Cookie’s Bets on 8-Horse Races Don’t Crumble

In the first race on opening day at Hollywood Park this year, Sparshott, entered in a seven-furlong sprint for 4-year-olds and up, jumped out from the No. 8 post position and held the lead until the quarter pole, where he dropped back to second. Coming on again, Sparshott made his move around the far turn and, entering the stretch, took a 3 1/2-length lead. Running easily at the finish, four lengths in front, he won and paid backers $19.

The seventh race, another seven-furlong event for 4-year-olds and up, was won by Watch’N Win, which raced second until the start of the stretch, where he took the lead and ended up in front by 1 1/2 lengths. The pari-mutuel for a $2 win ticket was $13.40.

In the ninth race, 1 1/16 miles on the turf for 4-year-olds and up, Monte Parnes was sixth when the starting gate opened. The nag fell back to seventh at the half-mile position and slowly passed some ponies around the turn to the stretch, where he moved up to fourth. Flashing some speed down the stretch, Monte Parnes ran past a group of tiring horses, overcame the leader and finished a length in front, paying $22.60.

These winners had one thing in common. They were all entered in eight-horse fields. “Cookie,” who bets only eight-horse fields, won all three, profiting by $23 for the day.

Cookie is round and soft and fully packed and only 5 feet, 2 inches tall. He got this way because he can’t keep his hands out of the cookie jar.

In fact, when he goes to the track, he brings bags of cookies with him to the Clubhouse at Hollywood Park so that he can be sure he can get lots to eat during the day. Of course, seeing him munching on all those cookies, his cronies started calling him Cookie, which stuck instantly.

Since he is not married, has no responsibilities in life other than to bet the ponies and is the only child of a rich mother, Cookie has plenty of time for the Southland tracks.

And if he runs out of money, all he has to do is go home and ask his mother to replenish his funds. His mother, seeing that her son is really a good kid who isn’t into liquor, drugs, fast cars or even faster women pats him on the cheek, smiles and eagerly gives him more money to keep him happy.

Despite having unlimited funds, Cookie is proud of the fact that he has devised a system that seems to be working at Hollywood Park.

Although he wagers at least $2 on all the races--because he gets nervous when the horses enter the starting gate and he doesn’t have a bet on one--it is the system that’s important to Cookie and which, he will tell his friends, he is most proud of, since he has done nothing else that has any particular meaning.

What Cookie does is wait for an eight-horse field. And once the odds stabilize on the totalizator board just before the start of the race, he throws out the first and second favorites and the two highest long shots. Then he will plunk down $2 on each of the remaining four horses, usually betting at least $8 on a race.

Of course, he sometimes wagers $5 a horse or even $10 a horse if he feels lucky. Once Cookie splurged and bet $50, wagering $200 every race that was an eight-horse field, and ended up way ahead for the day.

If Cookie’s friends point out that the only reason he has money is due to his mother’s generosity, they apparently are making a big mistake because Cookie’s system is winning this year at Hollywood Park.

During the first 35 days of racing in which there were eight-horse fields, 72 races qualified. Cookie won 37 and lost 35, cashing in tickets 51.4% of the time, thus beating the favorites, which at best, win only about 33% of their races. Returns on Cookies’ $2 bets came to $215. He lost $180, and ended up with a $35 profit.

Of course, the disadvantage of such a system is that wagering is limited. On some days only one or two races qualify. On two days at Hollywood Park, no races qualified.

However, the advantages far outweigh such sparse wagering. For example, when a horse puts its nose first at the finish, it usually pays long shot prices, with pari-mutuels of $23.80, $25.20, $28.60, $27, $23.20 and $20.60 very common.

Another good session for the system, which Cookie calls “Win 88” because of wagering only on eight-horse fields and making $8 in bets each race, was May 19. On that day, Cookie sat around chomping away on his cookies while waiting for a qualifying race, which finally came up in the seventh.

The lineup and odds for $1 were:

Rotation Speed, $1.50

Guard Your Pocket, 2.70

Lovely Habit, 5.70

Buns Galore, 6.70

Showmanship, 8.20

Pencil Princess, 13.20

Kolo Dancer, 21.80

Fatease, 35.80

Cookie disregarded Rotation Speed and Guard Your Pocket because they were the two lowest favorites and threw out the two highest long shots Kolo Dancer and Fatease. Then he bet $2 each on Lovely Habit, Buns Galore, Showmanship and Pencil Princess.

At the start of the race, which was six furlongs for 3-year-old fillies, Showmanship, in seventh at the quarter-pole, began her move. She moved up to fifth at the half-mile post and entered the stretch fourth. Then she swept by three horses and easily won by 1 1/4 lengths, paying a mutuel of $18.40.

The ninth race, 1 1/4 miles on the turf for 4-year-olds and up, found Rosen going to the front from the No. 8 post position. The nag immediately took a five-length lead and went wire-to-wire, winning by two lengths without ever being pressed. Cookie collected $23.20 for the win.

Cookie bet only two races. His returns came to $41.60, his bets totaled $16 and he won $25.60 for the day.

What Cookie likes to tell his friends is that although such a system has its ups and downs, the important thing is that it comes up with about 50% winners and pays off most of the time in box car figures. His cronies believe he has more luck than brains and that sooner or later he will lose more money than he will win.

Having unlimited wealth, Cookie doesn’t have to worry. “That’s not the way the Cookie crumbles!” he tells them.