Evening star., 1938-05-17
FIGURES ADMIRAL
|SA C|NCK TO WIN
Coast Would Make Howard
Horse Favorite if Race
Were Run There.
By JOHN LARDNER.

NEW YORK, May l7.-Though
those of you who have watched War
Admiral hurl his dapper brown hide
around a running track know that he
is more than a match for the likes
of Seabiscuit. it turns out that there
are dissenters and free-thinkers
enough in this iconoclastic republic to
make an even betting thing Of their
big match race two weeks from now.
In fact" says John T. Doyle, the
professional form student, If they
were running the race in California,
Seabiscuit would be to favorlte.
They know the Biscuit out there, and
they don't know the Admiral.
Here in the East, it's the other way
around. They haven't seen much OF
that Biscuit horse, but they know the
Admiral can run all day and run
fast. The public makes the price,
and so far the public is giving War
Admiral a shade. but its liable to be
even-up and whistle your own on
the 30th of May
Treat In Store for Biscuit.
Mr.. Doyle has spoken. Your cor
respondent is one of the narrow
minded group which has seen War
Admiral run too often to concede
Seabiscuit chance for anything bet
ter than a seat in Congress this year.
I've never seen the Biscuit. For that
matter. the Biscuit never has seen me.
There's a treat in store for both OF US
On the coast, they think so highly
of Hard Tack's favorite son that those
of them who bet-and there are said
to be three people, somewhere iii the
neighborhood of Sacramento, who
don't-are parlaying the Howard
horse with homicidal Henry Arm
strong in an all-coast special for the
month of May.
If you have chance to get on that
parlay, grab it. Homicidal Henry Will
be mortified by Barney Ross on May 26,
and Seabiscult will run courteous
second on the 30th. War Admiral
promises that, and Ross guarantees 1t.
They are a couple of bashful athletes.
There is one thing, though, that can
change the mind of the warmest War
Admiral rooter. The betting odds can
be too stiff. If John T. Doyle is wrong
and the Admiral goes to the post a
powerful favorite at 3 to 5, odds-on,
a lot of voters, reluctant to gamble so
much for so little, will switch.
In a two-horse race, or tWo-man
fight, or a two-hen egg-laying con-
test, the underdog always has
chance, and it's usually better than
three chances in eight. or one in three.
That doesn't go for Joe Louis against
Phainting Phil Scot. or Man O War
against a selling platter, but it goes
where a pair of horses with fine rec
ords are concerned.
The Discovery Granville Race.
I remember the last good horse
race we had. up at Saratoga, between
discovery and Granville. For week,
and right up to post time, Discovery
was favored. The books offered to
5 against him and to against Gran
vile, the 3-year-old champion.
And I agreed with the books. This
was a great comfort to the bookies or
would have been, guess, if they'd
known it. In the paddock, Discovery
looked great. He wore a SNUG smirk
on his chiseled pan. 1t turned out
later that he was thinking of his
dinner. But he seemed to be thinking
Of the race.
Your correspondent strolled careless
lv into the betting shed, prepared to
plunge vast roll of American money,
which totaled well up into one figure,
on the big Vanderbilt horse. The book
makers noted my approach with ILL
disguised uneasiness.
Its Bet-a-Million Lardner," NUT
tered Timothy Mara to his sheet
writer He looks set for killing"
Its Back-to-Back Lardner." con-
fided Phil Blong to his cashier as he
mopped the perspiration from his
brow. Pretend you don't see him.
We can't handle all of his play"
Crosses up Bookie.
Your correspondent paused in front
of Mr.. Mara's slate and Mr.. Mara
hastily changed the to S on Dis
covery to to 2. If he'd known it.
that was the worst mistake he ever
made 1t galvanized your correspond
ent's brain into action. It fathered
q startling hunch.
I'll take that to on Granville"
said your correspondent. watching
Mara's every move and fixing his eye
with cold stare IN shoot the works
on the underdog."
You could have heard a pin drop
in the shed. That was because most
Of the bookmakers had moved out
on the lawn to watch the race and
the cashiers and sheetwriters had
gone to sleep. The bet was made.
Granville won in common gallop.
1 mention this incident, which
probably will have a chapter to itself
in Mr.. Tim Maras memoirs, to be
called Sensational Plungers I Have
Known" simply to illustrate the point
that too short price on the favorite
can discourage the bettors. If War
Admiral reaches 3 to S. or l to 2,
lot of us will switch to the Biscuit.
And that will be our mistake
(Copyrisht. 1888. by the North American