Dates Set For 2005 Kentucky Derby, Oaks Future Wagers

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Dec. 16, 2004) - Churchill Downs has announced the dates for the three pools of the 2005 Kentucky Derby Future Wager ("KDFW") and Kentucky Oaks Future Wager ("KOFW").

Once again this year, Churchill Downs will offer its popular Kentucky Derby and Oaks Future Wagers.  The Derby and Oaks Future Wagers will run concurrently in three Thursday through Sunday pools. The dates for the 2005 pools are:
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<li>POOL 1 - Feb. 10-13
<li>POOL 2 - March 10-13
<li>POOL 3 - April 7-10
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The Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which allows racing fans to bet on candidates for the Kentucky Derby at odds that may be more attractive than those they would receive on Derby Day, is entering its seventh year. The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager is entering its third year and will be conducted in a three-pool format for the second consecutive year. The Oaks wager was offered in a single pool in its first year in 2003.
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The winning payout for each pool is based on the odds at the close of betting of that specific pool. Payouts are made when each race is declared "official."
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"The Kentucky Derby Future Wager has been a resounding success since its first year and is now a part of Kentucky Derby tradition for fans across North America," said Steve Sexton, president of Churchill Downs. "The Oaks Future Wager displayed solid growth in total wagering last year and we hope that interest in that wager, like the stature and tradition of the Oaks itself, will continue to grow. Our goals for these wagers were to give fans an exciting new product and to help build early interest in each of these great American races and we continue to be very pleased with our results."
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Both the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wager are $2 minimum wagers and each wager is a win bet only.
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The Kentucky Derby Future Wager includes 24 wagering interests in each pool, which include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field that contains all 3-year-old Thoroughbreds other than the 23 horses listed as individual betting interests - regardless of whether those horses are nominated to the Kentucky Derby and the Visa Triple Crown.
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There are also 24 wagering interests in each pool of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. The KOFW pools also include a mutuel field that contains all 3-year-old fillies other than the 23 fillies listed among the pool's individual wagering interests, regardless of whether those horses have been nominated to the Kentucky Oaks.
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Wagering in each of the KDFW and KOFW pools will open at noon (all times Eastern) on Thursday of their respective weeks and close on Sunday. The closing times for the pools will be staggered, with the Kentucky Derby Future Wager set to close on Sunday at 6 p.m. and each Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pool will close on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.
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The 131st Kentucky Derby is scheduled for Saturday, May 7 while the Kentucky Oaks will also be renewed for the 131st time on Friday, May 6.