Tomlinson rewarding his backers in a big way

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Betting blindly on anything saddled by Mike Tomlinson this year has been a profitable move. Tomlinson has been particularly hot this spring at Churchill Downs, where he has won with 10 of his first 21 starters.

“I knew I had some bullets to fire with to start the meet,” said Tomlinson. “We hope the holster isn’t running out.”

Tomlinson won an allowance race Saturday with Home Base, a 3-year-old Street Sense colt who could make his next start in the Grade 3 Matt Winn Stakes on the big Stephen Foster night card June 16. Home Base was 10-1 Saturday in his first crack at allowance conditions after winning a maiden race last month at Keeneland at 32-1.

Those big prices have typified the year Tomlinson, 64, has enjoyed so far. With his two longtime assistants, D.W. Fries and Billy Lawson, perpetually at his side, Tomlinson had a $3.52 ROI (for every $2 win bet) at the Gulfstream Park championship meet despite having just three wins from 39 starters. The $120 win mutuel by Jordan’s Henny in the Grade 3 Hurricane Bertie was a big help. His ROI at the Keeneland spring meet, where he went 2 for 14, was $6.50. And his ROI at this meet stands at $7.57, boosted by his high win percentage and such winners as Home Base, No Limit (8-1), Dagney’s Warrior (7-1), and Lucky Britches (5-1).

“We’re extremely fortunate to have the start we’ve had,” said Tomlinson, who moved to Kentucky from his native Oklahoma in the mid-1990s.

Tomlinson also had his first starter of the Arlington Park meet when Mister Maestro won Sunday as a 4-5 favorite.