Wednesday’s Best Bets and Quick Picks: 30-1 shot at Gulfstream

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares best bets and quick picks for Wednesday, Jan. 29 at Gulfstream Park and Turfway Park, including horses to play in Turfway’s $833 Super High 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.

Today’s TwinSpires tournaments include:

• $160 Tampa Bay Downs Feeder to 2/1 Oaklawn KDBC Qualifier
• $160 Turfway Feeder to 2/8 Sam F. Davis/Oaklawn KDBC Qualifier

Best Bets and Quick Picks

Gulfstream Park: Race 8: $17,500 Claiming (1 1/16 miles on Tapeta, 4:04 p.m. ET)

#8 Money Bouquet (30-1) is dropping in class and stretching out beyond 6 1/2 furlongs for the first time, opening the door for an improved performance. During the fall, she finished seventh and sixth in a pair of $35,000 starter optional claimers sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs over the Gulfstream Tapeta.

As a daughter of Mr. Money out of a mare by Afleet Alex, Money Bouquet has the pedigree to handle two turns. Under hot jockey Jesus Rios (a 20% winner at Gulfstream Park this meet), Money Bouquet is worthy of a win bet.

Selections

• #8 Money Bouquet (30-1)
• #5 Pocket Pair (3-1)
• #1 Bugged Out (5-2)

Wagers

• $15 to win on #8 Money Bouquet

Turfway Park: Race 1: $7,500 Maiden Claiming (six furlongs on Tapeta, 5:55 p.m. ET)

#9 Image of Me (5-2) has only run once, finishing fourth in a deep maiden special weight at Keeneland last April. First-place finisher The Queens M G later won the Schuylerville S. and Adirondack (G3), while runner-up West Memorial won the Kentucky Juvenile S. in her next start.

Image of Me has put together an encouraging work tab in preparation for her return, highlighted by a near-bullet half-mile from the Turfway starting gate in :47. Descending into a $7,500 maiden claimer should make Image of Me tough to beat for trainer Wesley Ward, a 25% winner with horses returning from layoffs of 90 days or more.

A large win bet is the way we’ll play.

Selections

• #9 Image of Me (5-2)
• #1 Baytown Shinjuku (5-1)
• #2 Ryzen (6-1)

Wagers

• $40 to win on #9 Image of Me

Turfway Park: Race 4: $15,000 Maiden Claiming (one mile on Tapeta, 7:25 p.m. ET)

#4 Sweet Marie (10-1) hasn’t shown much in three starts against tougher competition on dirt, finishing seventh in a maiden special weight and then fifth and ninth in $35,000 maiden claimers.

But Sweet Marie has a tendency to break slowly, so switching to Turfway’s Tapeta track (which is friendly toward closers) and dropping in class might be just what she needs to challenge at double-digit odds. We’ll try a small win bet on this Kenny McPeek trainee.

Selections

• #4 Sweet Marie (10-1)
• #9 Crowned With Grace (12-1)
• #2 Tuenda (7-2)

Wagers

• $10 to win on #4 Sweet Marie

Carryover Watch

Turfway Park: Race 10: $833 Super High 5 carryover (10:25 p.m. ET)

The racing week at Turfway Park kicks off on Wednesday with a modest, but nevertheless value-adding $833 carryover up for grabs in the $1 Super High 5.

As usual, the Super High 5 is available to bet on the last race of the day. On Wednesday, that’s Race 10, a $7,500 claimer for older horses who have never won two races. An overflow field of 13 horses (including one also-eligible entrant) has entered the one-mile Tapeta contest.

Here are four horses you’ll definitely want to include on your Super High 5 tickets:

#3 Gold Franc (9-2): Gold Franc has lots of early speed, which he put to good use when finishing a pacesetting second in a one-mile $5,000 claimer for non-winners of two races at Turfway last time out. That effort yielded a 77 Brisnet Speed rating close to the par winning number (78) for Wednesday’s conditions, stamping Gold Franc as a contender even while stepping up to the $7,500 level.

#4 Gucci Man (8-1): Gucci Man won a $15,000 maiden claimer over this track and distance one year ago and recently returned to Turfway to finish fifth in a 1 1/16-mile $7,500 claimer for non-winners of three races, earning a 76 Brisnet Speed rating. Dropping down to the non-winners-of-two level is a subtle but meaningful shift that should put Gucci Man in contention for an even stronger finish.

#7 Egyptian King (3-1): Egyptian King has cracked the trifecta in half of his six starts at Turfway, including when second last time out in a one-mile $5,000 claimer for non-winners of two races. Egyptian King was beaten only three-quarters of a length while earning a 78 Brisnet Speed rating, so he’s fast enough to vie for victory even while climbing the class ladder. It helps that he has hot trainer Mike Maker in his corner.

#8 Haskelled (6-1): Haskelled finished in the top four in all six of his starts at Turfway Park during the 2023-24 racing season. And last summer, he cracked the trifecta in $15,000 and $16,000 claimers on turf at Ellis Park and Belterra Park. Dropping into a $7,500 claimer while returning to Turfway should allow Haskelled to challenge for victory, especially since trainer Thomas Van Berg wins at a 36% rate with horses switching from turf to synthetic.

Good luck!