February 17 - 22
Week Twelve of the Championship Meet was "just a week" for me. Had some winners, but nothing to write home about and for the week I finished at almost 30%. There are probably as many or more stories about the losses than the wins unfortunately. A word about this week's banner. That's my great buddy Jim Anderson in the photo with me from our March 2018 trip to Laurel for a racing weekend. Little did we know that just one year later he'd suddenly pass away. I miss that guy all the time. He was a great friend and a super racing buddy as well as a wonderful human being. Sigh.....
Wednesday February 17
There was quite a bit of rain the first part of the week and even though it had mostly stopped by mid day on Wednesday I wasn't surprised to see all the races came off the turf. As I'd handicapped on Tuesday I figured as much and had looked for main track selections in the turf races. To preface the day's summary it's worth mentioning that the ten winners on the day paid $4.60, $13.80, $36.40, $23.80, $7.60, $4.60, $7.60, $10.60, $15.40, and $16.20 - not the kind of day that I'd typically have multiple winners on. I was fourth in the opener, off the turf, at 8/5 after making a bold bid on the turn and flattening out. I had said for the 2nd that IF Jacohare took some money in either the win pools or the double pools I kind of liked him in the second. He didn't...passed the race....he won and paid double digits. WOW. I was loose on the lead into the stretch in the third at 5/2 and stopped like I was shot to finish sixth. I was the even money favorite in the fifth and was left at the gate. Rallied but couldn't catch the loose on the lead front runner who unlike MY pick in the 3rd did NOT stop. In the 7th I was squeezed AND checked at the start to the back of the field. Finished 4th at even money and I really think I'd have won had I not spotted the field all that ground. That closed the day. Disappointing, but there's always tomorrow!
Thursday February 18
After passing the opening two races I had the 4/5 favorite in the third. I was between runners into the stretch then backed up to be fourth while a 6/1 runner never stopped. In the fourth my pick was the 1-2 favorite, glided up to the 8/1 leader as heads turned for home.....empty and that 8/1 runner wired the field. WOW. Finally in the sixth I got my first winner of the week. Call Curt looked to have the ideal field for his late kick as most the runners looked to prefer the front end. He tracked the leaders in fifth to the stretch, moved three-wide and cleared them to win going away. I'd doubled the bet and was delighted he paid nearly $7.
In the seventh it was a Maiden Special for 3yo going a mile on the turf. Credit me with a good handicapping decision because there WAS a Todd Pletcher runner but Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott has had a very hot hand here this winter, which is most unusual. World of Tour was going for the barn with Junior Alvarado who is also having an uncharacteristically good winter here. The debuting filly had three bullet works for today and just looked to be sharp enough to take this. Tracked th epace into the turn, collared the leader....dueled through the stretch and edged clear late. AND for the second race in a row I got a very good price. The $10.60 payoff led to collecting nearly $30 even though I'd only gone in for the minimum.
I ran 2nd at 6/5 in the last bet of the day after getting to the lead and being run down late by an 8/1 winner. The BET of the Day was in the finale but Get Rewarded scratched out. And trust me, it WOULD have been a good handicapping story how I landed on her. Such it is. Got two wins and I'll be content with that.
Friday February 19
I thought today's card was particularly weak considering the time of the year. And my selections reflected that as I had six outright "PASS" races, three of which were so bad I couldn't come up with even a single horse to mention. And of the four bets on the day two of them were just for the minimum because I didn't have a lot of confidence in either. Passed the opener and then the two minimum plays resulted in drubbings..... 6th at 2/1 and 7th at 2/1. Ouch. Passed the fourth before getting to the fifth. Interesting that the "best" of the day was this nw2L claiming event on the turf. Break Beat had MANY angles going for him. He was sent out by the red-hot Danny Gargan barn and while at first glance you'd say "Hmmm" that Miguel Vasquez was riding instead of one of the "big boys," Vasquez had been on board for his last winning effort. Break Beat was 2nd best in a $35K nw2L last time out and today was dropping in for a mere $12.5K price. And ALL FOUR of his turf Beyers beat 80 of the combined 82 lifetime Beyers earned by his rivals. Neither of those numbers were typical for those horses making Break Beat a real standout. He came running three wide into the stretch, dueled for almost a furlong with two others then edged clear to win by a drawing off length under the wire.
Cashed for nearly $25 on my triple bet. Missed at 2/1, again, in the last play of the day. On to the "big day" Saturday....which wasn't really a big day on the calendar or the results.
Last weekend Laurel was scheduled to run their "Winter Sprintfest" card but after the analysis of the entire card it was announced that the freezing rain was causing a cancellation of the racing. Then it was announced later in the day the entire card would be moved to today. Now that's not all that uncommon but when I saw the entries come out I was surprised to see that it was truly the exact card. THAT is unusual. I had six picks on the card, and it was convenient that I did not have to handicap the card because we spent a good part of the day traveling to Orlando for the weekend. The Gulfstream Saturday menu included the Gr 3 Royal Delta but it was a pretty light field and the rest of the card was nothing special as well. Part of this has to be that next week is Fountain of Youth Day with NINE graded stakes, so nearly all "the good ones" are probably targeting those races. Still I found seven races I liked well enough to bet. Passed the opening two and then in the third I noted that everyone would be just falling overthemselves with Dontpushyourluck who was going first off the claim for Mike Maker. And despite those winning at a 15% or so clip for over two years, everyone raves about "watch out, it's first off the claim for Maker!" Still the horse DID look best in this maiden claiming turf sprint. But on the far turn he was not running at all and nearly half a dozen off the lead. Leading rider Irad would not give up on him and with about a furlong to go in the stretch the horse woke up and mowed them all down to win going away.
The double investment started the day off with more than $20 in winnings. Came right back in the fourth, a claiming event for 3yo - which I typically do not like. But here Briella was the lone dual winner in the field and was double dropping out of stakes company to this $50K spot. Right to the front where Miguel Vasquez rationed the speed perfectly, slowing down the opening quarter to :23.2 and the half to a glacial :47.1 going six furlongs. Plenty left for the drive and won decisively.
The rest of the day was characterized by near misses. The two "worst" came in the 8th when Todd Pletcher's odds-on choice Ghazaaly, and a "prime time" play for me went gate to final jump; later in the tenth Shug McGaughey's Dreams of Tomorrow led into the stretch and was caught on the wire. Those two races would have made me 4-for-9 and a clear-cut profit on the day, instead I finished 2-for-7 and lost money. Meanwhile at Laurel the first stakes event, The Miracle Wood, featured a rematch between Kenny Had A Notion and Maythehorsebewithu who had dueled nearly gate to wire last time before 'Kenny edged clear. Somehow under the conditions today he got a weight BREAK. Looked to go right to the front and wire them again. But for some reason the rider let 'Maythehorse go uncontested on the front end and I chased him all the way around, weakening to be third. Finished third at a pricey 5/1 in the John B. Campbell. My two best plays came in the next two.....first up was the Nellie Morse going a mile and a sixteenth. Lucky Stride drew wide with a quick run to the first turn, but her off-the pace style negated that problem. Of the combined 195 lifetime figures earned by the rest of the field, only two would be competitive with Lucky Stride's last two numbers. I was just a tad concerned when during the early handicapping show the two analysts pointed out that two scratches would make the pace slower and therefore more challenging for Lucky Stride. But the rider had her closer today. Swooped up as they spun out of the turn and drove to a clear and decisive win. The triple investment netted nearly $30.
The sixth was the Wide Country for 3yo fillies going seven furlongs. I'd had Street Lute in all of her last three wins. But I had thought last time she might be peaking but stuck with her. Instead of a close finish like the two back win, she drove clear handily. Maybe TODAY she'd be over the top? But she'd worked a sizzling best-of-41 bullet in :59.3 - she's still in high form I felt. The two front runners were quickly clear by half a dozen but jockey Xavier Perez waited patiently in third. Despite the big gap when he asked the "Princess of Laurel" heading into the turn she effortlessly inhaled the two of them while three wide. Entered the stretch with a daylight lead, and when two challengers began to make up ground he asked the filly for more and she held them safely at bay. I was delighted to get even money on my BEST BET of the Day!
The day had "ended" with the family driving to a restaurant for dinner and I watched my pick in the Gr 3 Royal Delta open up to an apparent win, only to be caught nearing the wire by a 25/1 horse. So when we returned home I opened up my program to get my totals for the day. It was sub-par and for the first time in I don't know HOW LONG I did something that hardly ever is a good idea for a horse player! I opened up the Brisnet entries for Saturday and said to myself, "Who's still running tonight? And are there any 'locks' available to pad my stats?" Without even handicapping? What are you thinking? I saw that Charles Town was running and in their second race Dancing Destiny was listed at 4/5 in the program. Flipped back to Xpressbet - "0 minutes to post!" Opened the video and the horses still had not approached the gate. Checked out the payouts and apparently "everybody" thought Dancing Destiny was a "mortal lock." Good enough for me! I slapped down a triple investment - oh my!!! The latches sprung and 'Destiny was quickly four lengths clear. No one challenged her and she loped around the track to score by open lengths....oh how clever am I? Added another win and while it wasn't much, the additional $20 plus helped soften the financial loss on the day.
Sunday February 21
Certainly today would bring an "evening out" of the numbers I thought as I opened my program while we were in Orlando. I knew I'd miss nearly the entire card as we planned to leave around first post and I didn't have a bet in two of the last three races. We got home just after my next to last bet in the 7th. I opened the replays and watched as first Thorn won the opener and then after a 4th at 5/1 in the second, Makisupa won for fun in the third. Here we go! I thought....
Not to be....had a Todd Pletcher 3/2 favorite come up flat at 3/2 when third in the 4th, was second at 9/5 in the fifth when I narrowed it to two runners and picked the wrong one; then was a very disappointing fourth as the 3/5 favorite with a Larry Rivelli runner - then nearly always win. Got to watch the last play of the day, Tusk in a claiming event on the turf in the 10th. Sent off at 4/5 she cruised to the front for Saffie Joseph into the stretch, then when asked to put away the late runner she had nothing. Weakened to third. So another two-win day and a small loss.
Gulfstream - Week 12 Highlights
But NEXT week is Fountain of Youth Day and we WILL be there :)
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