All data was manually compiled and is subject to human error.
Introduction
The Travers is a 10 furlong race over the dirt for 3-year-olds at Saratoga. First run in 1864, it’s also known as the Mid-Summer Derby.
A note to screen reader users. The interactive charts on this site are built using Google Charts. There are two major elements to each chart, the images used to display the chart and a tabular representation of the data within the chart. Unfortunately the charts are structured to announce all of the images before announcing the tabular data. In some cases this will mean upwards of 50 images get announced before the data. If you'd like to provide feedback please visit the Accessibility Statement for information.
Below is a look at data from a variety of angles to see what has produced winners in the Travers from 1991-2018.
Charts are interactive, hover over or touch bars and lines for more information.
Odds are shown as listed in the results charts. Hover-over or touch each bar for $2 payout.
2012 dead heat winner Golden Ticket ($33.50 odds) has been excluded from the chart as an outlier to allow for an overall better visualization. Outliers are included in the averages and medians.
Bettors’ Choice is the ranked order of the field by final odds: The favorite is the first choice, the second favorite is the second choice and so on. For example, 1991 winner Corporate Report was 5th choice in a 6 horse field.
To read the charts below, 0 on the vertical axis is the lead, any distance behind the leader is below 0 and any distance above 0 is the amount the leader is ahead of the next horse. At the bottom are the points of call as they correspond to the charts. Each line is a horse, and you can hover over the point of call for each line to see more information about the horse.
For example, if you hover over the bottom-most line in the first chart, at the 1/2 mile mark you’ll see that 1997 winner V.E. Day was 14.5 lengths behind the leader at this point in the race.
Position at the 1/2 mile mark
Speed:
In the lead
Presser/Stalker:
Between .1 and 3 lengths off leader
Off the pace:
Between 3 and 6 lengths off the leader
Deep closer:
More than 6 lengths off the leader
The Travers has been predominately won by stalkers/pressers, or horses that have sat within 3 lengths of the leader (57%). This trend has roughly continued for the past ten years with stalker/pressers winning 40% of the time. We’ve counted 2012 dead heat winners Alpha and Golden Ticket as one for running style as they had the same running style.
A closer look at winning running styles by decade.
The majority of Travers winners have come from Saratoga in the time period, but in the last 10 years California tracks and Monmouth Park shippers have performed well.
Since 1991 the Travers has transitioned from a relatively formful race to a place to find a good price.
The average winning odds since 1991 are 6.1-1 with a median of 4-1 and an average $2 win payout of $12.70. Since 2010 the averages and medians have dramatically increased to odds of 11.5-1 with a median of 8.3-1 with a an average $2 win payout of $20.50.
The winner on average has been the 3rd choice (3.28) since 1991 and has jumped up to 4th (4.25) since 2010. The favorite has an average finish position of 3rd (3.86) since 1991. The average favorite finish position has dropped to 6th (6.11) since 2010.
Stalkers/Pressers have performed best since 1991 winning 57.1% of the time. This trend has roughly continued in the past ten years with stalker/pressers winning 40% of the time.
Winners have predominately come from Saratoga since 1991 but in the last 10 years California tracks and Monmouth Park shippers have performed well. Field size has been slightly above the 2017 average of 7.7 starters with an average of 8.71 starters since 1991 and jumped to an average of 10.45 starters since 2010.
