HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - In 1911, Matt Winn, president of Churchill Downs, established a $2 minimum bet at his racetrack, and that amount soon became the basic unit of wagering throughout the sport. For nearly a century, payoffs in American racing were quoted as the return on a $2 ticket.

Last week Gulfstream Park broke with tradition and began quoting prices on most multiple wagers - exactas, trifectas, pick threes - as the payoff on a $1 wager. An exacta that formerly paid $18.20 for $2 is now shown on the tote board and television monitors with a price of $9.10.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - There were two races in Saturday's $200,000 Richter Scale Breeders' Cup. In the first, Burning Roma stalked the pacesetting Native Heir, part of a favored entry at 7-10. He caught and passed his foe in upper stretch, then found himself locked in a fresh duel with the 9-1 Tour of the Cat.

The determined Burning Roma, winner of more than $1.3 million, doesn't make concessions and carried the battle to the finish. The earlier "race" had taken something out of him, however, and the competitive Tour of the Cat won by a head.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Just so everyone is completely clear on what Laffit Pincay is going through, as a result of the fractures he sustained last Saturday to the second cervical vertebra of his neck during the 48,486th ride of his career, a call was placed to Richard Migliore in the Aqueduct jockeys' quarters before the program started on Friday.

NEW YORK - Woody Stephens and D. Wayne Lukas dominated American racing during the 1980's, training numerous champions and frequently clashing at the highest level of the sport. It took a crowbar to get either of them to say something nice about a horse trained by the other, but after watching Lady's Secret win the 1986 Ruffian at Belmont by eight lengths while spotting 20 pounds to the runner-up, Woody couldn't help himself.

"That's the best filly I've ever seen," he said, and he had seen most of the great ones.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Gulfstream Park's Saturday features have been quality treats all season. We have another interesting and competitive exercise in prospect when Native Heir, winner of the Deputy Minister Handicap here last month, clashes with Burning Roma, winner of the Tampa Bay Breeders' Cup, in the $200,000 Richter Scale Breeders' Cup at seven furlongs.

ARCADIA, Calif. - When riders hit the ground and stay there, repercussions ensue. Hospitalizations and recriminations go hand in hand.

Disqualifications and suspensions are by-products of the drama, while finger-pointing becomes the pastime of choice.

The sobering cluster of accidents at Santa Anita last week had people drawing conclusions left and right. Was it the racetrack? Was it careless riding? Was it the alignment of Neptune and Mars?

ARCADIA, Calif. - Joe Steiner can be forgiven if he wonders what hit him.

In the space of six days, between the evening of Feb. 21 and the afternoon of Feb. 26, Steiner found himself alternatingly engulfed in worlds of pleasure, sadness, and pain. Life needs variety, but this was ridiculous.

At one point he was Hollywood Joe at a glitzy wrap party for the filming of "Seabiscuit," in which he doubled for Gary Stevens, who played the part of George Woolf.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - The letters still arrive.

It has been more than 10 years since Henryk de Kwiatkowski stepped up and bought Calumet Farm for $17 million dollars, saving America's best-known horse farm from the developers.

Hyperbole hides truth: Americans love to bet

By ANDREW BEYER

WASHINGTON, March 3 - Readers of The Washington Post should by now be aware of the mortal danger facing us. The prospect that slot machines might be installed in Maryland's racetracks is threatening the very fabric of our society.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - She rose to the occasion.

With her owner-breeders, the Kleins of Louisville, Ky., celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary Saturday, it was Allamerican Bertie's obligation that same day to come up with a special effort in Gulfstream's $200,000 Rampart Handicap for fillies and mares.