Churchill Downs: How to bet the $4,469 Super Hi-5 carryover

Although the Single 6 jackpot at Churchill Downs was claimed in dramatic fashion on Thursday afternoon, a carryover of a different kind is on the line for Friday’s card at the famous Louisville oval.

Rather than take a post-Thanksgiving day off, let’s review what transpired and put together a ticket to chase the new carryover:

Thursday recap

It’s safe to say one lucky bettor had a lot to be thankful for on Thanksgiving Day. The Single 6 sequence unfolded in unpredictable fashion, producing a quartet of double-digit winners across six races. Only one favorite managed to prevail, and 4-5 betting choice Bonny South was soundly beaten in the featured Falls City (G2), doubtlessly taking down a large number of tickets with her.

The afternoon finale produced especially shocking results as the favorite trudged home 10th while double-digit longshots swept the top four finishing positions. In a driving finish, Ancient Warrior prevailed by a head at odds of 13-1, triggering a massive Single 6 payout of $328,146.48 to the lone winning bettor.

On the bright side for bettors who missed out on the big payday, the longshot parade in the finale did manage to trigger a $4,469 carryover in the Super Hi-5, which will be dispersed among all winning ticketholders in the Friday finale.

Friday insights

The Super Hi-5 is available to play in Race 11, a 6-furlong maiden special weight for fillies and mares. With just nine runners in the field, the wager should be simpler to cash than on Thursday, when 12 horses went to post in the card-closing finale.

The key to the race is deciding how to play morning line favorite #7 Silverbella (9-5), who has finished second by half a length in each of her first three starts, all sprinting sxi furlongs against maiden special weight company. The daughter of Tapizar threw down a field-best 96 Brisnet Speed rating during the spring at Oaklawn Park, and recently returned from a seven-month layoff to rally and finish second as the favorite at Churchill Downs.

Silverbella is the obvious choice to prevail on Friday, and trainer Daniel Peitz wins at a 38% rate with runners beaten as the favorite in their previous start. The only knock is the possibility that Silverbella lacks a winning instinct; a desire to fight for victory, if you will. But if she brings her A-game, these concerns might prove irrelevant, because Silverbella might simply be too fast to lose.

If you single Silverbella on top, then #1 My Mane Girl (3-1) and #4 Speighty Shirl (3-1) are the obvious contenders to emphasize underneath. My Mane Girl finished just 1 1/4 lengths behind Silverbella at Churchill Downs three weeks ago, while Speighty Shirl has hit the board in five of her seven starts. A runner-up effort at Ellis Park during the summer saw Speighty Shirl post a competitive 85 Brisnet Speed rating.

If you want to add a longshot to the mix, you could do worse than consider #5 Shell Shock (12-1). The daughter of American Pharoah has been running primarily around two turns on turf, but did finish second in her lone dirt sprint start at Gulfstream Park last summer. A speedy front-runner, Shell Shock could appreciate the surface switch and cutback in distance for Friday’s test.

Here are the tickets I propose playing:

$1 Super Hi-5: 7 with 1,4,5 with 1,4,5 with 1,4,5 with 2,3,8,9 ($24)
$1 Super Hi-5: 7 with 1,4,5 with 1,4,5 with 2,3,8,9 with 1,4,5 ($24)
Total: $48

Good luck!