As handicappers we have all experienced the frustration of betting a 5-1 close to post time only to see the odds flash after the gates open to see we’ve backed a 2-1 favorite. This occurs because of the delay in the tote system updating all the wagers into the pools. The industry average is 30 seconds between updates. This season, that delay is going to be slashed by two-thirds.
“Late shifts in odds are one aspect of pari-mutuel wagering that has proven extremely frustrating to the bettor,” Director of Racing and Mutuels Andrew Offerman said. “As technology has improved, more and more wagering is happening closer to post time. We are proud that, in conjunction with United Tote, we’ll be able to provide much more accurate win odds to our customers. Ten-second update intervals may not entirely solve the problem; however, we anticipate that this improvement will be well-received by all customers wagering on Canterbury Park.”
In addition, Canterbury will now broadcast its races in high definition, producing a sharper feed to customers around the simulcast world.
“High Definition is becoming the industry standard,” Vice President of Racing Eric Halstrom said. “The investment in the HD transition is worthwhile. It is what today’s customer expects and deserves in the viewing experience.”
Changes have also been made to the wagering menu at the Shakopee, MN oval in addition to the previously announced takeout reduction.
A new wager, the Turf Top Five, will be offered exclusively on Canterbury Park’s turf races. The wager requires bettors to correctly select the first five finishers of that race in exact order and is designed to take advantage of the traditionally strong turf racing at Canterbury with an average field size of 9 entries in 2015. Races taken off the turf will result in a cancellation and refund of the wager. The base bet for the Turf Top Five is 50 cents.
Other popular wagers have been tweaked a bit from last season. The base bet for the Pick 3 has been reduced from $1 to 50 cents. There will also be rolling $1 Doubles beginning with the first race each day. The Pick 4 will continue to carryover when there are no correct tickets, however the carryover will go to the corresponding Pick 4 on the next race day rather than intra-card.
For Pick 3 and 4 wagers, should a race be subject to a surface change once a wagering sequence has begun, that leg of the sequence will become an ALL win and all selections in the surface-altered race will be deemed winners for wagering purposes.
Finally, track officials issued a statement on the shift of the Mystic Lake Derby and supporting stakes from Sunday, August 28th to Saturday, August 27th. Earlier the NFL announced that the first pre-season game in the new Minnesota Viking’s home field, U.S. Bank Stadium.
“This is a Minnesota Vikings market, and we share the excitement and enthusiasm for the inaugural game in the new stadium,” Vice President of Marketing John Groen said. “By moving the Mystic Lake Derby, our biggest race of the season, sports fans in the Twin Cities can choose to enjoy both events.”
Live racing begins on Friday, May 20 with a first post of 6:30 PM.
