Given that #5 North East Star finished fifth at odds-on last out, perhaps the cautionary adage applies: once bitten, twice shy. But the maiden import was compromised by racing luck both U.S. starts – third in a turf sprint and unplaced in a turf mile last out. The lightly raced filly meets a nondescript field of maiden fillies and mares, and may only need a clean trip. Unfortunately, she is 5-2 favorite in the program.

#2 Bolt’s Broad also has been compromised by unlucky trips and/or bad rides throughout her nine-start career. But she finished second last out in her return to Del Mar, and look who takes over – preeminent jockey Flavien Prat. At 4-1, Bolt’s Broad is a must-use. The only other upset candidate is the only first-time starter in the field. #9 Star of The Night makes her debut for trainer Mark Glatt, who occasionally pops with two-turn firsters. At 6-1, with leading rider Juan Hernandez, it seems Star of The Night is well-meant. She is moved from fourth preference to third preference.

Betting strategy insists on a one-two finish by Star of The Night, the contender with the highest odds. It’s a $12 play in the exacta ($1 minimum) and $21 play in the pick three (50-cent min) that uses all three contenders, “buys” the second race, and singles a 5-1 firster in the third.

This bottom-level N2L claiming dirt mile is a mess. The top choice is #1 Group Hug, a 1-for-23 hanger who consistently promises more than she he delivers. #6 Frost Alert is racing at the bottom for the first time, while #10 Clooney is the 5-2 program favorite plummeting in class and stuck outside in post 10. There are more attractive wagering opportunities than this basement-level grab-bag. Other than the pick three that began in the opener, this is a pass race. No plays.

#6 D’ Oro Dash smoked 59-flat from the gate last weekend, a blazing five-furlong drill that was either too fast or an indication of superior talent. He is listed at 5-1, and his value is “locked in” due to the presence of a pair of lower-odds Bob Baffert trained first-time starters.

Mark Glatt trains D’ Oro Dash; Glatt won with 5 of his last 20 first-time starters. Furthermore, the colt’s sire Bolt d’Oro gets 17 percent winners with debut juveniles. No knock on the Baffert pair; #8 Beneficial and #4 Wine Me Up have trained well. They are listed as 5-2 favorite and 4-1 second choice, respectively. #9 Stay Hot ran okay finishing third first out. He might improve. Due to the discrepancy in odds, D’ Orto Dash is the key. If the pick three ticket is live, it is personal preference whether to press by betting him to win or stand pat.

Tough to see beyond program favorite #8 Petesoldfashioned. His runner-up debut was flattered when the winner returned to finish third in a stakes; the third-place finisher won a maiden race next out. Petesoldfashioned ran well against good company, and will be tough to beat second time out.

However, an upset candidate on the also-eligible list could give the favorite a run for his money. #13 Special Club (SCRATCHED) ran very well in his fourth-place debut. He broke slowly, unleashed a middle move on the turn, weaved through traffic, finished well inside, and galloped out with run. The effort was better than the 39 Beyer Figure. If he draws in, Special Club is a must-use.

(Friday update: Special Club is re-entered on Monday, and expected to scratch. The double play below has been adjusted.)

(Saturday update: #13 Special Club officially scratched.)

Betting strategy this race will be conservative. It’s a simple $8 play in the double, keyed off Petesoldfashioned. This wager is primarily for the sake of action.

#3 Donner Lake can win this Cal-bred allowance turf mile in his first start since January. The program favorite, he runs well fresh; the figures he earned in turf races late last year are fast enough. #11 Talklessworkmore should vie for favoritism off back-to-back runner-up finishes in which he led to deep stretch while facing the same class he meets here. He is a front-end threat. Nothing creative this race, and if the double is dead, then it’s just a simple win bet at a short price.

The pick six will be paid in its entirety Saturday, it is a mandatory force-out. This N1X sprint is the initial leg, and betting strategy will focus on a successful launch to the pick six. Barring a single-ticket winner Friday, the jackpot pool should be more than $400,000. The pick six is a 20-cent wager at Del Mar, and mandatory payout day is the only time it is reasonable to play the jackpot wager. On non- mandatory-payout days, only 54 cents of each dollar wagered is returned to bettors (46 percent takeout).

#7 Dr. Venkman had little behind him in his debut, and he benefitted by a pro-outside bias, but he downright dominated with a big fig (91 Beyer) and big margin (more than five lengths). He stretches out only a half-furlong to seven, and should be tough. The knocks: he beat a subpar field (five ran back, none won), and he benefitted by track bias. For those reasons, Dr. Venkman cannot be a pick six single. #2 Navy Man returns from a two-month layoff with a history of firing fresh, and high figures virtually the same as the favorite. #1 Divine Armor entered back in a race on Sunday and is expected to scratch. #3 Hot Rod Rumble needed his last start, a turf sprint. He returns to preferred dirt footing second start back and is listed at a giant price of 15-1.

Betting strategy is a $43.20 play in the pick six (20-cent min) that singles race-8 favorite Faiza (SCRATCHED). Also, will not let longshot Hot Rod Rumble slip past at double-digit odds. It’s an $8 play in the exacta that keys the longshot, along with a win-place bet.

(Saturday update: Faiza scratched from race 8, substitute race-8 single in pick six is #10 Ceiling Crusher. Same ticket cost.)

#4 Exaulted won four straight turf races this year including a G1 that stamped him the top turf miler in California. He has worked well all summer, and should be tough to beat with a pressing trip in this G2 turf mile. The only apparent knock is price; Exaulted is 3-1 program favorite.

G1 winner #3 Count Again and Grade 1-placed #1 Du Jour are logical alternatives, but a pair of longshots could slip through the cracks. They are #6 Visitant and #7 I’m a Gambler, listed at 12-1 and 8-1 respectively.

A $1 million purchase last fall in Europe, I’m a Gambler did not have a great trip finishing fourth in his U.S. debut in December. He then was off seven months, and ran super in his comeback. I’m a Gambler pressed fast fractions, hung tough to deep stretch and missed by only a length. Super comeback. This G2 is his second start back, the nine-time winner figures as a contender.

Visitant was a late supplement; his high figures on synthetic last year would put him squarely in the hunt if he reproduces the numbers on turf. at the price, it’s a gamble worth taking. Single-race betting strategy will focus on favorite Exaulted and the two longshots. It’s an $22 play in the exacta, $8 play in the double ($2 min) and win wagers on longshots Visitant and I’m a Gambler.

#9 Faiza (SCRATCHED) should win this age-restricted G3 dirt mile at a relatively short price. Following her first career loss from six starts, the four-time graded winner has trained super at Del Mar including an eye-catching solo gate work last weekend. In a race with pace to flatter her closing style, Faiza is likely to do exactly what she did in the Santa Ania Oaks – race midfield and blast home as the class of the field.

The only knock on Faiza is she is not particularly fast on numbers. Her career-high Beyer is a mere 89. Not to worry. The only graded winner in the field, Faiza towers over the competition and enters as the most probable winner on the card.

Perhaps one could argue for #10 Ceiling Crusher and #6 Anywho; both were compromised recently by bad trips. Ceiling Crusher’s top figures are actually higher than Faiza, while the only route by Anywho was a wide-trip debacle two starts back. Ceiling Crusher and Anywho are mere back-ups in the Torrey Pines, which should be won by Faiza.

A pair of longshot contenders could hit the exacta. They are #5 Olivia Twist (SCRATCHED) and #8 Pink Ace, both listed 20-1. Both fillies are second start back from layoffs, both are likely to improve due to surface switch and/or distance. Betting strategy is an $10 play in the exacta keying Faiza over the longshots, with saver win bets on the longshots.

(Saturday update: Scratch of Faiza and Olivia Twist throws a monkey wrench into Torrey Pines. Ceiling Crusher now a pick six single; exacta strategy below has been revised and is basically a box with Ceiling Crusher and Pink Ace. Same $10 cost.)

A deep field of turf sprinters race five furlongs. The race has plenty of pace, late-runners will have a fair chance over a bias-free turf-sprint course that recently played fair following a period in August when speed was dominant. The pro-speed profile seems to have dissipated; closers can win turf sprints. The expectation is that one of the late-runners will win this G2.

At least four speed horses will set it up, and it’s just tough to see how any of the four can stick around after an early duel. They are #1 Fast Buck, #2 Kid Corleone, #7 Noble Reflection (SCRATCHED) and #11 Bus Buzz. They can duel each other into the ground and set it up for a closer.

#8 Motorious and #10 Bran are the “best horses,” graded turf-sprint winners who rally from the back. Motorious has won at five furlongs, but Bran has never raced a distance this short. #5 Beer Can Man and #3 Turn On The Jets both are in peak form, one-two last out over the Del Mar course. A case can also be made for comebacker #6 Lane Way, one-two his last seven starts. This race is a spread in the pick six, four-deep. One of the contenders should win, but all four are relatively short prices. It’s a fun race, but a pass race. No plays.

The handicap division in California is weak, which is a key reason a trio of 3-year-olds are top choices in the Pacific Classic. Over the years, 3yo starters have won the Pacific Classics at a 31-percent rate, more than double that of any age group.

Lightly raced #1 Geaux Rocket Ride faces older after a solid Grade 1 victory in the Haskell in just his fourth career start. Not sure about the quality of the Haskell, however. Runner-up Mage returned to get dusted in the Travers. Geaux Rocket Ride is 5-2 favorite, which is no great value. Nor is #9 Arabian Knight, the 3-1 second choice trying to wire the field and become the first to win the Pacific Classic in the fourth start of his career.

The knockout is the “other” 3yo. He is #11 Skinner, close third in the Santa Anita Derby and with a career interrupted twice since by scratches. He was declared from the Kentucky Derby in May, and again from a stakes race June at Santa Anita. Skinner needed his most recent start, an okay runner-up finish in the Los Alamitos Derby. Saturday in the Pacific Classic, Skinner stretches to a mile and one-quarter distance he should relish, with a prep under his belt, pace to run at, and a generous price on the morning line at 10-1.

Barring a return to form by the older Grade 1 winners, the Pacific Classic should be won by a 3-year-old. Geaux Rocket Ride is the top choice, but at double-digit odds, Skinner is the win bet. Betting strategy is a $12 play in the exacta, saver exacta under the older Grade 1 winners whose current form is uncertain. They are #3 Stilleto Boy and #5 Defunded.

#10 Gold Phoenix returned to top form last out with a come-from-behind G2 victory at a mile and one-eighth. No reason he cannot fire right back for trainer Phil D’Amato, who won this race seven times in the past nine years including last year with Gold Phoenix. #9 Planetario found G1 competition too tough in a G1 at Monmouth; he split the field. But his G3 romp two back puts him in the hunt.

Perhaps #6 Offlee Naughty will return to his graded-stakes winning form after a freshening, but Planetario seems like a better horse. #4 Missed the Cut should be forwardly placed in a race likely to unfold at a tepid pace. The top two choices are relatively short prices, but a longshot could sneak into the exacta. That’s the idea, anyway.

Betting strategy is a $12 play in the exacta that insists on a win by Gold Phoenix or Planetario, and an in-the-money finish by one of three 15-1 shots: either #2 Crosby Beach, #3 None Above the Law or #11 Cash Equity. All three have run races that put him in the hunt. A $9 play in the trifecta (50-cent min) puts the longshots in the three-hole.