Oak Tree Plans Friday Twilight Starts, Pick Five Wager

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(from Oak Tree Racing Association)
The 2004 Oak Tree season will include twilight racing on Fridays throughout the 26-day meeting as well as a daily $1 "Pick Five" wager.

The meeting runs from Sept. 29 to Oct. 31. Post time will be 2:30 p.m. on Fridays -- Oct. 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29.

Sherwood C. Chillingworth, Oak Tree executive vice president, said the time switch is an experiment.

"It will allow some people who normally can't make it on Fridays a chance to come out to the track," Chillingworth said. "We'll take a page out of the Del Mar book and offer concerts."

Post time on Wednesdays and Thursdays remains 1 p.m. First post on weekends and holidays is at 12:30 p.m. Exceptions are California Cup Day, Saturday, Oct. 16 (noon) and Breeders' Cup Day Oct. 30 (9:40 a.m.)

The Pick Five will involve the last five races of each day's card, sandwiched between the beginning of the $2 Pick Six and the $1 Pick Four. On weekday eight-race cards, for example, the Pick Five will begin on the fourth race, and for weekend nine-race programs the Pick Five gets underway on race five.

There won't be a Pick Five carryover. On days with no winning tickets, the pool will be distributed to tickets with four wins, etc.

"To my knowledge this is the first Pick Five with a $1 wager," Chillingworth said. "The rationale is that people can put together a decent ticket with a smaller bankroll. Also, if you blow out early on the Pick Six, you can come right back and start a Pick Five."

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