Del Mar puts new spins on Pick 6, Super 5 betting

New takes on a pair of Del Mar betting favorites are on tap for the 2021 Del Mar racing season, which breaks from the gate on Friday, July 16.

The track’s Pick Six, long a staple at a $2 price, will switch to a 20-cent ticket, a wagering increment that has proven to be very popular with players of all levels. The bet will be called the “Rainbow Pick Six.”

Additionally, Del Mar’s Super High 5 – available on the day’s last race – will lower its “play” denomination from $1 to 50 cents. Track officials believe the lower price will encourage players to take bigger swings at the day’s final prize.

Otherwise, the track once again will offer its fans the same 17 ways to wager that have been presented over recent seasons. It starts with the traditional win, place and show wagers and expands to several five- and six-horse combinations.

The Pick Six at 20 cents and its large mandatory payout days have proven to be solidly in favor at racetracks across the country. Del Mar will offer two mandatory payout days in conjunction with the bet – Pacific Classic Day (Saturday, Aug. 21) and closing day (Monday, Sept. 6). Pools of $3 million to $5 million are likely on those days, a sure ticket to bring on the big betting buzz.

“We’re excited about the large wagering pools the ‘Rainbow Pick Six’ will generate,” said Del Mar’s director of mutuels, Bill Navarro. “The 20-cent minimum gives small and mid-level players the ability to spread deep throughout the card.”

Del Mar’s ‘Rainbow Pick Six’ will pay out 70 percent of the pool each day to those with the most winners and the remaining 30 percent will carry over, provided there are no single-ticket winners.

Three relatively new multi-race bets that have been warmly welcomed by the track’s players are slated again this summer. They are the early Pick Four, beginning on Race 2 at a 50-cent price; a late Pick 5 offered on the last five races daily, also at the 50-cent level, and a win, place, show parlay available for a minimum of two races and a maximum of six. It is a $2 bet.

In addition to its Early Pick Four, the track will continue to offer its usual Pick Four on the last four races on the day’s card, a bet that has proven to be one of the most in demand in the country and regularly registers $1 million-plus pools on weekends. Further, the late Pick Five will be similar to the track’s early Pick Five held on the day’s initial five events.

The full array of Del Mar bets is as follows: $2 win, place and show (all races); $1 exacta (all); $2 Quinella (all); 50-cent trifecta (all); $2 Rolling Doubles (all except last); $1 Rolling Pick 3 (all except last two); $1 Superfecta (10-cent minimum – all); $1 Place Pick All (starts w/Race 1 or 2); 50-cent Super High 5 (last); 20-cent Pick Six (last six); 50-cent Players’ Pick 5 (first five and last five); 50-cent Pick 4 (Races 2 through 5 and last four), and $2 win-place-show parlay (all races but last).

Del Mar will race on a Friday-Saturday-Sunday schedule for the first two weeks of its meet, then switch to a Thursday-Friday-Saturday-Sunday plan for the balance of the session, finishing up with its traditional closing day on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 6. First post daily will be 5 p.m. EDT with the exceptions of all Fridays (other than the opener), when racing begins at 7 p.m. EDT.