With the first quarter of 2017 coming to a close, the Meadowlands has shown a substantial 22 percent increase in the size of its Pick Five pool versus the same period in 2016.

Fueled in part by two carryovers, the average Pick Five pool has been $59,854 versus $48,845 during the first three months of 2016. If you remove the two carryovers, the pool size is still up nearly four percent.

“I think the first three months of the year show once again how important low takeout and carryovers are in boosting our multi-race wagers,” said Jason M. Settlemoir, Meadowlands General Manager and COO. “We were fortunate to have two carryovers and one night where we seeded the Pick Five pool and it is no surprise those three nights produced the largest Pick Five pools of the year.”

The Pick Five is a 50-cent base wager with a 15 percent takeout rate. It is offered each night on Races 1 – 5.

The Pick Four wagers have also shown an increase year-over-year of nearly 2.5 percent. The Early Pick Four covering Races 3 – 6 sports an average pool size of $54,627 and the Late Pick Four covering Races 7 – 10 has an average pool size of $71,515. Both wagers also carry a 50-cent minimum with a 15 percent takeout rate.

Despite fewer races carded this winter versus last winter, per race handle has still held strong at $208,958.

(Meadowlands)