The Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which was launched in 1999, will be offered for the 15th consecutive year. The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is entering its 11th year and for the fifth consecutive year as a single-pool wager. The future bet for the Oaks was introduced in 2003.

The Kentucky Derby Future Wager is coming off one of its most successful years as a combined $1,470,019 was wagered in its three 2012 pools. Kentucky Oaks fans wagered $92,476 during the three days of 2012 Kentucky Oaks Future betting, which was the third-highest wagering total during the five years that the Oaks wager was conducted in a three-day format.

“We were very encouraged by the strength of our Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools in 2012, and our 2013 Kentucky Derby and Oaks Future bet schedules were formulated along those same lines,” said Churchill Downs President Kevin Flanery. “We think and hope that there will be continued growth in interest in both races as racing fans of all types and skill levels follow the new point systems for the ‘Road to the Kentucky Derby’ and ‘Road to the Kentucky Oaks’ that will for the first time determine which horses will compete in those races. We believe that the curiosity about the new Derby and Oaks eligibility systems could shine a brighter-than-usual spotlight on the preps leading up to both races and both Future Wagers could benefit from growing fan interest and expanded media coverage.”

Each pool of the Derby and Oaks wagers feature 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, known by many fans as the “All Others” bet. The KDFW mutuel field, listed as #24 on the roster of each pool’s respective betting interests, features all 3-year-olds other than the 23 individual Thoroughbreds in the pool. The “All Others” bet in the Oaks pool, also listed as #24, features all 3-year-old fillies other than the 23 individual horses on that pool’s betting roster.

The victory by Reddam Racing LLC’s I’ll Have Another in the 2012 Kentucky Derby in KDFW $2 win payouts of $60.20 in Pool 1, $46.20 in Pool 2 and $45.60 in the third and final pool. A $2 win wager on Kentucky Derby Day on I’ll Have Another returned $32.60.

Exacta payouts on the I’ll Have Another-Bodemeister 1-2 finish returned $306.60 on Derby Day, while the KDFW exacta returned $257.80 on Pool 1 (a 13-24 exacta in which Bodemeister was a member of the “All Others” mutuel field), $1,661 in Pool 2 (12-3) and $1,351.40 in Pool 3 (10-2).

Brereton C. Jones’ homebred Believe You Can returned $29.60 for a $2 win bet on the 2012 Kentucky Oaks and the exacta with runner-up Broadway’s Alibi (9-6) paid $173. Believe You Can’s mutuel payout in the lone 2012 Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pool was $74.80 and the 4-24 exacta combination with runner-up Broadway’s Alibi (a member of the KOFW mutuel field) returned $378.40.  (A CDI Press release)

Many of my Kentucky Derby Tours participants did advanced wagering and were very successful in 2012.