BET of the DAY WINS @ $12.40
COLLECT $124.00!
Yes, it was a good day at Gulfstream, but the bottom line was spoiled with TEN second place finishes, five of which cost me over $200 late in the day. I left a little early thinking that I would be able to get the 75th Anniversary poster - free giveway today, see above - and take it to my car, which I'd be able to park close to the facility. But when I arrived over an hour before first post time the near parking lot was already full.....what the???? Still, I got the poster and made the 15 minute round-trip walk to the car and was able to relax in the paddock and check late changes in the program. The weather was great locally, sunny an in the 80's (if anything it was actually hot!) and we were back on the turf after three soggy days to start the week. The only big scratch of the day came in Aqueduct's featured Gr 3 Toboggan Stakes where my BEST, Strapping Groom was out. The day started with Sweet Abandon dueled from gate to wire in the opener at Aqueduct, but was the first of many runner-up finishers at a fair 7/2 price. I took my seat in the Gulfstream grandstands (somehow I'd lost my ticket - it was in my jacket pocket, and then gone! Luckily the gal who is the usher in the section knows me and trusted me that I'd bought the seat, at the whopping price of $2!). We were on the turf for a non-winners of two lifetime and my pick was Grownmencry. The field was evenly matched with all typically running in the 60's on the Beyer scale, but Grownmencry had run 70+ in two of his last three. That was good enough for me. He was bet down from 6/1 to 9/5 and as they hit the far turn he was STILL far, far back. As the field turned for home and neared the furlong marker he was still dead last and I didn't even turn on my camera. But approaching the 16th pole he'd shifted from the rail to the outside and seemed to be gathering steam......it might be close I thought, so I caught the last part of the race, and it was stunning. He blew through the field like they were all tied to a post. WOW.....I'm one-for-one at Gulfstream! 
In the second at Gulfstream it was a 3yo sprint and I thought Farewell Kiss looked solid to repeat his last race win with top rider Javier Castellano on board. He broke from post seven. In my analysis I listed two longshots with chances to wake-up. Farewell Kiss became the second runner-up on the day when splitting the other two horses on my list, keying an $894 Trifecta - of course I didn't have it. If I were patient enough to win infrequently, I know I'd make a profit by boxing my top selections, this is NOT an uncommon event! Back in the winner's circle in the third at Aqueduct when North Ocean was the odds-on favorite and ran well within himself to the turn, then ran away from the field. I had tripled the bet which enabled me to cast for almost twenty bucks. Red Rocket Express continued my frustration at Tampa when second at 3/2. I scored my second winner on the Gulfstream card when Fusa Code was EASILY the best. This claiming sprint was filled with inconsistent runners, but Fusa Code was sent out by Michael Maker for Ken & Sarah Ramsey with top rider Javier Castellano on board. The drop in class was a 50% Gulfstream Park 40% Club angle that supported my analysis. I tripled the bet on the 1/2 favorite. He tracked a trio of leaders into the turn, then ran right by them and drew off in hand for a convincing score!
Another $20+ in the pocket and now I've won three of my first six selections. Questmet was 3/5 at Tampa and his last two Beyers were paired figures AND were both better than anything the rest of the field had run in their lifetime. He pressed the pace and then faded to be fourth....wow. The 4th at Gulfstream we were back on the turf and I liked what I thought would be a nice price play in Pinball. He'd won three straight in New York last spring for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. But those were all on the dirt and NONE of them farther than a mile-70. Today he made his first start on turf and was going nine furlongs. Still, he was bred for it and for Y-E-A-R-S I've won with Mott horses coming off a layoff on the turf. The field broke evenly and it appeared no one wanted the lead, so jockey Joel Rosario took the initiative from the rail and set the pace. Turning for home he was still in front after setting moderate fractions (:24 - :49). Now the real running started....he repelled a challenge from the outside, then the favorite tried to come up the rail and appeared to steady, then another deep closer, but none could get to Pinball! WHOOO HOOO and at 5/2! I'd just written "WIN" on my sheet when "OBJECTION" appeared and they began running the stretch run over and over and over again. Normally when they look at it this many times there's something there. As I stood inside watching on the monitors the guy next to me said, "he won't come down, the rider on the rail had plenty of room." I replied, "Pinball ran straight through the lane, he didn't interfere with anyone." Someone over my shoulder said "he's coming down!" I didn't see it, but they kept looking and looking, almost like the stewards were saying, "give me a reason to take this runner down!" But in the end he stayed up! YES!
The $7.40 payoff was less than I had hoped, but I'll take the near $20 payoff. Less than ten minutes later my top pick at Aqueduct in their 5th coasted easily on the lead to win wire to wire, and I cashed for nearly $20 on Street Thug in that 3L claiming even. At the Fair Grounds I ran third at 7/2 and then a Pletcher 3yo maiden was 4th after dueling to the turn and fading. After a video break to catch up with my recent wins it was time for the sixt at Gulfstream, my BEST of the DAY! It was a highly competitive maiden special for 3yo going six and a half furlongs. When I scanned the past performances, the works for debut runner West Coast Girl just had "that look." Multiple bullet works six to eight weeks ago and the most recent seemed foundation building. She was a $725K daughter of top runner Medaglia D'Or, trained by Bill Mott and ridden by John Velazquez. With a Pletcher filly in the field I thought I'd get a price, any serious handicapper would know that Mott rarely has his first time starters ready to roll. But this one looked to be a special kind of filly and I thought this was a good place to take a big shot. I was encouraged that Mott is a GP 40% Club member with only two angles, and one of them is when Velazquez rides - 47% wins over the past two winters. The crowd was hammering another filly who wasn't even in my top three! More money for me if I'm right I thought. The favorite burst out of the gate but Velazquez had West Coast Girl right on her hip. I could tell immediately, I'm going to win! I've seen this scenario millions of time.....the favorite does all the work on the front, a price play coasts along and then runs by in the lane. The only question was who'd made the best evaluation of true talent.....would the favorite dispose of my filly as they turned for home, or was she as good as I thought? As they turned for home West Coast Girl drew even and they dueled for about fifty yards.....then Velazquez shook the reins and it was all over. It was closer than I'd have liked at the front but I was never worried. As they'd gone to post I was a solid 7/2, so I'm thinking I'm going to get a nice $90 pay day. But as I set up my video camera the slo-mo replay came on with the final odds underneath.....AN AMAZING 5/1! OH MY! 
The payoff was a huge $12.40 and I headed to the windows to cash for nearly $125! At Aqueduct I knew Todd Pletcher's Fierce Boots had coasted on an easy lead to win the prep for today's Busher Stakes for sophomore fillies, but I didn't see anyone who would press her again today. She was loose on the lead, but couldn't hold the more talented closers today, fourth. My "upset of the day" at the Fair Grounds was Ten To Midnight who was running first off the claim for trainer Tom Amoss, a 41% angle. Looked loose on the lead, but broke poorly and was never in it. But I cashed again when Luck Be the Lady was TONS the best in a 2-lifetime claiming event at Calder. She took over on the turn and just romped home. Cashed for over $10 with the minimum play. At Aqueduct it looked like a lot of speed would set up an upset closer like I'm Mom's Favorite, but she was a distant 10th at 5/1. Nesso had won for me in the Sandpiper Stakes going seven furlongs in the prep for today's Suncoast Stakes at a mile-40. I thought she'd sit just off the speed, but no one wanted the lead and she took the field from gate to top of the lane. Held on for second at 2/1, but was no match for the winner. Next up was my "Best" at Calder. Songa had only four career starts while the rest of this entry level allowance were inconsistent claimers. Last out he'd been second at this distance but was three clear of the show AND had a Double Beyer advantage over the field. He stalked the leader to the turn and drew off without ever being asked.
He'd been 4/5 as they went into the gate, but the late money came pouring in and he was a miserly 1/5 on the wire. In the Grade 3 Withers at Aqueduct, the first step on the New York Derby trail, last-out debut winner Uncle Sigh dueled with the favorite all the way to deep stretch before being edged for the win while well clear of the rest of the field. The two favorite exacta had been an obvious play, but I knew if I played it a price horse would split them :) At Tampa in their first Derby prep, the Grade 3 Sam Davis Todd Pletcher's Harpoon was the 9/5 favorite and I thought he looked tough to beat. Jockey Luis Saez gave him a very questionable ride I thought as he was at LEAST EIGHT wide turning for home and then just missed to, of all horses Vinceramos.....recognize that name? He is also a Pletcher horse and he was all out to break his maiden last out on "Danielle's Day At The Races" in a photo finish that day. He paid $26 and change and the all-Pletcher exacta paid nearly $90! I hit two in a row as I thought I made my move to score a nice profit on the day. At the Fair Grounds in was a stakes-quality sprint and I liked the entry of Afternoon Tango and Little Polka Dot. The latter was a good back-up to what I thought was a solid choice under Rosie Napravnik. But as they turned for home Little Polka Dot had pressed the pace between horses and had nothing left as she began to fade. Where, oh where is Afternoon Tango? NOT EVEN IN THE TV picture! And still not in the picture at the furlong marker! Then here comes this blur on the outside, UP IN TIME! WHOOOO HOOOO! The double investment netted me another near-$20. At Calder it was my "upset special." This maiden claiming event was wide open, but lately I'd noticed that suddenly at both Calder and the Fair Grounds there was a fairly good Russian jockey and they seemed to team with a Russian trainer.....what is this, some kind of invasion? Here the horse even seemed Russian! Gornay Lavanda was ridden by a jockey named Kappushev for a trainer named Dorochenko! But I picked him because of his eight career starts SEVEN had been on either turf or synthetics. His lone dirt try was a late running third despite breaking behind the field. He was also the DRF analyst for Calder's "best" of the day. He went off at 9/2, stalked the pace and surged to the front spinning out of the turn. But instead of accelerating to the wire he was struggling to put the field away AND was drifting very wide down the middle of the track. But he had more than enough to hold on! WHOOO HOOO! He paid a very nice $11.80 and my double investment netted me almost $60! In the co-feature at Gulfstream I thought multiple Gulfstream stakes winner Travellin Man had a legitimate upset shot for Todd Pletcher in the Gulfstream Turf Sprint Championship. As they loaded he broke through the gate - a near-certain kiss of death. But he was fine and loaded back in. He was an astounding 14/1 as they gates opened, but to be fair he'd NEVER been on the turf and he was facing the runner-up of the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint! But I didn't like the favorite at all. Travellin Man trailed the field as they hit the turn, but he was flying once heads turned for home, but was very wide. OH SO CLOSE in a near photo to be second. It came as some consolation when the analysts on HRTV talked about how he was "probably best" in the race if not for the break through the gate and wide trip. Sigh......excellent handicapping, no cash. In the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Stakes on the turf, Todd Pletcher's Salto was the 1/2 favorite and easily the class of the field. He stalked the lead to the turn, cruised to the front and opened up by two. It looked to me like jockey Luis Saez thought he had it won and he didn't push to the wire, he just let him cruise in a gallop. BIG MISTAKE, especially at closer friendly Tampa Bay. A long shot came flying and by the time Saez saw him and asked Salto to run they were inside the final 100 yards - no time to re-accelerate and I was second, again. At Gulfstream I took a shot on Pletcher's Trail Blaze, but he struggled, 8th in the Grade 2 Hutcheson as the favorite - who I didn't like - walked with it. A I headed for home I was $16 behind, but had six races to go.....a win in ANY of them and I'm a winner on the day, maybe as much as $30 or more. Two wins and it's a BIG day! It had been a big day at the races, highlighted by the "BEST BET" ....... when I got home and watched the HRTV recording, and this is how it played out.........
- Marco Zoom was my "upset special" at Tampa. He was 5/1 and led to deep stretch, caught inside the final 100 yards, 4th.
-The Happy Ticket Stakes at the Fair Grounds, obvious favorite Same Cross was FLYING under Rosie.....PHOTO FINISH - second
-Scorcher failed to make the lead where I thought he'd steal the 6th on the turf, 7th at 10/1
-My "Best" at the Fair Grouds, Caneros is 9/5 and loose on the lead, caught at the 16th pole, but battles to the wire.....PHOTO FINISH! You guessed it, second.....big sigh
-The Grade 1 Las Virgenes at Santa Anita, first step towards the Kentucky Oaks for three year old fillies. Bob Baffert's star, Streaming tracks the pace at 1/1 but can't catch the front runner under a clever ride by Gary Stevens; second in a near-photo finish
-Finally, the Grade 2 Arcadia, defending champion Suggestive Boy looks much the best despite a long layoff, but that's how he runs his best. A nice 5/2, gets in gear on the turn, then flattens out to be a disappointing fifth.
WOW......still, won 30% of my picks and had a great time, with great stories, and loss just a little. But oh......so........close......
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