If there is no single winning ticket on the Rainbow 6 at Gulfstream Park May 24-25, the track expects the total pool of the 20-cent jackpot wager to set a North American Pick 6 pool record because of a mandatory payout set for Memorial Day, May 26.
A mandatory payout of the carryover pool that currently stands at $6,303,426 for Saturday's card. The total Rainbow 6 pool up for grabs could swell to approximately $16 million if the popular multi-race wager goes unsolved until Monday and wagering reaches estimates of $10 million that day.
With the mandatory payout in place Monday, all players with the most winners selected will divide the money.
The Rainbow 6 will begin Monday with the fifth race, which will go off at approximately 4:05 p.m. EDT. Gulfstream will allow bettors an hour between the fourth and fifth races to place their Rainbow 6 wagers. Gulfstream will play host to a special handicapping show starting at approximately 12:30 p.m. The show will be streamed live on GulfstreamPark.com and throughout its simulcast network.
"There is a lot of interest throughout North America in the Rainbow 6 heading into this weekend," said Gulfstream Park president Tim Ritvo. "We're getting calls from our racing fans, casino, and poker players, as well as people who are hearing about the jackpot and wondering when they can start playing it. Many people are also asking when they can come to the track to play the Quick Pick.
"We created this wager to generate excitement and so people could have fun with their friends betting different combinations that wouldn't cost them a lot of money but might provide them with a life-changing lottery-style payoff. We think it's worked, and we believe Monday is going to be a very exciting day."
Gulfstream's Rainbow 6 had a mandatory payout on April 23, 2011 with a $1.4 million carryover. The total pool that afternoon swelled to $5.1 million after $3.5 million was bet into it. There were 1,311 winning tickets each worth $3,279.26.
Following Monday's mandatory payout, the Rainbow 6 will be seeded with $50,000 when racing resumes May 30. The next mandatory payout will be June 29.