Super Screener: Mullins claim could upset start of key wagers
Santa Anita opens Sunday, marking the return not only of racing at the great race place but also one of the most popular wagering menus for retail (non-computer-assisted) players.
The 11-race card includes six graded stakes, but a full field of older males sprinting down the hill for an optional $50,000 price tag could be the most important race of the day for some multi-race bettors.
That is because race 7 begins both the 50-cent late Pick 5 and the $3 all-turf Pick 3. The Pick 5 concludes with an all-graded-stakes Pick 4 and the all-turf Pick 3 continues with the San Gabriel (G2) and ends with the American Oaks (G1).
Fourteen are entered in this sprint down the hill with 12 able to start, and the morning line portends a contentious affair with the favorite being Anmer Hall at 7-2. That one has been consistent throughout his career, and rides a two-race win streak into this, but Mike Shutty's Super Screener sees him as an underlay against similarly competitive horses. Instead, he looks to a Jeff Mullins trainee who is an appealing 8-1 on the morning line.
"The down-the-hill turf course favors horses drawn to the outside that come from off the pace," Shutty says. "The Super Screener lands on Yacowlef as the Top Win and Top Value pick in the race. He'll be well positioned to that ideal three-wide trip. This will be just his second race off the long layoff and Form-Cycle Analysis is indicating that he’ll return to one of his lifetime tops which if achieved puts him directly into win contention while offering great value."
As an alternative, Super Screener tabs Winning Patriot as the Most Reliable Board Hitter, noting his speed while cutting back from a mile.
Each race in Super Screener includes selections, analysis and wagering strategy, and as you might expect from this, Yacowlef and Winning Patriot are the keys to this race.
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