Ruler On Ice and Shackleford meet in Donn Handicap

Horseracing Betting Lines

02/08/2012 - Hallandale Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Triple Crown race winners Ruler On Ice and Shackleford head a field of 11 older thoroughbreds for Saturday's 1 1/8- mile Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park. The two four-year-olds will each be making their 2012 debuts.

Drawing post three is the 2011 Belmont Stakes winner Ruler On Ice. The gelding, trained by Kelly Breen, will be ridden by Rosie Napravnik, one of Breen's regular jockeys.

"She's been riding up a storm at Fair Grounds," said Breen about Napravnik. "With Garrett Gomez out (with an injury), it's an opportunity to go with Rosie."

Owned by Lori and George Hall, the gelding proved to be one of the top three- year-olds last year. Along with his Belmont Stakes win, he was third in the Breeders' Cup Classic after being bumped at the start.

"At times he has a little bit of trouble with the pace. He's just not that quick out of the gate," said Breen.

Ruler On Ice was third in the Sunland Derby, second in the Federico Tesio, third in the Haskell, fourth in the Travers and runner-up in the Pennsylvania Derby. He wrapped up his 2011 season with an unfortunate fifth in the Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs.

Ruler On Ice has banked more than $1.6 million for the Halls with three wins in 12 career starts.

Shackleford, last year's Preakness Stakes champ, will start from post nine with regular rider Jesus Castanon in the saddle. Trained by Dale Romans, the chestnut colt is owned by Michael Lauffer and W. D. Cubbedge.

In addition to the Preakness win, Shackleford posted a second in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile behind Caleb's Posse at Churchill Downs. Earlier at Churchill he was fourth in the Kentucky Derby and then fifth in the Belmont Stakes.

"He hasn't missed a beat. He hasn't missed a beat in his life," Romans said.

In 12 career starts the colt has three wins and is within $15,000 of the $2 million mark in lifetime earnings.

Here is the complete field for the Donn in post position order: Where's Sterling, Jose Lezcano; Mission Impazible, Javier Castellano; Ruler On Ice, Rosie Napravnik; Redeemed, Edgar Prado; Soaring Empire, Julien Leparoux; Al Khali, Alan Garcia; Flat Out, Alex Solis; Trickmeister, Ramon Dominguez; Shackleford, Jesus Castanon; Hymn Book, John Velazquez and Sangaree, Rajiv Maragh.

Post-time for the Donn Handicap is scheduled for 4:45 p.m. (et).

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.