July 24

Haskell Week - At The Spa (Virtually)

 

A good way to start off the BIG WEEK!  With Monmouth only running three days a week, I decided to handicap the Thursday card at Saratoga.  Partially I did this on the off chance that I'd head out to Gulfstream and cash my tickets from last weekend.  With both of the boys bringing home tickets, like me, I paid them out of my racing fund and now have nearly $200 in tickets to cash.  So, I thought I might cash those to take to Monmouth this weekend.  But in the end I only had four horse on my sheet and they were scattered around the card.  So I stayed home and played online; which also gave me a chance to analyze all of the five stakes races from Monmouth for the upcoming weekend. 

In the fourth at Saratoga, my first selection, I had Katie's Garden.  She'd run well in her first two starts in New York, then shipped out to California to break her maiden at Hollywood.  Right back to pick up her entry level allowance win - but that was in January, so she'd been off for some six months.  I thought rather than a sign of trouble, it was a sign of patient handling by trainer John Sherriffs.  Katie left the gate at 5/2, stalked the leaders and made her move on the turn.  She drew off with authority and paid a generous $7.30, so I cashed for nearly $20! 

In the fifth I had a Chad Brown filly.  Doubled the bet on her at 5/1, and she led into the lane, then backed up to be third.  My next pick wasn't for another 90 minutes, in the 8th where I picked Wholelotaroyalty, who was also Dave Liftin's "BEST" of the day.  He had strung together three straight wins and then was claimed by Michael Maker who raised him in class to the $50K level where he ran a good third.  Today he dropped back to $16K and look much the best.  At 9/5 he went right to the front, and looked well within himself into the turn.  But when the pressers and closers came a calling, he stopped and faded to fifth.  Booooo.  That was a "prime time" investment for me.  The last race on my sheet was the last race of the day and I'd tripled the bet on All Over Me.  He ran well in a maiden special turf sprint when given the chance to try grass three back.  He dropped into a spot like this around two turns and led into the lane.  Claimed away by Michael Maker 'Me was pushed up into a MSW event again and ran well considering.....he was three wide on both turns but was right with the leaders through the first part of the race.  The drop back into a claimer looked to be the trick I thought.  He stalked the leaders early, but on the first turn he blew it and floated some seven or eight wide, pushing a rival outwards to the nine or ten path.....that's not good.  But he recovered, stalked the leaders, and shot to a clear lead into the lane.  He had to hold on late, but he was the winner.  Then the announcement - INQUIRY!  And it involved me!  Many times I've heard the race analysts and some stewards who take part in a weekly HRTV segment talk about the key to a DQ is if the horse who fouls causes another to lose a potential placing.  As I watched this replay I didn't think that was the case.  And indeed the stewards agreed!  I WIN! 

As the 3/2 favorite he paid $5.10 (there's that rounding up again, thank you NYRA!).  And with my triple investment I cashed for nearly $40!  So for the day I was 4/2-0-1 with $50 invested and $56 returned!