NHL All Star Weekend
Holy Bull & La Premier Day
It was a big weekend! Our youngest son Brad brought his family down as our very own Florida Panthers hosted the 2023 NHL All-Star Weekend. On Friday we had front row seats (in the upper deck) for the Skills Competition, and on Saturday we had the same seats for the NHL All-Star Game & all the festivities. It was a GREAT weekend with the family and particularly enjoyed how much our grandson Oliver enjoyed it all. After the racing recap I included some video clips of the weekend and then some photos follow that. As for the racing, I won several races and had a big day on Saturday despite being away from watching the live action - gotta love the online betting and replays! Here's how the week played out.....
Wednesday & Thursday
I made the decision after I handicapped the first four races of the week and they were all "bad" races that it was time, after eight weeks, to admit that finding winners with regularity at Gulfstream was just not happening. And so I narrowed my local plays to "solid" selections. The one and only selection of the day on Wednesday ran third while the winner was a $16.80 upset choice. On Thursday I only had two selections on the GP card and they ran 2nd and 6th to $26.40 and $12.00 winners. BUT, because I had made the decision to be more "careful" at Gulfstream I was not about to give up playing/betting the races over the winter. So for Thursday I handicapped the Aqueduct card. I had five selections and won with three of them! And so I had a net loss of $1 :) I'll take that for a 3-for-7 day while again not finding a winner locally.
Friday
Today was - for 2023 - an unusual day. I went a sharp two-for-three at Gulfstream. The first selection was in the third, a 3yo MSW sprinting five furlongs on the turf. Little Jewel tracked the leaders to the top of the lane, burst to the front and drew off. Then in the 4th, another MSW for 3yo - this one a 6f dirt sprint. Todd Pletcher's Lakota Territory was easily best.
I also played Oaklawn and didn't get a single winner. The "big news" was while watching the Gulfstream races, both my winners were ridden by Irad Ortiz. He won the 2nd, the 3rd, the 4th, the 5th, the 6th, the 7th, AND the 8th races - SEVEN in a row. Five other jockeys had won seven races on a day, but no one had ever won seven straight. Impressive.
Saturday: Holy Bull Day / Louisiana Premier Night
I was able to watch the first five races from Gulfstream but had no bets until the fifth before we left for the All-Star Game. And in that race I had Todd Pletcher's King's Fortune, a first time starter in a race scheduled for the turf. But there had been some light showers on Friday so, of course, management moved it to the synthetic. Fortunately they showed "great wisdom and maturity" by keeping the stakes races on the grass. I went back and forth about keeping the bet, but it IS Gulfstream, it IS the winter meet, and it IS Todd Pletcher, so I kept the bet. King's Fortune was well back to the top of the lane before he blew by through the final furlong at a big 6/1 price and I cashed for nearly $75 before leaving for the game :)
The All-Star game experience was great and our division, with the two Florida Panthers players won the whole thing. AND our very own player was named the MVP of the game. Couldn't have gone better. Came home and began watching the replays. The first of the multiple 3yo stakes races was the 7f, Grade 3 Swale. Super Chow looked much the best on paper but I just had a feeling he wasn't going to be best today. Loose on the lead under hottie jockey/model Chantal Sutherland he weakened late to be second. BUT fortunately 1stBet/Xpressbet ran a promotion with all the stakes races at both Gulfstream and Santa Anita that if you ran 2nd or 3rd you'd get back up to $10 of your money, so I "cashed" on Super Chow.
I missed on the next two selections before scoring in the opener at Santa Anita. Doc Adams looked best on paper but he had to really work before finally edging clear in the final 16th of a mile. Missed at Tampa and then it was time for the Grade 3 Kitten's Joy in the ninth at Gulfstream. I wanted to bet the 10th which was the Grade 2 Forward Gal - a prep for the Gulfstream Oaks - but none of these 3yo fillies stood out to me. Still I thought that three of them looked better than the others. And so, with a bet in the 9th and the 11th I made a $0.50 Pick Three Selection. In the Kitten's Joy Todd Pletcher's Major Dude was looking to get revenge on Candidate who had wired the field in the prep for this, the Dania Beach. But that day Major Dude was coming off of a layoff after running third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. I thought with one under his belt he'd run his rival down. Did so, and handily at that as the 7/5 public choice and while carrying my triple investment.
In the Forward Gal, when the field turned for home the three fillies I had on my ticket were running 1-2-3 and looked to finish clear of the field....which they did :) Looking to sweep the Pick-3 and win the Grade 3 Sweetest Chant in the final leg I had Todd Pletcher's Cairo Consort. I really liked Todd Pletcher's Cairo Consort who'd won the prep for this, but on the rail Sweetlou'sgotaces had the best Beyers. I wasn't sure which to bet and so that also figured into the P-3 bet. Cairo Consort completely blew the break and spotted the field more than half a dozen lengths, so as I watched I thought, "well, it's all up to 'Lou...." She was right there into the lane but began to struggle and then from the back of the pack, in a blur of blue and white silks as Cairo Consort swept by to win going away. AND at a 2/1 price as well.
So I had the winner in two of the three straight up AND had the Pick-3! WHOOOO HOOOOO.
Next next four races were Gr 3 events at Tampa and Santa Anita. Third, fourth, fourth, and sixth. Sigh.... In the featured Grade 3 Holy Bull I didn't think any of the 3yo colts looked like Derby runners but I did think one was worthy of a minimum bet. A fading 6th as the 6/5 favorite. Not impressed with the winner. I was able to watch the Grade 2 Santa Monica from Santa Anita live and my choice, Fun To Dream was blocked from the half mile pole to the 1/8th pole behind horses. Finally found a seam and burst through to win going away. In the last bet from So Cal my pick in the Gr 3 Thunder Road was third but it qualified for the money back promotion (see above). And later I got word that I received money back on a third race - the 4th at Santa Anita, the Gr 3 Megahertz where I thought my pick had run 4th in a photo for the show, only to find out he was third so I got money back on that one as well!
The big races at Delta Downs were now revving up as darkness fell locally. There were six straight stakes events and I had picks in four of them. In fact in three of the four I had horses I really liked. The first in the sequence was the La Premier Prince for 3yo colts. Jack Hammer stalked the second choice to the top of the stretch, put a head in front and as they straightened they came together knocking both off stride. But 'Jack recovered and edged clear. An objection went up but was ruled BOGUS! :) I win.
In the next stakes event, the La Premier Distaff it looked hard to go against Free Like A Girl who'd won multiple races for me. She owned an impressive 4-for-5 record at Delta Downs and was 3-for-4 at today's one mile trip. Took the lead in hand heading to the far turn, opened up and held off the late charging closers by open lengths with my triple investment on board!
Now it was time for the BET of the Day in the La Premier Matron. OK, it is a horse race but still it looked pretty unrealistic to bet on anyone but Ova Charged. She'd debuted HERE and drew off at tonight's abbreviated five furlong trip with a 10 1/2 length win and earned a 79 Beyer. Since then she'd won six-of-seven with the lone loss being in Belmont's Grade 3 Victory Ride. In winning FIVE STRAIGHT state-bred stakes her Beyers (including the 2nd in the Victory Ride) were: 89-81-91-89-91-88-89. The combined 180 starts by her rivals tonight had just THREE Beyers in the low 80's. So even if she ran her worst race (or her debut maiden race) they'd have to run a lifetime best to beat her. Looks like a "free bingo square." But as they left the gate it was all too obvious why they have to run the race before you cash your tickets. She broke sharply but before they'd gone a quarter of a mile FOUR other fillies had closed her off and now she was near the back. Not to worry the rider found a seam up the middle and quickly advanced and was about to engage the leaders when she was sawed off, checked sharply and again dropped near the back more than four off the leaders. That's REALLY not good. And in a short race like this she had a lot of ground to make up, while re-gathering momentum and going through the turn into the short stretch. Third turning for home she came with a furious finish and on the wire it was oh-so-close. But as I told both my son Brad and Keith, I was pretty sure I'd come up just short. What terrible luck. But then the photo sign came down and it was announced that it was a DEAD HEAT - oh my! A reprieve, and I'll gladly take the ultra-short price and cash than toss my big play-of-the-day ticket away. WHEW!
That was the eighth race and I didn't have another until 11pm in the eleventh and final stakes event. I typically avoid races where multiple runners return to face one another again, but despite the fact that the 1-2-3-4-6 place finishers from the La Champions Classic were squaring off again in the La Premier Night Championship, I liked one of them....alot. On that Dec 10th date Who Took The Money had gone off as the prohibitive 2/5 favorite. But 5/1 choice Touchuponastar had run away by five widening lengths for his third consecutive win and I thought this one is a rising "star," no pun intended. He left the gate as the 6/5 favorite and tracked the pace to the far turn. He opened up by multiple lengths without being asked and ran away easily to give me four consecutive wins to close out the day.
With that win, I had a very profitable day and scored at better than 40% - a much more Mark-like day of handicapping :)
Sunday
The week's racing wrapped up with me scoring three more times. At Gulfstream I stuck with two Todd Pletcher turf runners when they were "washed off" (and admittedly they DID have a lot of rain in Hallandale, the parking lot was flooded). But neither hit the board, and neither were well bet. My BEST of the Day came in the eighth at Gulfstream where Todd Pletcher's lightly raced now-4yo Charge It was returning for the first time since an electrifying 23-length score in the Grade 3 Dwyer which earned an astronomical 111 Beyer. I was concerned that through the first seven races today the first six all paid single digits and the 7th was a $12 winner....so we were "due" for a big upset and Charge It figured to be 1/9, or if we were very lucky 1/5. But, the favorite was impressive while never being asked and won comfortably for me.
I had two wins at Oaklawn to finish the day 3-for-7 and the week 18-for-46, an excellent 39% :)
NHL All-Star Weekend
Social Media this week....
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