Posts Tagged ‘Discovery Handicap’

By Ray Paulick
In honor of Black Friday, that “holiday” all men love to hate, we’re going to take a quick look at the year’s best bargains from among the ranks of 2009 American Graded Stakes winners. There are no American horse sales tomorrow, but perhaps this list of underpriced gems will inspire some of you to get up at 4 a.m. and drive to your local Wal-Mart in search of a flat-screen television for less $200.

First, some perspective. There have been 137 American Graded Stakes winners of 2009 sold at public auction as yearlings for an average price of $199,319 and a median of $105,000. That’s well above this year’s average price ($48,094) and median ($10,000) for yearlings sold, according to statistics from bloodhorse.com

Forty-five American Graded Stakes winners of 2009 sold as 2-year-olds. Their average price was $398,681 and their median was $170,000. Again, that’s well above the average ($48,797) and median ($20,000) for all 2-year-olds sold at public auction this year. (Pinhooked horses are counted in both categories.)

Of the 137 American Graded Stakes winners of 2009 that sold as yearlings, 43 of them sold for $50,000 or less—nearly one-third. That’s pretty good value!

Of the 45 American Graded Stakes winners of 2009 that sold as 2-year-olds, just 8 sold for $50,000 or less.

One of those bargains is Haynesfield, whose victory last weekend in the Grade 3 Discovery Handicap at Aqueduct was his first AGS win. Haynesfield was picked up for just $20,000 at the 2008 Keeneland April 2-year-olds in training sale. It was a good deal for his owners, but perhaps not for his seller; the Speightstown colt brought $100,000 at the previous year’s Keeneland September yearling sale.

The other top five 2-year-old sale bargains are G2 Distaff Handicap winner Secret Gypsy, $10,000; G1 Champagne winner Homeboykris, $11,000; G3 William Donald Schaefer Stakes winner No Advantage, $20,000; and G2 Razorback Stakes winner Let It Rock, $24,000. Like Haynesfield, Homeboykris sold for more as a yearling ($50,000) than he did as a 2-year-old, as did No Advantage ($35,000). There’s no telling why they brought less as juveniles than as yearlings, but I would bet dollars for donuts (and I love donuts) that veterinarians had something to do with it.

The blue-light special from the yearling sales among 2009 AGS winners is G3 Berkeley Handicap winner Autism Awareness, who sold for the bargain basement price of $1,000 at the CTBA’s Northern California sale. While it’s great value for the buyer, it’s a mixed blessing for the California commercial yearling market, or what there is left of it.

The other four steals were G3 Turnback the Alarm Stakes winner Unbridled Belle, $4,000; G3 Bowling Green Handicap winner Grand Couturier, $6,285; G2 Las Palmas Handicap winner Tuscan Evening, $8,823; and the $9,500 purchase Mine That Bird, winner of the G1 Kentucky Derby (though not for his original owners, who sold him privately for $400,000 late in his 2-year-old season.

There really are some deals out there, and when it comes to horses you don’t have to get up at 4 a.m. and fight the maddening crowds.

Gone Astray will be a short-priced favorite to win his third consecutive graded stakes Saturday when he takes on five 3-year-olds in the Grade 3 Discovery Handicap at Aqueduct Saturday, one of four graded races across the country this weekend—all on Saturday.

One of those opponents is Haynesfield, a three-time stakes winner over the Aqueduct inner track last winter who has won one of two restricted New York-bred stakes since returning to the races this fall for trainer Steve Asmussen.

Gone Astray, carrying the Phipps Stable silks, is coming off victories in the Pennsylvania and Ohio Derbies—both Grade 2 events. The late-maturing son of Dixie Union had only won two of his previous 10 starts for trainer Shug McGaughey, He carries top weight of 122 pounds, conceding from four to seven pounds to his rivals.

Post time for the nine-furlong Discovery is 3:44 p.m., and the race will be shown on both HRTV and TVG (all times Eastern).

The Grade 3 Kennedy Road at Woodbine has attracted a field of 10 going six furlongs on the all-weather Polytrack surface. Jungle Wave is the morning-line favorite, but don’t overlook Field Commission, who closed with a rush last out to win the Nearctic Stakes on the Woodbine turf. Earlier this year, the Danny Vella-trained son of Service Stripe earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 105 while winning the Grade 3 Vigil on Woodbine’s Polytrack. Another contender is the very accomplished El Brujo, who’s won six of 13 for trainer Malcom Pierce and won the Grade 3 Perryville on Keeneland’s Polytrack in his last out.

The Kennedy Road will be shown on TVG at 4:23 p.m.

A field of nine graded stakes veteran fillies and mares go postward in Churchill Downs’ Cardinal Handicap Saturday, a Grade 3 going nine furlongs on turf. Acoma is the 121-pound high weight and morning line favorite on the strength of her four previous graded stakes wins and seven of 13 lifetime victories. Saturday is Calvin Borel bobblehead day, though, and Borel is a very live mount for trainer Graham Motion, Leamington. She comes off a dismal effort on a boggy turf course in the Grade 1 Flower Bowl Handicap at Belmont Park but should find Saturday’s firm turf much more to her liking.

The Cardinal can be seen on HRTV at 4:37 p.m.

Saturday’s final graded stakes is the Grade 3 Hollywood Prevue, a prep for the Hollywood Futurity. Bob Baffert, enjoying an exceptional year, has two of the race’s leading contenders in Indian Firewater and Maceo. A field of eight juveniles has been entered for the seven furlong race, which goes at 7:05 p.m. It will be shown on TVG.