from the Meadowlands Publicity Department

East Rutherford, NJ — In addition to the excitement of the $4.7 million Breeders Crown, the opening of the Holiday Harness Meet on Friday night (November 16) at the Meadowlands also marks significant new opportunities for bettors.

For the first time, bettors across Canada will wager directly into Meadowlands pools, resulting in larger pools for all Meadowlands bettors. The change comes as a result of the approval of net pool pricing by the New Jersey Racing Commission. Previously, Canadian bettors wagered into smaller, separate Canadian-only pools.

“We should see increases in all pools, particularly multi-leg wagers like the Pick 4,” said Assistant Vice President of Off-track Wagering & Simulcasting, Alex Dadoyan.

Featuring a low 15 percent takeout and guaranteed pools, the Pick 4 wager continues to be the best bet at the Meadowlands. Nightly guaranteed pools for the Pick 4 wager are $25,000 on Wednesday-Friday and $50,000 on Saturday. The Meadowlands Pick 4 pool has averaged $57,389 per night and produced an average payoff of $2,400 for a $1 base wager.

The Pick 4, which requires correctly selecting the winners of four consecutive races, has paid more than $1,000 for a $1 wager nearly 45 percent of the time (54 of 123 to be exact). The Top 5 payoffs so far in 2007 are: $37,225-Feb. 15; $36,409-June 13; $19,155-Jan. 20; $14,114-Feb. 7; and $14,107-April 14.

“We saw good growth in the Pick 4 in 2007, with strong average payoffs and pool sizes increasing by nearly 20 percent over the previous year,” Dadoyan said. “We’ll look to increase those Pick 4 guaranteed pools for 2008, if those trends continue.”

Bettors will also have more opportunities to wager on the 10-cent superfecta this fall, with the addition of two more to the wagering menu. Beginning Nov. 16, a dime superfecta will be offered in races four, seven, nine and the last race each night. The superfecta requires the correct selection of the first four horses in order of finish.

“We get a lot of suggestions for new wagers,” Dadoyan said. “I’ve been approached about rolling daily doubles, an early Pick 4 and, of course, more 10-cent superfectas. For now, additional superfecta wagers made the most sense. They are very popular with the players.”

The Holiday Harness Meet at the Meadowlands runs from Nov. 16-Dec. 22. Post time is 7:30 p.m., Wednesday-Saturday. Visit www.meadowlandsracetrack.com for more information.