Del Mar’s betting menu, which last year offered 14 different wagers for seaside investors, will grow by three new bets this summer when the 36-day session gets off and running on Wednesday, July 18.

The track’s bet roster, which starts with the traditional win, place and show wagers and expands out to several five- and six-horse combinations, now will tack on the following trio of offerings during the shore oval’s seven-week stand:

• An early Pick Four starting on Race 2 daily that will be a .50¢ minimum wager.
• A late Pick Five offered on the last five races daily. It, too, will be a .50¢ minimum bet.
• A Win, Place, Show Parlay available for a minimum of two races and a maximum of six. It is a $2 bet.

In addition to its new Early Pick Four, the track will continue to offer its usual Pick Four on the last four races on the day’s card, a bet that has proven to be one of the most popular in the country and regularly registers $1-million-plus pools on weekends. The late Pick Five also will be similar to the track’s early Pick Five held on the day’s initial five events. And the Win, Place, Show Parlay will be presented using the standard single-bet W-P-S takeout of 15.43% instead of a multi-bet takeout that goes above 20%.

Del Mar will continue with its $2 Pick Six on all racing days, along with the “Single Ticket Jackpot” addition to it that the track introduced during its 2016 fall season. Under the “Jackpot” rules, a separate pool accumulates alongside the regular one if nobody hits the bet as a lone ticket holder. This allows for a large separate pool to grow even in the case of a “hit’ on the Pick Six by two or more players. The “Jackpot” pool often reaches six figures in fairly rapid order and can be expected to do so throughout the stand.

And, as it did last summer, Del Mar will schedule two “mandatory payouts” on the “Jackpot” pool:  first on TVG Pacific Classic Day (Saturday, August 18), then on Closing Day, Monday, September 3. That means that a Pick Six winner on either of those dates would share not only in the regular pool, but the full “Jackpot” pool besides. Further, consolation winners on those days also would share in the “Jackpot” payout.

“We’ve got something for everyone this year,” said Del Mar’s Director of Mutuels, Bill Navarro. “And with the updated tax wagering rules (installed at the end of 2017) that have significantly reduced IRS reporting and withholding now firmly in place and expediting betting on all fronts, we’re expecting a fine summer at the pari-mutuel windows all around.”

The full array of Del Mar bets is as follows:  $2 win, place and show (all races); $1 Exacta (all); $2 Quinella (all); .50¢ Trifecta (all); $2 Rolling Doubles (all except last); $1 Rolling Pick 3 (all except last two); $1 Superfecta (.10¢ minimum – all); $1 Place Pick All (starts w/Race 1 or 2); $1 Super High 5 (last); $2 Pick Six (last six); .50¢ Players’ Pick 5 (first five and last five); .50¢ Pick 4 (Races 2 thru 5 and last four), and $2 Win-Place-Show Parlay (all races but last).

Racing will be conducted on a Wednesday through Sunday basis throughout the stand with the lone exception of the Labor Day Monday closer. First post daily will be 2 p.m., with the exceptions of Fridays when starting times shift to 4 p.m. (with the exceptions of the final two Fridays – 8/24 and 8/31) – when first post will be 3:30 p.m.). Friday’s races run until sunset and are followed by the hugely popular Del Mar Concert Series.

To purchase tickets, Del Mar fans are encouraged to go to delmarracing.com