See a value key to Woodbine mandatory-payout super high 5

A fun weekend of racing got that much better when Woodbine said it would offer a mandatory payout on its jackpot super high five with a massive carryover of $252,067.

Normally, this wager pays out half the pool with the other half requiring a horseplayer to be the only one to connect on the top five runners in order to scoop, but not in Sunday afternoon’s finale when the entire carryover along with new money wagered will all be paid out. With a 15 percent takeout and a 20-cent minimum this is a wager that players at all levels should consider getting involved in, but it helps to have a key horse to help keep costs down.

The pace has a chance to be chaotic in this second-level allowance event over Woodbine’s all-weather surface but at the very least it should be contentious given the presence of Malibu Edge, Fighter in the Win, Twin City and Tiz Romantic. This obviously bodes well for runners from off the pace. Bettors that see the race shape similarly are likely to flock to 3-1-favorite Cool Kiss, On Thin Ice, and the 7-year-old gelding South Bend, but I prefer the value that Grandson should offer.

Grandson comes into this two-turn affair after shaking off the rust with an off the pace victory against first-level allowance foes on June 2. The son of Silver Max got an honest pace to run at when earning his fourth career victory in his first start since last December but the race did not fall apart in the final furlong. Instead, it was Grandson coming from last to rally past the two speed horses and earn a career best 87 Beyer Speed Figure from Daily Racing Form.

The competition definitely gets tougher for Grandson on Sunday afternoon but I expect him to be up for the challenge. Not only is the 6-year-old coming into the race in the best form of his career but his barn is also going well of late. Trainer John LeBlanc Jr. has started eight horses over the last 30 days. Two of them won with three others hitting the board. LeBlanc has given Grandson one four-furlong maintenance drill since his victory earlier this month. He should be ready to roll under Daisuke Fukumoto. 

Finding a key runner in a 13-horse field is a potentially important first step in tackling the super high five but obviously a lot more skill is required to piece a winning ticket together. With the aforementioned likely honest pace, I will key Grandson in the top three spots with some of the others that also should benefit from a race shape that favors closers. 

On Thin Ice and Cool Kiss make a ton of sense given their running styles but their lack of success over this surface, outside draws, and likely off odds make them tough to get super excited about. That said, they are very likely to put in solid late runs. I will use them along with Lac Macaza who was up close to the early pace in his first start off a six-month layoff on May 17 but should sit a more favorable mid-pack ground saving voyage on Sunday. Twin City is also a use despite the potential of getting caught up in an early battle with Emma-Jayne Wilson opting to ride this son of Klimt back.

It is tough sledding in this full field event at Woodbine but putting the work in could result in a juicy payout to close the weekend action.