Pool 3 field favored at 9-2

The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, closed as a lukewarm favorite over the Bob Baffert pair of Improbable and Game Winner after three days of betting into Pool 3 of the 2019 Kentucky Derby Future Wager. The pool opened Friday at noon Eastern and closed Sunday evening, coinciding with the only futures pool toward the 2019 Kentucky Oaks.

The mutuel field closed at 9-2 in Pool 3, followed by Improbable and Game Winner, both at 6-1. Then came Hidden Scroll (11-1), War of Will (12-1), Bourbon War (12-1), Code of Honor (13-1), Roadster (16-1), and Instagrand (17-1). The lowest $2 exacta will-pay is Improbable over Game Winner (11-7), worth $66.40.

Combined handle on Pool 3 was $385,463, with $282,198 bet to win and $103,265 in exactas. The total was down 2.4 percent from the corresponding 2018 pool.

The field closed as the 6-5 favorite in Pool 1, which drew total handle of $258,389 when held Nov. 22-25 in tandem with the Derby Sires Future Wager. The field was the 5-2 favorite in Pool 2, which drew handle of $533,977 when held Feb. 8-10. The fourth and final pool is set for April 5-7.

The record for handle in a single pool is $631,304, set in 2012, while the record for aggregate handle in a single year is $1,893,353, set last year.

Kentucky Oaks

In the Oaks pool, Bellafina was slightly favored at 9-2 over the field (5-1). They were followed by Jaywalk (7-1), Chasing Yesterday (8-1), Serengeti Empress (11-1), Point of Honor (11-1), Enaya Alrabb (12-1), and Restless Rider (13-1).

The Oaks pool drew $65,251 in win handle and $23,400 in exactas, with the total of $87,651 being up 25 percent over last year. The lowest $2 exacta will-pay was Bellafina over Chasing Yesterday (1-4), worth $51.

The Oaks-Derby double, being offered for the second year, handled $78,546, up 12.7 percent over last year. The lowest $2 will-pay, which combines Bellafina with Game Winner (1-7), is worth a mere $17.

In the case of field horses filling both exacta slots, the nextbest finish by a separately listed horse will count toward the winning combination.

The Oaks is set for May 3 and the Derby is May 4.