Press News

‘Small Bets With High Returns’ Says
the Winner of $83,141 with the 25-Cent
Fortune 6 from Beulah Park
March 3, 2006

Allen Strahan of Longview, WA (left) is visited by
his high school friend Ed VanSickle after winning
$83,141 in the largest amount won for a racing
ticket in the United States less than a dollar.
VanSickle, a retired city employee of Longview,
WA introduced Strahan to horse racing 15 years ago.

Grove City, Ohio  – “Wager a little, win a lot” says the man from Longview, WA who used an online AmericaTab account to construct a winning ticket based on the new Fortune 6 quarter bet, winning $83,141 at Beulah Park on February 18.

Betting Thoroughbreds would be so simple if everyone used that philosophy consistently to win. The system used by Allen Strahan that day was based more on a strategy of building a ticket that made sense and less on handicapping the horses that ran on the card that day.

“It is easier to handicap for winners than it is for second and third,” said Strahan who picked up wagering on Thoroughbreds through an old friend that had a similar interest in dog racing.

The new Fortune 6 at Beulah Park fit both of his concepts. The ticket based on a quarter bet cost him $9.00 but yielded the national record for a bet less than a dollar. He would rather play a Pick 6 over other exotic wagers, a superfecta bet would have required him to go beyond the winner and pick the second, third, and fourth place finisher.

So he sticks with Pick 6s and Pick 4s and plays with small amounts. Although before the Fortune 6 he hadn’t cashed in large Pick 6s, he remembered a Santa Anita Pick 6 for $16 where he had 5 of 6 into the last leg with four horses. One of his horses missed the money by a nose in the last race so he settled for a consolation of nearly $2,500.

But that has been his style. A small wager on a Pick 4 in a quarter horse ticket at Los Alamitos may have been his previous best. He finished with $4,500 by winning that ticket.

These small tickets may have kept him under the radar screen of the IRS until recently. In addition to the large amount won in the Fortune 6 he came in second in the inaugural finals of the Handicapping Open, sponsored by AmericaTab. By taking second he won $18,000 back in August. This online contest is in its second year.

Not bad for a person who had been betting at dog tracks on the west coast. A high school friend introduced him to Thoroughbred racing by taking him to a tournament in Reno, Nevada at the CalNeva Club 15 years ago. There he had fun for four days but learned there was a big difference between dogs and horses. He said he is still trying to figure out the horses and has a lot to learn.

So why would a person skillful in picking winners from Washington state play a smaller track near Columbus, OH? The competition, he says.

“It’s for the challenge, I like the idea of being the only winner,” he said.

The Fortune 6 pays on one unique ticket, winning 6 of 6 doesn’t guarantee the big payout. The consolation is paid to the most races won in six races, even if all six races are won by multiple winners. The consolation has paid hundreds of dollars daily, still not bad for a 25-cent bet. Each day the pool grows with no lone winners to build into such a large amount. So he used some discretionary money to play the Fortune 6.

“I didn’t expect to win or feel that I needed to win,” Strahan said. “But I’m playing for fun. And I had a whole lot of fun.”

That amount of fun will get that new set of furniture he has wanted. Strahan recently retired from Weyerhaeuser Paper so funding his retirement was another requirement for the money.

And there are other players out there like Strahan. Huge carryovers with a small amount to wager are attractive to customers who may not otherwise visit Beulah Park.

“This wager has attracted a lot of interest in the racing industry, and with visitors to the track who may have never been here before,” said Beulah Park executive vice president Mike Weiss. “This is a perfect bet for both groups. Even a novice can plop down a quarter, pick their horses, and stay for the day waiting for the eighth race to see if they won a large amount.”

Now that the carryover has grown again the track will see an increase interest in this bet. The carryover is just the start for the day, with large amounts the pool could grow to an amount significantly larger. The carryover is posted daily on the home page and notices are posted by WinTicket.com when sponsoring the opening jackpot.

ABOUT THE FORTUNE 6: This is a new wager in the United States introduced at Beulah Park on January 14, 2006. WinTicket.com, an AmericaTab affiliate, sponsored the original bet for $50,000. The quarter bet is based on a Pick 6 wager and will pay only on a unique ticket of Pick 6 winners. The 60% carryover in a major pool includes the Pick 6 wagers for that day, similar to the conventional Pick 6 wager. To pull down the ticket pool there must be one unique winner with all six winning horses. On days there are multiple Pick 6 winners the minor pool of 40% is shared equally among those who have selected all six winning horses.

ABOUT BEULAH PARK: Founded in 1923, Beulah Park holds the distinction as being Ohio’s first original racetrack. Live Thoroughbred racing is held from September to May each year, with summer events that include concerts, fairs and fireworks. Simulcast wagering from the nation's top race tracks are available 363 days a year. There are entertainment venues at the park that make it an ideal location for group events such as wedding and corporate meetings. Located just seven miles southwest of Columbus, OH, in Grove City, Beulah Park has a rich history for the horse racing enthusiast. More information is available at beulahpark.com.

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