The highest payoff in Kentucky Derby history was the $184.90 Doneraile paid for a $2 wager in 1913. Last year, Country House returned a whopping $132.40 for every $2 when he was elevated to the win after the disqualification of Maximum Security. Mine That Bird in 2009 paid $103.20, Giacomo in 2005 was worth $102.60.
Horse Racing – Courtesy of Churchill Downs/Coady Photography.
Triple Crown winner Count Fleet, in 1943, returned just $2.80 for a win, as did fellow Citation in 1948. Seattle Slew paid just $3 in 1966 and Johnstown and Spectacular Bid were worth $3.20 a piece for a $2 wager.
The highest exacta payout was the $9,814.80 in 2005 when Giacomo defeated Closing Argument. The richest trifecta was the $133,140.80 from the same year when favored Afleet Alex completed the wager when he checked in third. And, as expected, the superfecta that year hold the record as the highest at $864,253 when Don’t Get Mad checked in for fourth.
When Sunday Silence defeated Easy Goer in 1989, the pair returned a measly $15.20 exacta. The American Pharoah/Firing Line/Dortmund trifecta in 2015 was the smallest in history, returning just $202. And the 1997 superfecta with Silver Charm/Captain Bodgit/Free House/Pulpit was worth just $350.
Miriam Lee has always been a horse racing fan thanks to trips to the tracks in her home state of Maryland with her father as kid. She owns an OTTB and is an advocate for promoting the sport among her peers. Miriam studies communication arts at Hood College and will receive her master’s degree in 2021, which she plans to use for a career in screenwriting. Her all-time favorite racehorse is Man O War.
