Serious horseplayers always look forward to betting the Kentucky Oaks! The 2024 edition happens Friday, May 3 at Churchill Downs. The purse has been raised to a cool $1.5 million in 2024, and a full field of the best sophomore fillies in the country are ready. The race covers 1 ⅛ miles on the dirt, and horses will be running for that purse, the blanket of lilies, and a place in horse racing history.
The Kentucky Oaks celebrates its 150th birthday this year, the same as the Kentucky Derby. Some all-time greats like Modesty (the namesake of a race on the Oaks card!), Black Maria, and Princess Rooney have won the race, as have modern superstars like Rachel Alexandra, Monomoy Girl, and Secret Oath.
Read on to get to know the leading contenders in the 2024 Kentucky Oaks, as well as the best places to bet the Kentucky Oaks online.
Betting the Kentucky Oaks Online
Going to the Kentucky Oaks is the experience of a lifetime, but we can’t all get to the rail in Louisville. Fortunately, you can be a part of the Kentucky Oaks action from anywhere by betting the horse race online at a trusted online racebook.
You have many options for playing the race, but our trusted betting site reviews are here to help you make a confident decision quickly and get to the fun part: betting the Kentucky Oaks! Every site we recommend has the basics: market-leading odds, trusted payouts, and a great user interface.
Each site also offers great incentives like sign-up bonuses, deposit bonuses, and horse racing rebates that pay you for every bet you make. Our expert reviews can help you find out quickly which bonuses will make you the most money. So, take a few minutes to read them, and then supercharge your bankroll for the Kentucky Oaks and beyond at one of these online racebooks:
2024 Kentucky Oaks Field
This is the official field for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds:
- Tapit Jenallie (Eddie Milligan, Jr./Emmanuel Esquivel) - 30/1
- Gin Gin (Brad Cox/Florent Geroux) - 30/1
- Where’s My Ring (Val Brinkerhoff/Jose Lezcano) - 15/1
- Regulatory Risk (Chad Brown/Jose Ortiz) - 20/1
- Thorpedo Anna (Kenny McPeek/Brian Hernandez, Jr.) - 5-1
- Lemon Muffin (D. Wayne Lukas/Keith Asmussen) - 30/1
- Fiona’s Magic (Michael Yates/Luis Saez) - 30/1
- Tarifa (Brad Cox/Flavien Prat) - 7/2
- Everland (Eric Foster/Abel Cedillo) - 30/1
- Into Champagne (Ian Wilkes/Julien Leparoux) - 30/1
- Ways and Means (Chad Brown/Tyler Gaffalione) - 5/1
- Power Squeeze (Jorge Delgado/Daniel Centeno) - 9/2
- Just F Y I (Bill Mott/Junior Alvarado) - 9/2
- Leslie’s Rose (Todd Pletcher/Irad Ortiz, Jr.) - 4/1
- Our Pretty Woman (Steve Asmussen/Joel Rosario) - 15/1 - ALSO ELIGIBLE
- Candied (Todd Pletcher/Luis Saez) - 20/1
If horses scratch from the Oaks field before 9:00 a.m. Eastern on Friday, then one or more horses from the also-eligible list will replace them in order of their priority on that list: Our Pretty Woman has first priority, then Candied.
Keep in mind that the morning line is not a guaranteed price at the track, but rather the track handicapper’s best guess as to post-time odds. Though they can be a useful help in analyzing betting action, the actual odds aren’t final at the track until the horses break from the gate.
Your best bet in the Kentucky Oaks is to bet at an online racebook. Online betting sites offer fixed-odds betting on major races like the Kentucky Oaks. This means you can bet the race when you see an overlaid price on your horse, and be confident that’s what you’ll be paid when your horse wins!
 |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tarifa | +350 | +350 | +350 |
| Just F Y I | +450 | +450 | +450 |
| Thorpedo Anna | +500 | +450 | +500 |
| Leslie's Rose | +500 | +475 | +500 |
| Ways and Means | +600 | +550 | +500 |
| Power Squeeze | +1000 | +1100 | +1200 |
| Where's My Ring | +1200 | +1200 | +1500 |
Kentucky Oaks Handicapping
With your betting account set up, let’s get to know the main contenders for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks.
Kentucky Oaks Top Play
Leslie’s Rose comes out of a strong victory in the Ashland (G1) and she should be able to win right back in the Kentucky Oaks. The Ashland was her first try at two turns, and no wonder it was her best race yet: a daughter of the versatile Into Mischief, she is out of a Galileo half to My Miss Sophia and Materiality. In short, distance is her friend.
She also has the tactical speed to get a good outside tracking trip. Churchill tends to play fairly or even well to outside-drawn horses at the mile and an eighth, making the post draw just fine. Expect her to be in the mix from start to finish.
Other Kentucky Oaks Contenders
The Fair Grounds Oaks winner usually has a say in the Kentucky Oaks, and that should be the case again this year with Tarifa. The star of that spur of the Oaks trail, she won the Rachel Alexandra (G2) over a wet track and the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) over a dry one, perfect since there is a chance of rain on Oaks day but not a certainty. She can use her tactical speed and good middle draw to good effect.
Even though Where’s My Ring didn’t break her maiden until a romp in the Gazelle (G3), her eighth career start, she was already turning good efforts before she won. Three back, she did the dirty work up front and was narrowly beaten; two back, she finished only behind the well-regarded Kinza. And, with the Gazelle being the same 1 ⅛-mile distance as the Oaks, she is one of few who has proven her stamina over the trip.
Kentucky Oaks Price Horses
If Our Pretty Woman draws in off the also-eligible list, she belongs in wagers. After all, she was beaten less than a length by the more experienced Tarifa in the Fair Grounds Oaks, her stakes debut. That gives this Steve Asmussen trainee upside to move forward, especially since she has tactical speed from an outside draw.
At the price, it is worth betting that the real Lemon Muffin – the one who looked like she woke up at two turns – is the real one. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas said she was minorly sick coming out of the Fantasy, so if she has bounced back she’ll be an overlay. Gin Gin was well beaten in the Gazelle, but she is a winner at 1 ⅛ miles in the Busanda and her connections, trainer Brad Cox and jockey Florent Geroux, have won the Oaks twice together.
Kentucky Oaks Best Bets
You have your online betting accounts set up. You have met the top contenders. Now, there’s just one thing left to do: place your bets on the 2024 Kentucky Oaks! These are your expert-recommended wagers on the race:
- $30 to win: #14 Leslie’s Rose
- $10 to win/place/show: #3 Where's My Ring
- $1 exacta key: #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #7 Tarifa
- $1 trifecta key (if Our Pretty Woman draws in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa, #15 Our Pretty Woman
- $1 trifecta key (if Our Pretty Woman does not get in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #2 Gin Gin, #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa
- $1 superfecta key (if Our Pretty Woman draws in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa, #15 Our Pretty Woman
- $1 superfecta key (if Our Pretty Woman does not get in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #2 Gin Gin, #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa
