Santa Anita’s 50-cent Late Pick 4 paid more than $1,900 last Friday after four favorites – three at less than even money – failed to win. History will repeat itself in one key area on the Friday, Jan. 3 card: the average field size is nine, perhaps leading to another lucrative payout.
SA 6th race (5:34 p.m. EST) -- NOLDE beat a very weak field of $4,000 claiming horses to get eligible for the starter allowance condition of this one-mile race. But the lightly-raced 9-year-old looked good doing it with a 6-wide sweep and regained the winning confidence that led to his eighth win in the last 16 starts. UPSTART YANKEE is a longshot worth using. He recaptured his good form two back, running down Winter Falcon (6-31, $121k) in a $12,500 claimer. He ‘improved …. as the pace quickened’ on the final turn of a $20,000 claimer last out and finished third. TESORO, first or second in 15 of 34 starts, could take some catching on the class plunge. He offers little value with a 1-for-10 record on conventional dirt, but he’s hard to leave off the Pick 4 ticket.
SA 7th race (6:07 p.m. EST) -- MIZ CLUBCALI found herself in an unfamiliar lead role in a 6F turf sprint two back, giving way to winning favorite Nene Diamond (5/2-1-1, $96k) and a trio of deep closers. She can show speed again on the stretch out to one mile, but she is versatile enough to sit an ideal stalking trip in this spot. SHEZMISBEHAVING rallied for two wins, a second and a third in her last six starts, all at today’s distance. She won an allowance race off a longer rest than this earlier this year.
SA 8th race (6:40 p.m. EST) -- SLIDER (pictured) dueled and held third behind multiple Grade 1 winner Muth in his only long sprint attempt in the Grade 2 San Vicente to begin his 4-year-old season. But he will need his A-game against six rivals in this $80,000 allowance/optional claimer who are a combined 103/25-20-15 with average earnings of $257,000. Hit the ‘ALL’ button in Leg C.
SA 9th race (7:13 p.m. EST) -- Trainer Mark Glatt is on an 8-for-19 run with turf runners dropping from Maiden Special Weight company. EARNED NOT GIVEN fits the profile after he broke slowly, steadied on the backstretch and raced 4-wide on the turn in a debut route that produced stakes-placed Sabertooth. He gets Lasix for his first start as a gelding. Glatt’s uncoupled entrant, UNRIVALED HERO, ran in two MSW turf routes that yielded 16/3-3-1 follow-up performances. He finished fourth behind Iron Man Cal, who won a Grade 3 stakes and got beat a neck in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. BURNING RUBBER came up empty in a well-bet debut on the main track, but he fired a fastest-of-55 workout in :47-1/5 last Saturday for a barn in the midst of an 8-38 turf run with a $4.21 return on investment.
Suggested 50-Cent Ticket
SA 6th Race: 1, 3, 5
SA 7th Race: 5, 8
SA 8th Race: ALL
SA 9th Race: 2, 3, 4
Cost: $63
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