The Grand Slam
The Grand Slam wager was introduced at NYRA tracks (Aqueduct, Belmont, Saratoga) a few years back as a way to increase handle, increase the options in the wagering menu and (probably) as a means to introduce more conservative bettors to the world of horizontal wagering (multi-race wagers such as Doubles, Pick 3, 4, 5 and 6). While the bet is not necessarily one of the most utilized wagers on the menu, it remains very popular with a certain lot – myself included, despite the eye-rolls the mere mention of the Grand Slam garners from some, more seasoned players.
How to Play
The Grand Slam is a four-race, horizontal wager offered once per card Usually beginning with the 5th or 6th race, the player must select at least one horse to finish in the Win, Place or Show position in the first three races of the sequence (loading the bases), while finishing by selecting the winning runner of the fourth and final leg (the home run). Minimum wager is $1 per combination and with the opportunity of making 3 distinct winning selections in each of the first 3 legs (the WPS legs), there are ultimately 27 paying combinations – yes, a perfect ticket can cash 27 times the base payout!
Why Play
I enjoy playing the Grand Slam for a number of reasons. First and foremost, your selections don’t have to run and hide from the competition in order for your ticket to survive. Your runner need only run a solid, competitive race and hit the board; a freakish or unexpected effort by a horse you haven’t selected does not necessarily derail your bet; You have a lot less vulnerability to losing your bet on account of a horse you’ve discounted. In fact, an overlooked longshot who pops can help increase the payout amount even if you’ve not included it on your ticket (as long as you’ve got at least one runner in the top three, no matter the odds of that runner; a longshot hitting the board is great news for the Grand Slam player.) Further, I can’t help but be enticed by the notion of cashing multiple times on a ticket if my selections all run well. I routinely play the Grand Slam as a sort of supplement to other wagers and rarely make it my key play of the day – a sort of bonus bet, if you will, that infuses some excitement towards the end of the card. If am otherwise having a poor day, simply catching a couple show runners in a row can re-instill some hope and confidence to finish out the day on a positive note.
This is a fun bet for newcomers as well. Having live tickets in a multi-race bet builds the type of excitement in rookie players that can swiftly help to hook them into this wonderful game. With ‘only’ having to select a runner who hits the board in the first three legs, the Grand Slam offers a somewhat less rigorous opportunity to have live tickets for those who are just getting acclimated to reading the pp’s and learning about track bias. The requirements of the bet also make it a bit of an easier ‘sell’ to a more conservative or nervous type!
Grand Slam Playing Theories
A theory advanced by many in the horse playing community suggests the best strategy for playing the Grand Slam is to load up on the early legs to try to build as many winning combinations as possible before singling the final leg to keep ticket cost in check. While I think this is generally a solid theory, I personally prefer to have at least a couple runners live if I’ve survived to the final leg. To keep the tickets cost low, I tend to select 2 runners in each of the WPS legs and spread in the last leg according to how that final race shapes up (and how my bankroll is faring). I understand this only allows for a 8x payout (which pales in comparison to the 27x possible) but until I can hit three consecutive Trifecta boxes with more regularity (Ha!), I avoid making a general practice of playing 3 horses in the each of the early legs.
Whether to favor selecting short priced runners or long shots on your tickets can be the subject of much debate surrounding this bet. Remember, you are not specifically rewarded for correctly selecting a 20-1 runner versus a 2-1 runner in the WPS legs; however, you are ultimately rooting for those longer priced runners to hit the board in these legs – as the more long priced runners that hit the board equates to larger payouts. This leads to my favorite angle to search for when constructing a ticket: finding a vulnerable favorite. If I can identify one, or more, likely favorites who I believe are in a tougher spot than the morning line odds and professional handicapper’s selections may indicate, I am more than happy to leave them off my ticket and root against. On the other side of the coin, unless I have a very strong opinion on a bomb, I am not inclined to force a long shot into my ticket. Instead, I look for the runners that are going to fall in the middle of the odds spectrum, say 5-1 to 10-1. A runner who has been consistently running well, just missing by a few lengths here and there, who might be making a move in class, surface, distance, etc. gets the green light from me for playing in the WPS legs, particularly if going out for well-respected connections. Playing these types consistently in the Grand Slam allows ‘room’ in the results for you to survive and advance even if the favorite runs to form, or a bomb shocks the world.
A Common Knock on the Grand Slam (rebutted)
I get it. Many players are less than enthused when short fields plus chalky results yields single digit Grand Slam payouts. The process of winning a four race bet and cashing less than you wagered is deflating and frustrating. It’s as if the racing Gods are looking down upon you and mocking you. Yes, it happens, but in many cases, it is easy to identify when a low payout is highly likely, and choose not to play that day. Multiple races with short fields is a virtual non-starter for me. A very likely odds-on favorite in the final leg may get a lot of wagering attention and significantly hurt the payouts, as can one (or two or three) low-priced runners in the WPS legs who do not look vulnerable. Combine these factors and the Grand Slam pays can be downright laughable.
But there is good news. Anemic payouts aren’t as much of a guarantee as perhaps many think. As of the writing of this article (Oct. 2018), there had been 22 race days at the Belmont Fall Meet. Of the 22 Grand Slams, 8 paid less than $20, but, 8 paid OVER $100, including a handsome $317 score on September 23rd. Stretching back to the entire 2018 Saratoga meet, of the 39 Grand Slams offered (Whitney Day weather forced the cancellation on that card), 10 offered payouts below $20, while 12 offered payouts OVER $100 including a $900 whopper on August 6th.
The summer of 2018 provided a couple of nice Grand Slam scores for me at Saratoga. I will briefly detail my tickets and explain the results.
Aug 2, 2018, Saratoga, Races 6-9
I played a $1 – 2x2x2x5 ticket at a cost of $40
The nine WPS spots in races 6-8 included two favorites and two second choices with the other slots filled by horses ranging from 3-1 to 13-1 and the final race was won by Danceland (Shug McGaughey/Johnny V) at 6-1.
I was lucky enough to have all six WPS runners hit the board on the early legs meaning I cashed the $75 winning payout a total of 8 times for a tidy little profit of $560.
Sept 3, Saratoga, Races 7-10
I played a $1 – 2x2x2x4 ticket at a cost of $32
Though the favorites both hit the board in the first two legs, so too did a 62-1 bomb in the 7th race. Race 9 was the Grand Slam play I had been waiting for – a fan favorite, and huge wagering favorite that I was willing to play against. When Voodoo Song missed the board at 3/5, I knew Grand Slam payouts would be solid. I was correct as 10-1 Mind Control won the Hopeful for a $160 Grand Slam payout. I had survived only once in each leg but still squeaked out a nifty $128 profit.