Sorry, one last one, before I stop flogging this horse. Even Mason Malmuth has criticised staking with make-up as a potentially risky endeavor:
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One problem with these deals is that if the horse does poorly and gets in a big hole, and there is always some chance this will happen [the horse walking away from the deal] no matter how well he plays, he will then be playing for nothing because even if he does well in a tournament, all the money will go for making up the entry fees.
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Source of the Malmuth quote