Selecting one winner earns punters share in $86,000 jackpot

Press, 14 August 1989, Page 31

Selecting one winner earns punters share in $86,000 jackpot

PA Wellington Punters only needed to select one winner to share in the $86,000 jackpot at last Thursday’s Matamata races. The first leg of the fiverace jackpot was won by an outsider, Lotus Lad, paying $88.20 to win. There were 61 50-cent units on Lotus Lad in the jackpot but none were entrusted on the second leg winner, Endearment, which scored at odds of 16-1. . As a result, the dividend for picking the first leg winner was $2831.05 for $l. Gordon Brain, the Matamata Racing Club’s secretary, said two punters held a number of the successful 50 cent units and it is believed an

Aucklander had 34 of them. That would have resulted in a $41,127.85 return. It was no surprise that Lotus Lad was almost totally disregarded by jackpot punters. “He was a maiden in a class two race,” Mr Brain said. “He had been running last in his races and when he had gone to a qualifying trial he had run last in that too.” A brave punter could have scooped the whole pool by taking the field in the first two legs with one horse each in the last three legs. The cost would have been $9l in 50-cent units. The jackpot pool totalled $86,347.02.

Mr Brain said it was a little surprising that someone didn’t do that as it has been a common practice in the past when a jackpot is terminating — as was Thursday’s.

The current limit for an on-course jackpot is $150,000 before it must terminate on the next occasion.

Thursday’s jackpot was terminating because it started about three years ago when the limit was $50,000.

Mr Brain estimated the jackpot had been held over 26 Matamata race meetings before reaching Thursday’s starting pool of $53,495. “This particular jackpot probably started in about 1986 — I can’t really remember — and because the limit was $50,000 then that’s how we had to keep it.”