Glenners' Picks
04/15/00
by GLEN GALLIVAN04/15/00
Wire To Wire Racing Editor
Keeneland Picks
Race 1 — A. J. Top, Sing Out Baby and Last Boat East
Race 2 — Blinding Element, Sparkling Sea and Heavenly Dawn
Race 3 — I'm Just A Peach, Bravehearted Lady and Chase Island
Race 4 — Gone Fishin, Draupner and Mountain Ballad
Race 5 — Eli Lilliput, Connected and Willowick Lad
Race 6 — Fantastic Finish, Howbaddouwantit and Garcon Rouge
Race 7 — Black Mercury, Connie's Magic and Legendary Manner
Race 8 — Illiquidity, Queen's Legend and Wood The Shoe Fit
Race 9 — High Yield, More Than Ready and Hal's Hope
Race 10 — Pennant Power, Valid Clearance and Chehaw
Wood Memorial — Exchange Rate, Red Bullet and Fusaichi Pegasus
Arkansas Derby — Scottish Halo, Polish Miner and Ronton
A closer look at race 4
Gone Fishin exits a tough fourth-place finish in his first start this year. The 4-year-old needed the race, as it marked his first attempt in four months. The son of Honor Grades held his own against some competitive turf fields at the beginning of last season, finishing first or second in his first five grass efforts. Then he began to show signs of tiring from a long, drawn-out campaign, failing to hit the board in his last three races.
Today, the Florida-bred take on a decent field of turf runners and it appears to be a softer spot than he’s been facing. He possesses enough early speed to place near the front, however he doesn’t have to be on the lead to produce a top effort. Actually, I’m expecting his jockey, John Velazquez, to get his mount to relax through the opening stages, rating behind the early leaders. There’s some other speed in here, so he should get an honest pace to stalk, but it won’t be too demanding to keep up with. As we have discussed a number of times during this meet, front-runners have difficulty lasting over this grass course, with stalkers and come-from-the-clouds closers having an advantage.
Therefore, look for Gone Fishin to establish a good position soon after the break, then settling into a ground-saving trip. As the leaders battle up front, he’ll take it easy, waiting for his rivals to wear each other out. Rounding the turn for home, our top selection will kick into gear, storming past his exhausted opponents. Let's play Gone Fishin to win and then play some exacta and trifecta tickets by using Draupner and Mountain Ballad.
Also see Glenners' Big 3 Pick 3 Analysis.
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