A hallmark of visiting Oaklawn Park is the greeting from the colorful tip sheets offered at booths across the first floor of the track. On any given race day, the work of ten tipsters is sold. Names like Silent Sam, Eddie “Pick 6” Pannell and Mark the Magician are household names at Oaklawn.   

Each tip sheet has its signature color. Among the rainbow offerings: STATS, which is light green; the Oaklawn Kid in royal blue; and the pale yellow Inside Connection.

There are some types of races that are simple to understand. Stakes races and some claiming races fall into that category. They each have a certain purse value or involve horses that sell for a set price.

Yet some conditions can be quite confusing, such as a starter optional claiming race. In a sense, these are hybrid races. There are the mix of a starter race and a claiming race.

The claiming part is the easy one to understand. It’s the price another owner must pay to buy or claim the horse.