Playing the multi-race bets on Breeders’ Cup Saturday

Looking to play the appealing multi-race wagers on Breeders’ Cup Saturday? Then you’ve come to the right place.

The November 2 card at Santa Anita is stacked with challenging exotic wagers like the Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, and Pick 6. If you can identify the right horses to play and pick enough winners in a row, you could be rewarded with a massive score. Like the $1.8 million Pick 6 payoff awarded on Breeders’ Cup Saturday in 2009.

To help guide your wagering strategy, we’ve taken a $300 budget ($299.50, actually) and put together proposed tickets for every Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, and Pick 6 offered on the nine Breeders’ Cup races this Saturday. You can play along with every bet, pick and choose the ones you like best, or modify the tickets to better reflect your own opinions. Want to augment these multi-race wagers with single-race bets? Check out our Breeders’ Cup spot plays for Friday and Saturday.

Good luck!

Race 4: Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint

Three-year-olds have a poor record in the Filly & Mare Sprint, so I’ll oppose #1 Covfefe, who figures to face pace pressure from the start while breaking from the rail. Over this deep and tiring track, she might be hard-pressed to stay seven furlongs against elite company. In contrast, Covfefe’s older rival #4 Come Dancing has shown the stamina to handle one-turn races up to 1 1/16 miles in distance and figures to sit a perfect stalk-and-pounce trip.

• $1 Pick 3: 4 with ALL with 5 ($12)
• $2 Pick 3: 4 with 1,10 with 5 ($4)
• $0.50 Pick 4: 4 with ALL with 5 with 1,2,4,12 ($24)
• $0.50 Pick 4: 4 with 1,10 with 5 with 1,2,4,12 ($4)

Race 5: Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint

It’s tough to separate the key players in this five-furlong dash -- you can make a case for anyone. I’d be tempted to use eight or nine for multi-race wagers, so rather than split hairs on which to exclude, we’ll hit the “ALL” button and hope to catch a price. We’ll press the combinations using rising sprint star #1 Totally Boss and distance specialist #10 Eddie Haskell.

• $1 Pick 3: ALL with 5 with 2 ($12)
• $1 Pick 3: 1,10 with 5 with 1,2,4,12 ($8)

Race 6: Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile

#5 Omaha Beach is a Grade 1 winner running 1 1/8 miles and six furlongs, so the two-turn mile he’ll negotiate at Santa Anita should be right up his alley. He’s shown the ability to make a mid-race move and sustain it through the finish line. With his strong speed figures and eye-catching workouts, he’s a single for multi-race wagers.

• $5 Pick 3: 5 with 2 with 1,6,9 ($15)
• $2 Pick 3: 5 with 1,4,12 with 1,6,9 ($18)
• $1 Pick 4: 5 with 1,2,4,12 with 1,6,9 with 6 ($12)
• $2 Pick 4: 5 with 2 with 1,6,9 with 6 ($6)

Race 7: Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf

This leg kicks off the Pick 6, a challenging sequence made slightly easier this year by the more affordable $1 minimum bet. Defending Filly & Mare Turf winner #2 Sistercharlie will be a single on many tickets, including ours, but for Pick 3 and Pick 4 purposes, we’ll spread a little deeper with the Europeans #1 Iridessa, #4 Billesdon Brook, and #12 Fanny Logan.

• $4 Pick 3: 2 with 1,6,9 with 6 ($12)
• $1 Pick 3: 1,4,12 with 1,6,9 with 6 ($9)
• $1 Pick 6: 2 with 1,6,9 with 6 with 4,5 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($54)

Race 8: Breeders’ Cup Sprint

We’ll take a stand against #4 Mitole, whose signature victories have come in longer races. Instead, we’ll favor #6 Shancelot and #9 Imperial Hint, pure speedsters who figure to sit clean trips outside of the favorite. Californians tend to be dangerous in the sprint, so we’ll also play the once-beaten #1 Catalina Cruiser, who just needs a clean trip from the rail to contend.

• $2 Pick 3: 1,6,9 with 6 with 4 ($6)
• $1 Pick 3: 1,6,9 with 6 with 5 ($3)
• $0.50 Pick 5: 1,6,9 with 6 with 4,5 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($27)

Race 9: Breeders’ Cup Mile

You’d have to hit the “ALL” button to feel confident about surviving this competitive race, which kicks off the late Pick 4. Since playing “ALL” is an expensive proposition, we’ll take the opposite route and single #6 Got Stormy, who arguably moved too soon into a hot pace when second in the Woodbine Mile (G1). This talented filly has blossomed into a top-class miler and looms as the horse to beat with the right trip.

• $3 Pick 3: 6 with 4 with 5,9,10 ($9)
• $2 Pick 3: 6 with 5 with 5,9,10 ($6)
• $1.50 Pick 4: 6 with 4 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($13.5)
• $0.50 Pick 4: 6 with 5 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($4.5)

Race 10: Breeders’ Cup Distaff

#4 Midnight Bisou is 7-for-7 this season, but she’s been on the go without a meaningful break for two years and worked harder than expected to win the Beldame Stakes (G2) on September 28. If the deep and tiring track at Santa Anita trips her up, #5 Dunbar Road -- a Grade 1 winner running 1 ¼ miles -- can put her stamina to good use and spring a mild upset.

• $3 Pick 3: 4 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($27)
• $1.5 Pick 3: 5 with 5,9,10 with 7,10,11 ($13.5)

Race 11: Breeders’ Cup Turf

#9 Bricks and Mortar is a standout for the home team, but he’s never run 1 ½ miles and is facing a couple of classy Europeans in Investec Derby (G1) winner #5 Anthony Van Dyck and Northern Dancer Stakes (G1) victor #10 Old Persian. We’ll use all three for multi-race wagers and call it a day.

Race 12: Breeders’ Cup Classic

We’ll oppose morning line favorite #8 McKinzie, an obviously talented but somewhat frustrating colt who has lost a handful of races he was expected to win this year. Instead, we’ll favor the runners who seem best-suited to negotiating 1 ¼ miles over a deep and tiring track: Pacific Classic (G1) winner #7 Higher Power and Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) 1-2 finishers #11 Code of Honor and #10 Vino Rosso.

Enjoy the racing!