Remember that line? It’s from “The Sting,” probably the most entertaining movie about horse racing ever filmed. And one in which a racehorse never appears!

Everyone must be familiar with the story, which hit screens in late 1973. Con men Henry Gondorf and Johnny Hooker (Paul Newman and Robert Redford) plan a $500,000 sting on gangster Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw). The angle is a fake horse race, which Henry and his pals are running in an authentic, opulent betting parlor.

Doyle, working with a “turncoat” Hooker, wants to check out the kid’s unbeatable system to win big at Henry’s parlor. He brings in some dough and tries to make a bet, checking out Hooker’s scam in the process. Gondorf doesn’t want to play his cards just yet, so he tells his people to give Lonnegan the “shutout.”
That means Doyle waits in line at the teller’s window ... and waits .. and waits. Just when he’s about to make his bet, the race begins, the teller’s window closes. No race track in the world will accept a wager once the horses are running.

Kind of felt like old Doyle Saturday afternoon, while I was standing 35th in line at the OTB parlor in Guilderland’s Star Plaza to bet the Kentucky Derby. A glitch in OTB machinery knocked out all wager opportunities during the hour preceding the race. People who wait to check the latest odds before making their bets were out in the cold.

I had planned a $2 exacta box with Big Brown, Colonel John and Cool Coal Man, a $12 investment. I figured a strong favorite, a second choice and a long shot could pay off royally, especially if Cool Coal Man — a 41-1 shot — ran into first-place money. Figured another $4 would go to the Colonel, and another $4 would ride on the Coal Man.

The $20 never had the chance to go down the drain. I talked with other bettors in line for a story that appeared in The Sunday Gazette. One guy asked, “Hey, aren’t you the guy who’s on the radio with Rodger Wyland?”
No, I told him. That’s my famous brother, the sports writer, who works on Wolf Road. “I write about Iron Man, tulips and hot sauce,” I said, hoping for some recognition.

I think I felt the sorriest for Howard Brown of Knox.
Brown was waiting to make the first racing bet of his life. He said friends told him he had to bet Big Brown, just because the horse shared his name. In addition to a “win” bet, Brown also had planned to make some exotic wagers with both Pyro and Colonel John.
“I’m probably going to save $54,” he said, as the clock approached the 6:04 p.m. post time. “With my luck, it will probably all come in.”
It didn’t.
While Big Brown won the race, bettor Brown had not considered the tragic Eight Belles. The filly, who was euthanized after the race, took second place.

Paul “Tiger” Timco of Altamont wanted to bet Pyro. And even though he could not play his horse, “I still want him to win. That’s the essence of the game.”
I guess I have not reached that essence. After I got the “shutout,” I was kind of hoping Cool Coal Man didn’t win. And I didn’t want to see Colonel John take second. It would have been a monster exacta, and I would have been walking home without the big money.

Just like Doyle Lonnegan.

If you want to know how Doyle lost his cash — “$500,000 on Lucky Dan to win” — rent the movie!