Harness Weekly Update: Place and show hits pay more than winners

The TwinSpires Harness Blog Weekly Update covers our successes and failures from selected features and the H2W (horses-to-watch list). H2W horses through the following Monday appear in the next Update’s results.

Thursday, March 16

This week’s quartet of Mohawk Miles featured one winner, HP Running Mass ($2.90, $2.70, $3.20 OK) and three thirds—Busy Making Moni ($2.10), Chocolate Crackers ($3.00), and Electro Long Legs ($3.00).

At Rosecroft, our suggested Power Plays on the Pick 3 did not result in any winners, but two contributed as elements of single-race exotics. In the first leg, Benson Tye (12-1) was fourth in the superfecta. In the second leg, Taragon ($6.80) was third, an element for the triple and the superfecta.

Friday, March 17

At the Meadowlands we delivered one winner in the Pick 4 while all of our longshots faltered. A New Leader ($6.20, $3.40, $2.80) won the first leg, and Racer Dan (37-1) finished sixth. In leg two Always Be True (7-2) got fourth to be in the pentafecta. In leg three our contender was the 79-1 Lindys Booze Cruz, never better than 10th. And Scirocco Patrick (38-1) finished eighth after a decent start. Then, in the last leg, Kaitlyn N (9-1) gained ground but no positive position, finishing sixth.

Saturday, March 18

Pocono’s so-called slam-dunk contender, Eurobond ($2.60, $2.20), finished second. Look for him as an H2W bet-back, perhaps at a better price.

H2W LIST RESULTS

The H2W results list across-the-board prices. Exactas listed include a H2W horse finishing second to a race-favorite or if the first two finishers are H2W horses (an asterisk appears when both horses are listed—a cold exacta). The note “OK” determines that prices are correct (even when a show price exceeds a place price or all prices are the same).

Please note that some results reflect horses racing after the blog posts (they appear the following week).

This week, there were 39 active H2W horses (a 10% win hit rate and a 36% ATB [across-the-board] hit). Horses with asterisks before their names were tweets @FrankCotolo. Follow for late choices.

Winners

Business Director, $5.00, $3.20, $2.40, Dover
Johnny Badlands, $3.40, $2.60, $2.10, Rosecroft
Isaac, $3.00, $2.50, $2.40, Saratoga
Smalltownthrowdown, $3.00, $2.20, $2.10, Yonkers

Seconds

Tapped Teen, $14.80, $6.40, Rosecroft
Gentlemansattitude, n/a, Freehold

Thirds

Hall It Off, $10.60, Meadows
Machalko, $7.70, Flamboro
Major Fernco N, $5.20, Meadowlands
Pedro Hanover, $4.30, Yonkers
A Real Miracle, $3.40, Freehold
Stag Party, $3.20, Rosecroft
Google My Chrome, $2.60, Meadows
Chief Corleone, $2.10, Flamboro

NEWS & NOTES

Northville Downs meet opens with purses having a nightly average of $70k. It is expected horse owners and trainers will fill the box with enough entries to provide full fields throughout the 52-night race meet. Racing is contested Friday and Saturday evening, beginning April 7, through Sept. 30, with a first race post time of 7 p.m. (ET) each race night for the Michigan oval.

The long, deep, competitive harness meet at Hoosier Park begins March 24. Racing goes Friday and Saturday March 24 through April 1; Wednesday through Saturday April 5 through June 24; Tuesday through Saturday June 27 through Oct. 28; and Thursday through Saturday Nov. 2 through Dec. 9. Holiday race days include May 29 and July 4.

Extraordinary Extras

Indulge in our new monthly column, Among Ourselves, at Harness Racing Update.