Kentucky Derby Future Wager bets will still be honored

Churchill made the decision to keep the pari-mutuel bets in play after “numerous internal and external discussions,” according to Darren Rogers, the track’s senior director of communications. On Tuesday, Churchill postponed the Derby until Sept. 5 due to the upheaval caused by the coronavirus outbreak, raising questions about the fate of the bets in the future pools.

“We took into account precedents and how other sports betting outlets handle similar wagers, such as the NBA,” Rogers said. “The final consensus is all bets are ‘action’ as long as a winner is declared in 2020.”

Rogers added that “more than 75 percent” of the money wagered in the three pools are on horses that are in the Daily Racing Form’s Derby Watch Top 20. “The majority of tickets possessed have promising prospects and high potential,” he said.

The current favorite on the Derby Watch is Authentic, listed at 4-1. The horse was listed individually in each of the pools held so far, and closed at 50-1, 15-1, and 6-1. Nadal, the second choice at 5-1, was part of the mutuel field at even-money for Pool 1, then was listed as an individual entry in the second and third pools at 8-1 and 10-1, respectively. Tiz the Law, DRF’s third choice at 6-1, was offered in all three pools, with closing odds of 11-1, 8-1, and 7-1.

The field for the Derby is expected to change significantly over the next 5 ½ months due to the extended lead-up time to the race this year. Churchill is planning to designate additional races held at tracks across the country later this year as official prep races for the Derby, but it is also honoring all points earned in preps for this year’s Derby that already have been held.

Rogers said that Churchill Downs still intends to offer its fourth pool as scheduled, on April 3-5, and that the track will seek to add additional future pools in July and August of this year.

Although the pools offer bets that are similar to those offered in sports book for major events, the Derby future-bet pools are pari-mutuel, not fixed. The pools are limited to 23 individual horses and an “all-others” bet comprising all those not listed in each individual pool.