazil (#8) going into the Derby and his colt passed 15 of his rivals from start to finish. He has worked sharply since his last race and should be set for a top effort. The mile and one-half will not be a problem for this $725,000 Keeneland yearling purchase.
Bluegrass Cat (#9) was trounced by Barbaro in the Kentucky Derby (G1) but was best of the rest that day. Marathon racing is probably not his strong suit but he is talented enough to get a piece of the pie and I would hate to have him beat me out of a big score in the Belmont like he did in the Derby. The Pletcher-Velazquez team is enough to warrant respect but Bluegrass Cat has only run two clunkers in his life.
Here’s our $16 Belmont Sweetser: 2-6 with 2-6-12 with 2-6-8-12 with 2-6-8-9-12.
Good luck everybody!
