The 50 cent Pick 5 wager at Yonkers Raceway has proven to be a very attractive new wager for horseplayers.

After one month of wagering, through 22 race cards, the 50 cent Pick 5 has yielded an average payoff of $1,641 for a 50-cent base wager. There has been a carryover on three of the 22 programs.

“The half-mile racing at Yonkers by nature is going to produce more winning favourites and shorter-priced horses,” said Standardbred Owners Association of New York Executive Director Alex Dadoyan. “But the new Pick 5 wager has allowed bettors to key off on a couple of short priced winners and still see a nice return.”

Favourites have won 39 per cent of the races in the Pick 5 sequences. Each of the three times there was a carryover, there was only one winning favourite in the Pick 5 races.

The record 50-cent Pick 5 pool thus far occurred on Thursday, June 27, as $20,309 was wagered following a $7,500 carryover on the previous card.

The 50-cent Pick 5 wager at Yonkers is guaranteed with a $10,000 pool on Mondays and Tuesdays and is held on races five through nine every racing night.

(With files from the Standardbred Owners Association of New York)