N.Y. gaming commission adopts rules to make multirace wagers more uniform

The New York State Gaming Commission on Monday formally adopted new rules governing three popular multirace wagers with the idea of making them uniform.

Regarding the pick six, if two or three legs of the wager are taken off the turf after wagering has concluded, 75 percent of the pool would be paid out to those having four or three winners, respectively. Currently, only 25 percent of the pool is paid out under those circumstances, and the rest is carried over to the next card.

In cases when after wagering has closed there are surface switches involving four legs (and if there are no tickets with one winner) or five legs, there will be a refund. This is congruent with rules in place for the pick five.

Regarding the pick five, if one or two legs of the wager are canceled and there are no tickets that have the winners of the remaining legs, 100 percent of the pool will be carried over to the next card. Currently, under such circumstances, 100 percent of the pool is paid to the ticket having the most winners.

Regarding the pick four, in the event that three or four legs are canceled, the wager will be refunded. Currently, the rules call for a payout to those who had selected one winner if the other three legs were canceled. As it pertains to surface switches, if three legs of a pick four are switched from turf to dirt, the wager will be refunded. Currently, the law calls for a payout to those who had selected one winner, and the other three legs were regarded as “all-win.”

The new rules governing these wagers will go into effect beginning with the Saratoga meet that opens July 22.

Also at its Monday meeting, the gaming commission barred former Thoroughbred owner and trainer Jerome Palumbo from participating in New York racing for a period of five years and fined him $10,000. This was a modification of a hearing officer’s recommendation to bar him for one year and fine him $5,000.

In 2012, the then-New York State Racing and Wagering Board was prepared to ban Palumbo from participating in New York racing because he had trained horses without a license, was responsible for a total-carbon-dioxide-level positive on the horse Martha’s Mandate, and had a history of prior violations, including a conviction for a crime involving gambling and bookmaking. Palumbo had surrendered his various licenses before the board ever ruled on them.

After applying for reinstatement, a hearing officer recommended to the gaming commission that Palumbo be barred from applying for a period of one year and be fined $5,000. The commission, by a vote of 5-0, opted for the harsher punishment.