view raw text
I ! , I j "DAILY DOUBLE" AT OMAHA Ak-Sar-Ben Will Introduce Popular "Wagering Method at Meeting. Combination to Be on First and Second Races— About 200 Horses on Grounds and Reservations Already Filled. OMAHA, Neb% May 14— The "Daily Double," a feature at many of the leading race tracks of the country, will be introduced at the Ak-Sar-Ben track in Omaha for the first time, when this years meeting opens on May 27. Chairman W. H. Schellberg announced that the racing committee had decided to try out the "Double," after repeated requests from Ak-Sar-Bch patrons. Heretofore, Ak-Sar-Ben had not conducted the "Double" because it wanted to study the experience of other tracks with the venture. The "Daily Double" will be based on the first and second races of each days program, Schellberg said. Patrons must purchase their tickets by ten minutes before the start of the first race. They must name their choice to win both the first and second races. Tickets are each. SEPARATE POOL. The pool on the "Double" is kept entirely separate from that of any single race. All of the money wagered in the Double, less only the tracks commission of 10 per cent, is divided equally between all of the persons holding tickets on the two winning horses. The principle of this division is the same as in the pari-mutuel system. The tremendous prices occasionally paid in the "Doubles" have attracted a great deal of attention to this form of wagering. If two 1 long-shots win in the first and second races, a big price is assured, as it is a foregone conclusion that few persons will hold tickets I coupling these long shots. The biggest "Double" pay-off in Americas turf history was ,498.35, at Thorncliffe Park, Toronto, Canada, on September 17, 1932. Last year, there were two pay-offs of over ,000, one at Bowie, Maryland, and the other at Hot Springs, Ark. In each instance, only one person held a ticket on the winning combination. I GOVERNING RULES. I According to the rules of the "Daily Dou-, ble," should no one have a ticket coupling the two winners, then the pool is divided between those having one winner coupled with the horse that finished second in the other race. Should no one have a ticket with either winner on it, then the pool is divided between the persons holding tickets on the two horses that finished second. Again, the j principle is the same as used in the regular , pari-mutuel system. With the inauguration of the "Daily Double," Ak-Sar-Ben once more takes the leadership of mid-western tracks, as it is the only one to have totalizator equipment, pho-I to finish, starting gate and other modern improvements. Racing secretary Ben Holmes, who has been on the ground for the past week, expects to open his office for business next week. Scores of applicants for stalls were turned away this year because of lack of sufficient accommodations. With about 200 i horses already on the ground, and the track in splendid condition, Holmes said that racing could start tomorrow, if necessary. The popular Ak-Sar-Ben racing boss will make a itrip to Beulah Park, Ohio, and Fairmount Park, at St. Louis, this week just to keep in .touch with the horsemen who are shipping here for the opening May 27.
