Beginner’s Bet of the Week: The Show Parlay

Gambling
Fans enjoy a day of racing at Belmont Park. (Penelope P. Miller/America's Best Racing)

This week marks the latest installment of a new series on America’s Best Racing, the Beginner’s Bet of the Week, sponsored by NYRA Bets. Each week, this blog will explore a new type of bet by explaining exactly what it is, how best to use that bet, and by putting the wager into practice in a race.

Week 6 of Belmont fall racing has arrived and with it a feeling of the Del Mar Breeders’ Cup quickly approaching. The 2021 Breeders’ Cup World Championships comes in just two weeks, and NYRA Bets is getting you ready. Simply apply promo code ABR25 for a $25 Free Play as well a $200 first-deposit match. You can’t beat that! And for even more action, don’t forget to join this week’s Belmont Saturday Contest for Oct. 23. $300 Buy-In. Big payouts. Registrations due by the end of Friday. As always, be sure to tune into “America’s Day at the Races” running on FS2 every afternoon now through Sunday where the team will provide live coverage of Belmont Park and Churchill Downs all fall!

This week, we’ll take a look at how to play a show parlay. As described earlier in the series, the goal of a show bet is for your horse to finish in the top three. The show parlay takes this concept and spreads it out over multiple races.

A show parlay works not unlike a multi-game parlay in football. When you play a parlay, the amount you win on a race is wagered right back on the next race you’d like to play. For example, let’s say you start a $2 show parlay, and the horse you bet on hits the board and pays $6 to show. That $6 is then bet on the horse you select in the next race to show. The next horse also hits the board, and pays $3 to show on a $2 bet. That results in a profit of $3, and a total amount of $9 for the next race in the parlay. There’s no set length to a show parlay; you can keep it going for as long as you’d like.

Betting a show parlay adds some excitement to a day at the track and is a great way to make some money while betting to show. While individual show bets will not make anyone much money, stringing a bunch of them together can result in a decent score. The strategy of a show parlay is similar to playing individual show bets: try to find horses who have a good chance of finishing in the top three at decent prices. From there, you can craft a show parlay that’ll pay well.


Saturday’s Belmont Park Show Parlay

We’ll try a four-race parlay on the last four races on the Saturday card. If the pick in the seventh race hits the board, the winnings will be wheeled back onto the next race.

In Race 7, I’ll go with #4 Sweet Lies, a first-time starter for Graham Motion. She’s been working well at Fair Hill, in Maryland, and Motion evidently thinks enough of her to send her up to New York for a start. A few of these have experience and I’m hoping they take the bulk of the money and let Sweet Lies go off at a good price. Even if she’s not a win contender, she can get third and keep the parlay alive.

In the eighth race, the $200,000 Noble Damsel Stakes, #1 In a Hurry has speed from the inside for Shug McGaughey and Javier Castellano. She’ll be able to protect position on the inside and control the pace.

In Race 9, #8 Sifting Sands is in improving form for trainer Chad Brown, having recently won the Tale of the Cat Stakes for his third win in his last four starts. His Equibase Speed Figure has improved in each of his five starts leading into the $400,000 Hill Prince Stakes.

In Race 10, I’ll take #4 Silver Fist to wrap up the parlay. She’s shown speed and battled on each of her two starts. Her Equibase figure improved almost 20 points from her debut to her second race.

newsletter sign-up

Stay up-to-date with the best from America's Best Racing!

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram TikTok YouTube
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram TikTok YouTube