by Evan Pattak, for the Meadows

Washington, PA — The Meadows Racetrack & Casino announced that on Monday (March 5), it will introduce a wager called the “50/50 Pick-5,” a bet designed to increase the size of both jackpots and consolation payouts.

The Pennsylvania Harness Racing Commission has approved the wager.

As with most Pick-5 wagers, bettors must pick the winners of five consecutive races. With each 50/50 Pick-5, 50 percent of new handle (after takeout) will be allocated to the pool’s jackpot while the remaining 50 percent comprises the consolation pool.

Here’s the twist. The jackpot will be paid only if there is a single ticket with all five races correctly picked. Should there be multiple correct tickets or no correct tickets, the jackpot pool will be carried over to the next card, and players with the most races correctly picked will split the consolation pool.

Base wager for the 50/50 Pick-5, which will span races 5-9 on each live card, is 50 cents. (Under Commission rules, the minimum ticket for any wager in Pennsylvania is $2, so a 50/50 Pick-5 bettor must play at least four 50-cent combinations.) To help the 50/50 Pick-5 hit the ground running, The Meadows, in association with the United States Trotting Association Strategic Wagering Program, is guaranteeing a $5,000 jackpot pool.

“This is a wager that our players should find attractive in a number of ways,” said Mike Jeannot, president of Meadows Racing. “The 50-cent minimum is broadly affordable, and we anticipate frequent carryovers that will create sizable jackpots. In addition, consolation payoffs should be healthier than are customary for multirace exotic wagers.”

With the introduction of the 50/50 Pick-5, The Meadows will discontinue Pick-3 wagering. In addition to the new wager, the exotics menu for each card includes:

• $1 Pick-4 beginning with Race 10;
• 50-cent Superfectas on each race, excepting race 5 and race 10, with at least eight betting interests;
• $1 Exactas and Trifectas on each race;
• $2 Daily Doubles on the first two races and the final two races.