Hawthorne Racecourse (12/10/11)
Contact: Jim Miller
(708) 780-3700
Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity, pool party at Hawthorne
A cold day here in Chicago with temperatures in the upper 20s, but we have a fast main track for our nine-race card with a nice feature. The Saturday feature is the running of the Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity. The $100,000 stakes race has draw a field of nine and looks like just about any of the horses can win. It will be interesting to see what the pace scenario is as trainer Jimmy DiVito has a pair of fine runners in Bling King and Twelve Hundred but both are speedy types. Chris Block has a trio in the race with Strongest Link, Real Power and Yankee Dealer. These three can all be factors from different spots as Yankee Dealer looks to press the pace while Real Power should sit mid pack and Strongest Link will be closing late. I actually like the maiden Real Power best as Geroux looks to repeat his score from the Whitworth last weekend and win another stakes race.
The Friday afternoon card was highlighted by leading trainer Roger Brueggemann as he had a training triple on the day. Two of his winners were guided home by Florent Geroux while Inez Karlsson capped his day, winning on 25-1 shot Lemon Custard in the 8th race. Brueggemann appears to have put away the field for the training title while Geroux still holds Roman and Felix at an arm’s length for the leading rider.
Today is another of our pool parties as ESPN Radio Personality and racing expert Harry Teinowitz will be on hand to host the pre-race show with myself and then conduct the pool party for the fans. Harry did an excellent job in his last pool party, creating a fine return to all who joined in. The pool party costs only $20, and fans receive two hours of food and beverages, along with a share of anything Harry makes on his $500 worth of “pool” wagers. The food is great, the drink is great, and if Harry does well, everyone could end up getting all of this for free! For details, or to sign up, visit our website or Guest Services here at Hawthorne.
As we have done in past weekends, we will have another online chat on HorseplayerNow.com. The chat room opens at 1:15 pm and will cover the entire Hawthorne card. We will provide insight and selections, along with taking questions and plays from our players. To access the chat, visit the Hawthorne website at Hawthorneracecourse.com and click on the HP Now tab in the middle of the screen.
A few scratches for the Saturday afternoon card as we have a fast track. Races will be moved along a bit today with the chilly temps.
Changes
Main Track – Fast
Race 1
Scratch #1 – Alabama Clay
Race 2
Scratch #6 – Lady Lua
Race 4
Scratch #2 – Magic Man
Scratch #3 – Political Agenda
Race 7
Scratch #1a – Cub’s Thunder
Scratch #7 – Bonnie
Scratch #8 – Angel of Music
