TRACK GRABBED A PIECE OF CONTEST WINNER’S HEART IN EARLY 1960’S

By Mike Henry —-

OLDSMAR, FL. – The first time Frank Mazur came to Tampa Bay Downs – 57 or 58 years ago, when the track was called Sunshine Park – he made money. He took numerous vacations to the area over the years to escape the Chicago winters, and developed an enduring affection for everything the Oldsmar oval had to offer.

“It felt like a home away from home. How do you explain something like that. … it was like I belonged there,” he reminisced. “Everybody was real friendly, and I always felt comfortable there.”

Mazur’s passion over the decades was duly rewarded on Dec. 24 when he won the track-sponsored “10 Days of Festivus” Online Handicapping Contest, finishing with a final bankroll amount of $113.30. His selection of Whispering Rose proved the difference when the (then)-3-year-old filly won the fourth race on Christmas Eve by a head, paying $8.60, $5.40 and $3.

Before settling on Whispering Rose, he asked two friends for their input, and both told him to choose her.

The victory enabled Mazur, an 81-year-old retiree now living in Henderson, Nev., with his wife Dana and son David, to edge contest runner-up Bob Diver of Niagara on the Lake in Ontario, Canada by $3.50.

Mazur collected $1,000 for the victory and Diver won $500. They topped a field of more than 700 handicappers who competed in the event.

“It’s a hard contest to win, and if you’re a horse player, it’s a great accomplishment,” said Mazur, who never had to use a lifeline since each of his picks finished in the money over the 10 days of the contest.

“The racing at Tampa was very formful during that period, and I think a lot of people got eliminated going for long shots. Obviously there is an element of luck involved, but for whatever reason things fell into place. There were two or three times I had to make a hard decision between horses, and I guessed right,” Mazur said.

Mazur looks at class and speed when handicapping and doesn’t pay much attention to the jockeys. “”When the horses start riding the jockeys and trainers, I’ll pay more attention to that. The only thing you want from the jockey is not to fall off,” he said.

Mazur, who has entered “eight or 10” handicapping contests at Tampa Bay Downs, said it remains his favorite simulcast signal. “I’d say 90 percent of the bets I make are on Tampa. I hold my own,” he said. “My losses would be very minor, and the entertainment value would be way ahead.”

And the memories? They are priceless.

Around the oval. The Goddess Lyssa put on quite a show in her first start as a 4-year-old, scooting to the lead at the break in the second race and romping to a 10-length victory under jockey Daniel Centeno in 1:09.33 for 6 furlongs, .66 seconds off the track record. The race was a conditional allowance/optional claiming contest for fillies and mares 4-years-old-and-upward.

Bred in Florida by Brent Fernung and Crystal Fernung, The Goddess Lyssa is owned by Team Equistaff and trained by Gerald Bennett. She improved to 4-for-6, having finished third on Dec. 12 in the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association City of Ocala Florida Sire Stakes.

Centeno rode another filly today who appears to have a big upside, 3-year-old Oyster Box. She had little problem dispatching of four others in the fifth race, an allowance/optional claiming race at a mile on the turf. Centeno found an opening at the top of the stretch and Oyster Box rolled right through, winning by 2 ½ lengths from Funwhileitlasted in a time of 1:36.75.

Oyster Box, a daughter of Tapit out of the multiple graded-stakes winning Dynaformer mare Starformer, is 2-for-2 for owner Gainesway Stable and trainer H. Graham Motion.

Thoroughbred racing continues Friday with a nine-race card beginning at 12:42 p.m. Tampa Bay Downs currently races on a Wednesday-Friday-Saturday-Sunday schedule. The track is open every day for simulcast wagering, no-limits action and tournament play in The Silks Poker Room and golf fun and instruction at The Downs Golf Practice Facility.

High Rollers Handicapping Contest is Saturday. The third annual High Rollers Handicapping Contest, which features a potential first-place prize of $20,000, will be held Saturday.

Participants may bankroll up to two entries. Players must put up a $1,000 stake per entry to compete, with $500 serving as the player’s wagering bankroll and $500 going to the prize pool. Any dollar amount remaining in a player’s bankroll at the conclusion of the contest goes directly to them, meaning all of the prize money is returned to the entrants.

Wagers will be limited to win, place and/or show, with each player required to bet $100 on five separate races on the card. Anyone wagering on less or more than five races will be disqualified. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top five finishers, with $20,000 to the winner, or 50 percent of the prize pool if there are fewer than 100 entrants; $8,000/20 percent to the second-place finisher; $6,000/15 percent to third; $4,000/10 percent to fourth; and $2,000/5 percent to fifth.

Only races at Tampa Bay Downs on Saturday will be included in the contest, and players must wager at the contest site. The first and second-place finishers will also claim a seat in either of the next two National Thoroughbred Racing Association National Handicapping Championships in Las Vegas (this year’s event is currently scheduled Aug. 27-29 at Bally’s Las Vegas Hotel & Casino).

Players can enter the High Rollers Handicapping Contest online at www.tampabaydowns.com . The entry deadline is noon on Saturday. Players should plan on meeting in the VIP Room before noon for final instructions. For additional details, call (813) 855-4401, extension 1368.