Friday’s Best Bets and Quick Picks: Turfway’s $163,847 Pick 5 carryover

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares best bets and quick picks for Friday, Dec. 5 at Fair Grounds, Turfway Park, and Los Alamitos, including a horse to single in Turfway’s $163,847 Pick 5 carryover.

Today’s special offers from TwinSpires include:

• New Players $200 Sign-Up Bonus: Open your TwinSpires.com account using the offer code BET200 to start earning a $200 bonus.
• Woodbine 15% Profit Boost: Receive a 15% boost (up to $25 for the day) on your winning win, exacta, trifecta, and superfecta wagers at Woodbine Thoroughbred each racing day in December.
• Los Alamitos 15% Odds Boost: Receive a 15% bonus (up to $25 for the day) on winning single-horse win bets at Los Alamitos Thoroughbred each racing day in December.

Today’s TwinSpires tournaments include:

• $200 Aqueduct Bonus Feeder Friday to 12/6 Remsen KDBC Qualifier
• $70 Fair Grounds Challenge
• $100 Fair Grounds Feeder to 12/20 Gun Runner KDBC Qualifier
• $70 Turfway Park Challenge
• $300 Turfway Park Feeder to 12/13 Turfway Synthetic Betting Championship

Best Bets and Quick Picks

Fair Grounds: Race 3: $30,000 Maiden Claiming (one mile on turf, 2:45 p.m. ET)

#4 Clearly Authentic (5-1) is dropping in class after finishing 11th in a 1 1/8-mile maiden special weight on turf at Keeneland. She should find the competition much easier in a $30,000 maiden claimer at Fair Grounds, and take note, she’s racing on Lasix for the first time, which is a 31% winning move for trainer Coty Rosin.

At 5-1, Clearly Authentic is worthy of a win bet.

Selections

• #4 Clearly Authentic (5-1)
• #9 Mo Town Renee (9-2)
• #8 Truly an Honor (5-1)

Wagers

• $30 to win on #4 Clearly Authentic

Turfway Park: Race 2: $8,000 Claiming (1 1/16 miles on Tapeta, 6:25 p.m. ET)

#3 I Made It (8-1) has run well in a series of route races at Horseshoe Indianapolis this year. In one of her most notable performances, she finished second by three-quarters of a length in a $12,500 claimer, earning a 74 Brisnet Speed rating only two points lower than the par winning number (76) for Friday’s conditions.

Horseshoe Indianapolis shippers often outrun expectations at Turfway Park, so at 8-1 while dropping in class, I Made It is an intriguing win play.

Selections

• #3 I Made It (8-1)
• #12 Peacock Road (5-2)
• #6 Cora’s Legacy (7-2)

Wagers

• $20 to win on #3 I Made It

Los Alamitos: Race 7: $40,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (6 1/2 furlongs on dirt, 6:30 p.m. ET)

#5 Voldemort (9-5) was a sharp maiden winner during the winter at Santa Anita. He set a fast pace in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight before hanging on to defeat next-out Santa Anita Derby (G1) third-place finisher Westwood by 1 1/4 lengths.

Considering the intense pace Voldemort set in his maiden win, cutting back to 6 1/2 furlongs shouldn’t be an issue. Let’s bet him over the multiple graded stakes-placed #4 For All Mankind (3-1) in a cold exacta.

Selections

• #5 Voldemort (9-5)
• #4 For All Mankind (3-1)
• #8 Mining District (4-1)

Wagers

• $25 Exacta: 5 with 4

Carryover Watch

Turfway Park: Race 6: $163,847 Pick 5 carryover (8:25 p.m. ET)

If there’s a sure bet on Friday at Turfway Park, it’s that a ton of new money will pursue the 50-cent Late Pick 5, which boasts a massive non-jackpot $163,847 carryover.

This is not a Pick 5 for the faint of heart. Huge, competitive fields fill the sequence. Every race has drawn 14 entries, including two also-eligible entrants in each one. Before scratches, there are 537,825 possible Pick 5 outcomes (248,842 if you exclude the also-eligibles from the count). Those are massive numbers for a Pick 5 sequence.

If you want to win a share of the carryover on a modest budget, you’ll likely need a trustworthy single to build tickets around. Our best recommendation is #11 G T Five Hundred (2-1) in Race 7, an allowance taking place over 6 1/2 furlongs on Tapeta.

G T Five Hundred looks like an excellent fit for this class level. He’s competed with aplomb against allowance competition on both dirt and turf this year, recording a trio of top-three finishers at Churchill Downs and Kentucky Downs. In a 6 1/2-furlong allowance over the Kentucky Downs turf course, he was beaten only a head in a 12-horse field.

Just as importantly, G T Five Hundred has run well on Tapeta in the past. He boasts a 2-for-3 record at Turfway Park. In January 2024, he closed from just off the pace to win a six-furlong $30,000 maiden claimer by 1 1/2 lengths. Then in December 2024, he dueled for the lead in a 6 1/2-furlong $40,000 claimer before powering away to dominate by 8 1/2 lengths, earning a flashy 96 Brisnet Speed rating.

Returning to Turfway Park should set the stage for G T Five Hundred to deliver a big effort. None of his Race 7 rivals have recently posted a Brisnet Speed rating higher than 91, so assuming G T Five Hundred brings his A-game (which seems likely), he’s a logical choice to single in the Pick 5.

Good luck!