2011 Travers Stakes: Morning Line Odds

Written by Caitlin Patton
Wednesday, 24 August 2011 15:51

The draw for post positions is complete and now morning line odds have been released for the 2011 Travers Stakes.

We’ve been covering the 2011 Travers Stakes throughout the week and are now ready to present everyone with the morning line odds that were just released at Saratoga Race Course.  There were a few surprises on the Travers Stakes odds that were just set but we’ll take a look at a few of the horses and try to explain why Saratoga decided on the numbers that they chose.

2011 Travers Stakes Morning Line Odds & Post Positions:

1 – Bowman’s Causeway, 12-1

2 – Rattlesnake Bridge, 8-1

3 – Moonshine Mullen, 20-1

4 – Ruler On Ice, 6-1

5 – Malibu Glow, 20-1

6 – Raison d’Etat, 10-1

7 – Coil, 3-1

8 – J W Blue, 20-1

9 – Stay Thirsty, 5-2

10 – Shackleford, 9-2

2011 Travers Stakes Morning Line Odds – Thoughts:

The first thing that jumps out is that Stay Thirsty is the Travers Stakes favorite at 5-2.  Although the son of 2006 Travers Stakes winner Bernadini has always had loads of potential, it wasn’t until recently when the horse started to actually make good on his billing.  Stay Thirsty finished a close 2nd in the Belmont Stakes before winning the Jim Dandy last time out against fellow Travers Stakes contender Moonshine Mullen.  Although I still believe Coil (3-1 Travers odds) will go off as the favorite at post time, Stay Thirsty is helped quite a bit by having Javier Castellano on mount.  Castellano has won this race in 2 of the last 5 years and seems to be the equivalent to Calvin Borel in the Kentucky Derby.

Proving that post positions are extremely important in horse racing, Preakness Stakes winner Shackleford has been listed at 9-2 because of his outside spot in the starting gate.  The pace setter will have to expel energy to cross over 9 horses to get the top spot at the rail and it will be an uphill battle.  Shackleford could have easily been the Travers Stakes favorite if he drew an inside spot in the gate, but unfortunately he was quite unlucky.

Rattlesnake Bridge has morning line odds of 8-1 for the Travers Stakes and I’m thinking he’ll be the “wise guy” horse in this race.  He’s never gone the 1 ¼ mile distance of the Travers Stakes before but he is coming off a win in the Long Branch.  I certainly have questions about the distance and the pedigree, but ultimately he drew a nice spot in the post positions draw and has shown in the past that he can compete with just about anyone when he is “on”.

Check back later in the week for our horse racing picks on the 2011 Travers Stakes.  We’ll choose the winner and a trifecta box that are worth putting money on and we hope you’ll join us.  Also, make sure to check out the racebook comparison tool to sign-up for an account before the August 27th Travers Stakes.  There are some great bonus offers right now and betting at the track is akin to throwing money away when you could multiply the amount you wager for free just by going online.