GaryMrMets
05-12-2005, 12:30 PM
http://www.nypost.com/sports/46429.htm
Tri-Mendous!
By ED FOUNTAINE
May 12, 2005 -- A lucky OTB player on Staten Island is sitting on the windfall of a lifetime after hitting the boxcars trifecta in last Saturday's Kentucky Derby.
Altogether, 15 winning tickets were sold by New York City Off-Track Betting on the Derby trifecta, which paid a record $133,134.80 for $2. Fourteen of those were in $1 and $2 denominations, according to NYC OTB president Ray Casey.
But one ticket, sold at Staten Island's Amboy Road branch, had the tri for $10, making it worth more than $625,000 after OTB's surcharge comes out and before taxes.
"No one's come forward yet to claim the ticket," Casey said yesterday afternoon.
That bettor, and others who cashed on 50-1 winner Giacomo, 71-1 runner-up Closing Argument and 9-2 third-place finisher Afleet Alex to hit the trifecta, aren't the only ones who cleaned up Derby Day.
For the first time in its history, NYC OTB surpassed $10 million in wagering on a single day. The total handle of $10.2 million, including $5.1 million bet on the Derby alone, was up over last year's record take by $600,000, led by OTB's 10 restaurants, which were up 17 percent. Phone betting totaled $2.2 million.
"I attribute [the record handle] to quality racing," Casey said. "There was a really big Derby field, and the fact Belmont Park opened a week early this year gave it a real 1-2 punch. George Steinbrenner's horse (5-2 favorite Bellamy Road), win or lose, contributed a lot to the race before the bell even went off. He gave people something to rally around.
"New York City may be a long way from Louisville, Ky., but at the parlors, there was a real buzz in the air, and the OTB people worked their butts off all day long."
Tri-Mendous!
By ED FOUNTAINE
May 12, 2005 -- A lucky OTB player on Staten Island is sitting on the windfall of a lifetime after hitting the boxcars trifecta in last Saturday's Kentucky Derby.
Altogether, 15 winning tickets were sold by New York City Off-Track Betting on the Derby trifecta, which paid a record $133,134.80 for $2. Fourteen of those were in $1 and $2 denominations, according to NYC OTB president Ray Casey.
But one ticket, sold at Staten Island's Amboy Road branch, had the tri for $10, making it worth more than $625,000 after OTB's surcharge comes out and before taxes.
"No one's come forward yet to claim the ticket," Casey said yesterday afternoon.
That bettor, and others who cashed on 50-1 winner Giacomo, 71-1 runner-up Closing Argument and 9-2 third-place finisher Afleet Alex to hit the trifecta, aren't the only ones who cleaned up Derby Day.
For the first time in its history, NYC OTB surpassed $10 million in wagering on a single day. The total handle of $10.2 million, including $5.1 million bet on the Derby alone, was up over last year's record take by $600,000, led by OTB's 10 restaurants, which were up 17 percent. Phone betting totaled $2.2 million.
"I attribute [the record handle] to quality racing," Casey said. "There was a really big Derby field, and the fact Belmont Park opened a week early this year gave it a real 1-2 punch. George Steinbrenner's horse (5-2 favorite Bellamy Road), win or lose, contributed a lot to the race before the bell even went off. He gave people something to rally around.
"New York City may be a long way from Louisville, Ky., but at the parlors, there was a real buzz in the air, and the OTB people worked their butts off all day long."