Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale made a $7,000 on Smile Happy, making the colt sired by his stallion Runhappy the shortest-priced individual choice at 8-1 in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
Click here for list of 2022 Kentucky Derby contenders.
McIngvale confirmed his Saturday wager in a text Sunday evening to Horse Racing Nation. Nearly two months ago he bet $10,000 on Smile Happy in Pool 1 of the KDFW.
Smile Happy, owned by Michael J. Mackin’s Lucky Seven Stable and trained by Kenny McPeek, was the 3 1/4-length winner of the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) at Churchill Downs in November.
With the Derby still 15 weeks away, the pari-mutuel field of “all other 3-year-olds” closed as the 9-5 favorite. The field for the first pool of the new year has closed as the bettors’ choice every year since the future wager was inaugurated in 1999.
Other horses who attracted interest from bettors included McPeek’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf runner-up Tiz the Bomb (10-1), Champagne (G1) winner Jack Christopher (14-1), first-level allowance winner Chasing Time (17-1) and debut maiden winner Emmanuel (17-1).
Horses in order of the public’s betting choice included:
| KDFW Pool 2 | Trainer | ML | Fri | Sat | Sun | $2 will pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24. All other 3-year-olds | 7-5 | 1-1 | 2-1 | 9-5 | $5.80 | |
| 18. Smile Happy | Kenny McPeek | 8-1 | 9-1 | 6-1 | 8-1 | $18.00 |
| 19. Tiz the Bomb | Kenny McPeek | 20-1 | 20-1 | 7-1 | 10-1 | $22.80 |
| 10. Jack Christopher | Chad Brown | 10-1 | 12-1 | 13-1 | 14-1 | $30.00 |
| 1. Chasing Time | Steve Asmussen | 20-1 | 11-1 | 13-1 | 17-1 | $36.40 |
| 6. Emmanuel | Todd Pletcher | 50-1 | 33-1 | 19-1 | 17-1 | $37.60 |
| 15. Rattle N Roll | Kenny McPeek | 30-1 | 34-1 | 31-1 | 20-1 | $42.60 |
| 17. Slow Down Andy | Doug O'Neill | 15-1 | 24-1 | 25-1 | 20-1 | $43.00 |
| 13. Mo Donegal | Todd Pletcher | 12-1 | 29-1 | 21-1 | 23-1 | $48.20 |
| 7. Epicenter | Steve Asmussen | 15-1 | 34-1 | 25-1 | 24-1 | $51.20 |
| 14. Pappacap | Mark Casse | 20-1 | 18-1 | 20-1 | 24-1 | $51.20 |
| 23. Zandon | Chad Brown | 12-1 | 37-1 | 39-1 | 25-1 | $52.00 |
| 8. Giant Game | Dale Romans | 30-1 | 27-1 | 29-1 | 28-1 | $59.00 |
| 5. Dash Attack | Kenny McPeek | 20-1 | 31-1 | 34-1 | 34-1 | $70.80 |
| 9. High Oak | Bill Mott | 50-1 | 51-1 | 36-1 | 38-1 | $78.80 |
| 4. Courvoisier | Kelly Breen | 30-1 | 30-1 | 35-1 | 39-1 | $81.60 |
| 11. Major General | Todd Pletcher | 50-1 | 58-1 | 42-1 | 41-1 | $84.40 |
| 3. Commandperformance | Todd Pletcher | 50-1 | 45-1 | 44-1 | 41-1 | $85.00 |
| 16. Simplification | Antonio Sano | 30-1 | 75-1 | 64-1 | 43-1 | $89.60 |
| 21. Varatti | Todd Pletcher | 50-1 | 52-1 | 50-1 | 47-1 | $97.40 |
| 2. Classic Causeway | Brian Lynch | 30-1 | 78-1 | 57-1 | 51-1 | $105.60 |
| 20. Trafalgar | Al Stall Jr. | 50-1 | 99-1 | 62-1 | 77-1 | $156.60 |
| 12. Make It Big | Saffie Joseph Jr. | 50-1 | 99-1 | 88-1 | 85-1 | $172.80 |
| 22. White Abarrio | Saffie Joseph Jr. | 50-1 | 99-1 | 99-1 | 171-1 | $344.20 |
The total handle for the Friday-Sunday KDFW pool, the second of five scheduled wagering pools in advance of the May 7 running of the Derby, was $361,209, including $273,712 in the win pool and $87,497 in the exactas, up 12.2 percent from last year’s $322,035, including $240,768 in the win pool and $81,267 in the exacta.
The other Future Wager dates are set Feb. 11-13 (Pool 3), March 11-13 (Pool 4) and March 31-April 2 (Pool 5). The lone Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will coincide with Pool 4.
