by Bob Pandolfo

Bob Pandolfo offers his picks for the $50,000 Pick-4 at Meadowlands Racetrack on August 3, part of the U.S. Trotting Association Strategic Wagering Program.

Meadowlands Pick-4, Races 6-9, Friday, August 3, 2012

I hit the Pick-4 for $37.20 last night, a modest profit of $19.20 on my $18 wager. I’ve hit five Pick-4s so far this meet, the highest paying $238 for $1 and I’m down $571.80 on the meet. Tonight’s sequence is very tough.

For the championship meet I’m going to try more realistic, and more creative, tickets to see how that works out but be forewarned that even with much more of a spread, it’s still not easy to hit a Pick-4 at this track.

$1 play: 567/36/15/2679 = $48

Analysis:

Race 6: The Ima Lula came up as a very good race. I’m using my top three picks, (5) Pantholops, (6) Tui, and (7) China Pearls. The favorite will probably be China Pearls but she was scratched last week and it’s hard to get too excited about a favorite in a field this closely matched; seven of these mares appear to have a chance.

Race 7: (3) Relentless Dreamer and (6) Rockweiller are probably the two most likely winners here but it is a competitive race. I’ll stick with these two to try to keep the ticket from getting too pricey.

Race 8: This claiming handicap came up tough. (1) Cullens Blue Jean has a shot at a price and (5) Evening Job moves back into a claiming race. You’d have to go four or five deep to cover it.

Race 9: I’m using all four of my contenders here, mainly because I don’t want to leave out my fourth choice, longshot (7) Myra’s Hiho, who disappointed as the favorite last week but was used in the pace over a sloppy track.