Kay Willis and Brandy Pinske Stable’s Fools Gold continued his impressive four-year-old campaign on Saturday night at Balmoral Park in the $17,000 Invitational Pace

as he knocked off seven rivals in a blistering 1:48.4, making him the fastest pacer of the year in the Prairie State.

The Nelson Willis-trained son of I Am A Fool was content to watch Fort Silky and Mattoutflying battle through tough early splits of :27.4 and :54.4.

With driver Marcus Miller putting the long striding pacer into action on the backside, Fools Gold quickly charged right by the leaders as the field moved around the final bend.

Showing the way by the three-quarter station in 1:21.2, Fools Gold looked to be well within himself as he paced away from his rivals to win by two lengths. Well To Do Guru (Casey Leonard) finished second while Four Starzzz Z (Travis Seekman) was third.

The win was the ninth in 13 starts this year for Fools Gold, who has only been out of the money one time in 2011. Sent off as the 1-2 favourite he returned $3.00, $2.40 and $2.10 while running his career bankroll up to $93,239.

(Balmoral Park)