Churchill Downs will add a fourth pool to its popular Kentucky Derby Future Wager to coincide with closing week of the racetrack’s 25-day fall meet. The initial pool, to be conducted for the first time, will run Nov. 27-30.
The special four-day wager will open at noon EST Nov. 27, and close prior to post time of either the $400,000 Remsen (gr. II) at Aqueduct Racetrack, or the $175,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (gr. II) at Churchill, depending on which race goes off first.
Both events for 2-year-olds are part of the "Kentucky Derby Prep Season" that awards points (10 to first, 4 to second, 2 to third and 1 to fourth) that will be used to determine the 20 participants in the May 3 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I).
The dates for the following three Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools are: KDFW Pool 2, Feb. 6-8; KDFW Pool 3, Feb. 27-March 1; and KDFW Pool 4, March 27-29.
The dates for the only Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pool are Feb. 27-March 1.
The fields for the future wager pools will be selected by a panel of racing officials and journalists. Individual horses included in Pool 1 will be announced Nov. 25.
The future wagers allow bettors to back potential contenders well in advance of the races at odds that could be significantly more attractive than those available on the days the classic races for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds are run.
The Kentucky Derby Future Wager was launched in 1999 and will be offered for the 16th consecutive year in 2014. The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager was introduced in 2003.
Each pool will feature 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, or "all others." The mutuel field, listed as No. 24 on the betting menu, will feature all foals of 2011 other than the 23 individual Thoroughbreds in the pool, regardless of whether those horses have been nominated.
Both wagers offer $2 minimum win and exacta betting, which is available in the form of $2 minimum straight exacta bets or $1 minimum exacta boxes and part-wheels. No scratches or betting refunds are permitted in either wager, but wagering on a Derby or Oaks Future Wager horse will be suspended immediately if Churchill Downs determines that injury, illness, or other circumstance revealed during a pool would prevent a horse from competing in the respective race.
All winning future wager payouts are determined by the odds in place at the end of each respective betting pool. Wagering will be offered at Churchill Downs and racetracks throughout North America as well as through advance deposit wagering sites, simulcast centers, and off-track wagering sites.
Real-time odds and other information on the KDFW are available at the official event website at www.KentuckyDerby.com, and information on the KOFW is available at www.KentuckyOaks.com.
The $2 million Kentucky Derby will be run for the 140th consecutive year at Churchill Downs May 3. The $1 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) is May 2.