Meadowlands Media Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Last
Saturday, March 24, was a big one at the Meadowlands as for the second time
this year, handle on the live program reached the magic $3 million mark.
Total play was $3,086,823 on
the 12-race program, a number surpassed only once earlier in the meeting, when
betting reached $3,454,633 on March 3.
In addition, the track saw
big action on its Pick-4 and Pick-5 bets.
“$3
million is a huge number for a night-time track,” said Jason Settlemoir, the
track’s chief operating officer and general manager. “And $127,239 in the
Pick-4 pool? That’s a thoroughbred number. Obviously, we are very happy with
the public response to our product and the New Meadowlands facility.
“There was more
than $1.3 million wagered on all horse racing Saturday at the
Meadowlands and that is an extremely big number as well. We are expecting
another great Saturday this week with the $10 million Dubai World Cup
and the $1 million Florida Derby. In addition, they’ll be the mandatory payout
on the Gulfstream Rainbow 6. All of this leads up to the Final Four games in
Victory sports bar and our live program Saturday night. The
atmosphere in the building should be incredible.”
Last Saturday’s
wild wagering represented a half-million dollar increase in play over the
corresponding card from a year earlier, and the per race average of $257,235
was up over $44,000 from the year before.
The Pick-4 pool
smashed the previous best by more than $25,000 while the Pick-5 pool of $72,123
represented a 2018 non-carryover best.
Free program pages for the Pick-4 (Races
8 through 11), courtesy of Track Master, are available on the Meadowlands’
website (www.playmeadowlands.com) and on the handicapping section
at www.ustrotting.com.
SATURDAY
STATS: The average pool
sizes for Saturday’s card: Win, $44,961; Exacta, $67,964; Trifecta, $55,774;
Superfecta, $40,518. On Race 8, which begins the Pick-4 sequence, a total of
$363,411 was bet.
GIANT FRIDAY
CARRYOVER: They’ll be
plenty of opportunities for players to make money on the Friday card as well,
but none as enticing as when the 11th race 20-Cent Jackpot Super
High-Five and its $161,463 carryover are in the spotlight. Post time on Friday
and Saturday is 7:15 p.m.
FINAL FOUR IN
VICTORY: The NCAA
basketball tournament’s Final Four will be shown in Victory sports bar Saturday
night. Cinderella 11-seed Loyola-Chicago takes on 3-seed Michigan in the first
game at 6:09 p.m. while the 8:49 p.m. matchup features a pair of top-seeded
powerhouses, Kansas and Villanova.
WORLD’S
RICHEST RACE: The $10
million Dubai World Cup (post time, 12:50 p.m. EDT) from Meydan Racecourse will
be on the Big M simulcast menu Saturday, as will the $1 million Florida Derby
(post time, 6:30 p.m.) from Gulfstream Park.
Gulfstream’s
Rainbow 6 will have a mandatory payout on Saturday, which is certain to create
big noise, given that the carryover at the conclusion of Sunday’s card was just
short of $4.5 million.
In the event the
carryover continues through the end of Friday’s card, the Rainbow 6 pool could
reach a staggering $20 million on Saturday, a day which could see a Gulfstream
total handle in excess of $40 million. Post time for the first race at
Gulfstream on Saturday is 11:30 a.m.
ARRIVE EARLY: To accommodate those who wish to watch and
wager on the early races from Dubai, the doors at the Big M will open at 8:30
a.m. Saturday morning.
