Fat Frankie Cashes In on 1st, 2nd, 3rd Favorites

“Fat Frankie” wears glasses with thick lenses, is almost bald and is truly huge. He is a mound of sagging flesh, a contradiction to all health rules, and waddles about slowly from his reserved seat in the Santa Anita Race Track grandstand to talk to friends, go to the betting windows and visit the fast-food stands. Amazingly, after a few years of dieting and exercise, instead of losing weight, he is bigger than ever.

The most interesting thing about Fat Frankie is that his race track cronies call him “Fat Frankie” to his face. It is like a title, like “Sir,” and he takes it as such, never showing any anger. His friends believe that if God saw fit to make him fat, then he must have other qualities that compensate for such a grotesque appearance. And betting on horses is one of them.

Fat Frankie doesn’t have to work and doesn’t even have to win. He and his brother have inherited a trucking company. His brother runs the company and pays him a weekly salary just to stay away and not interfere with its operation. So Fat Frankie goes to the track every day and bets on the horses.

Most of the time, Fat Frankie likes to play money management systems. His best system, he tells his buddies, is the one he himself devised. What Fat Frankie does is bet three horses to win every race. He plays $6 on the favorite, $4 on the second choice and $2 on the third choice. This means that Fat Frankie bets $12 every race, and if he doesn’t cash a ticket, the day’s nine races will cost him $108.

There is absolutely no handicapping involved in the way Fat Frankie wagers. He leaves the betting strictly to the public and chooses his horses just before each race. Whatever nags come up as the lowest odds, as they appear one, two and three on the totalizator board, Fat Frankie bets on them.

For example, in the second race on opening day of the 1989-90 Santa Anita season, the field was as follows:

1. Sterling Pole, $47.60

2. Tozz, 26.50

3. J. L.’s Tribute, 3.20

4. Lam the Iceman, 2.60

5. Don Miguel, 56.70

6. Blaze O’Brien, 3.10

7. For My Friends, 7.40

8. Starlite Special, 4.80

9. Baronet, 14.40

The favorite was Lam the Iceman, Blaze O’Brien was second and J. L.’s Tribute was the third choice.

Fat Frankie bet $6 to win on Lam the Iceman, $4 to win on Blaze O’Brien and $2 to win on J. L.’s Tribute.

Lam the Iceman broke from the No. 4 post position in the six-furlong race for 2-year-old maidens and took the lead entering the stretch. She romped home a winner by two lengths and paid $7.20. Fat Frankie collected $21.60. After deducting the $12 he bet, he ended up with a $9.60 profit on the race.

One of the best days for the system was Jan. 12. In the first race, Tell a Thief, the favorite, won easily by 1 1/4 lengths, paying $3.60 for every $2 bet. Although returns for the race came to $10.80, system players lost $1.20.

Oak Portal, second choice in the betting, made a bold move in the stretch to win the six-furlong second race by a length and returned $22.80 for the $4 bet. Profit on the race amounted to $10.80.

Horsche, the second choice, running a mile for 3-year-old fillies, won the third race by a head and returned $14 for $4 and a $2 profit. Winning Port, the favorite, returned $19.80 for the $6 bet for a profit of $7.80 in the fourth, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds. In the fifth, the second favorite, Dime Time, won the mile race, paying $20.40 for the $4 bet. Profit was $8.40.

Forsaken Toy, a second choice, hit the stretch two lengths in front in a six furlong sprint and easily won the sixth race by three lengths. It paid $20.80 for the $4 bet, for a $8.80 profit. In the seventh, another second choice, Fluzie Forbes, romped home a winner by a length and paid $15.60 for $4. Profit on the race was $3.60.

The eighth race, Criminal Type was the third choice. It broke from the No. 7 post position and ran fourth behind the leaders until the stretch, where it made its move. By the finish, Criminal Type was in front by 1 1/4 lengths and won easily, paying a low $4.80 for $2. Loss on the race was $7.80. In the ninth, no horse won. Fat Frankie lost $12.

For the day, Fat Frankie bet $108. He cashed in $129 worth of tickets and ended up the day with a profit of $21.

Another good day for the system was Jan. 18. Midday Melody, one of two favorites, won the first race, returning $22.80 for $6. In the second, Legal Tender, the third choice, returned $10.20 for $2, and in the third, Noble Dr., the second choice, won and paid $16.80 for $4.

Drone’s Queen, the second choice, won the fourth, paying $25.20 for $4 and Princess of Ice, a second choice, won and paid $21.60 for $4 in the fifth. Kinetic Kid, the second choice, won and paid $14.40 for $4 in the sixth and Golden Soldier, a third choice, paid $10.80 for $2 in winning the seventh.

In the eighth race, Tokatee, the second choice, returned $17.20 for $4. All three choices ran out in the ninth.

Fat Frankie won $31 for the day after betting a total $108 for all nine races and getting back $139 in winnings.

Of course, Fat Frankie will admit that there are other money management systems, some worse, some better than his.

However, what Fat Frankie likes about his $6-$4-$2 system is that since the first, second and third choices win about 60% of the races, he gets a lot of action for his money and cashes in lots of tickets. Not everyone can say that.

He also likes to theorize about his system. “Picking winners has to do with numbers and percentages,” he will tell anyone who will listen. “If you pick the right numbers, you win; if you don’t, you lose.”

Most bettors, however, like to point out that it is not that simple. Having confidence is a good thing, but no matter how you figure the percentages and tackle the numbers, you’re still taking a chance. Despite what some handicappers believe, horse racing isn’t known for its sure things.