Kentucky Derby Wagering

Derby Payoffs

Are you looking to make a score betting the horses? There may be no better day than the first Saturday of May for the Kentucky Derby.

Anyone hitting the exotics in the Derby this decade are in no need of a bailout. Horseplayers just need a Kentucky Derby Stimulus Plan.

Here are some of the payoffs over the past nine years, with the average $2 payoff in parentheses.

Win ($27.31)

There has been only one single digit winner this decade, Fusaichi Pegasus returning a paltry $6.60 as the favorite in 2000. We have to go back to Sunday Silence in 1989 ($8.20) to find another one. Four other Derby winners this decade have returned over $20.00, including Giacomo, who lit up the toteboard to the tune of $102.60, the highest priced winner since Donerail won the 1913 Derby at 91/1.

Exacta ($1,488.57)

Only three of the last nine exactas have come back at less than $100.00, meaning that coming up with the one-two finishers is going to pay off nicely. Last year's exacta with Big Brown and Eight Belles returned $141.60. The 2006 exacta with Barbaro and Bluegrass Cat returned a hefty $587.00. The monster payoff was in 2005, when Giacomo paid $102.60 to win with 71/1 longshot Closing Argument completing a $9,814.80 exacta.

Trifecta ($12,730.04)

Coming up with the top three finishers in a field of 20 is no easy task, but over the past nine years the average payoff has been nearly 13 dimes. The Giacomo-Closing Argument-Afleet Alex tri returned $66,567.40, which certainly was tough to come up with. However, when Barbaro won the 2006 Derby, the $2 tri returned $11,418.60, and Big Brown topped a trifecta that paid $3,445.60.

Superfecta ($161,831.38)

Figuring out the top four finishers in the Derby takes some handicapping skill, some luck, and sometimes a large bankroll, but if you can solve the superfecta puzzle, it can lead to an enormous score. In six of the last nine years, the superfecta has returned more than $41,000. The life changer occurred of course when Giacomo won the 2005 Derby. The superfecta paid $864,253.50 for a $2 wager. Last year's Barbaro-Eight Belles-Denis of Cork-Tale of Ekati superfecta returned $58,737.80. The 2007 Derby saw Street Sense-Hard Spun-Curlin-Imawildandcrazyguy fill out the top four positions. Looking back, that does not seem to be a real tough ticket to fish out. However, the payoff was $29,046.40. The smallest super payout this decade was in 2000. Fusaichi Pegasus-Aptitude-Impeachment-More Than Ready combined for a $3,270.80. Not too shabby with a 5/2 favorite winning the race. With the likelihood of another full field starting in this year's Kentucky Derby, the potential is there for more huge payoffs again this year.