2005 Kentucky Derby Picks

PREFACE: I am not a horse racing expert. I do not know anything about the horses entered into any horse race other than what you can you find on the racing sheet. But I do enjoy watching and wager on the Triple Crown...always have, probably always will. I use to frequent local OTB places and on occassion will spend an afternoon 'playing the ponies' with some other friends that also enjoy the same. My betting 'system' is fairly simple. I don't like to wager a lot of money on one race, so I usually will box-exacta, selecting horses that are middle to high odds. Hitting just one of these (which usually happens if you bet on several races in a day) will sometimes get you over $100 on a $2 bet...some days I have been super lucky and hit multiple such wagers...

So this year's Kentucky Derby is about here and from the 'experts' that are handicapping the race, essentially say the field is wide open. Bellamy Road is the favorite, with odds at 5-2 right now. This is what I like to hear... I usually shy away from the favorites because, again, I don't lay a lot of money down and betting the favorite won't really get me any money back. So here's what I think I am going to do this year... for $12 I am going to box-exacta Sun King (3), Afleet Alex (12) and Noble Causeway (2). Afleet Alex's odds right now are 9-2, but Noble Causeway and Sun King have odds of 12-1 and 13-1 respectively... if that 2-3 combo hits, it should pay nicely. I'm throwing Afleet Alex in there because from this week's workouts looks to be the fastest horse on the track...and just over a 4 to 1 payout, with one of the higher odd horses, could still be a respectable payout. And the nice thing is that if I lose and nothing hits...I'm out only a whopping $12...

So I'm going 3-12, 2-3 and 2-12 all boxed exactas, laying $4 (to get the full $2 exacta payout) per bet. If I win, a round of drinks on me! Good luck everyone!