Fans had their first look at some of this season’s Illinois-conceived and foaled two-year-old pacing crops last night at Balmoral Park, as a field of seven youngsters squared off in the $5,000 Jimmy Sunshine Stakes.
As has been the case in recent years, veteran conditioner Robert Phillips sent another youngster out ready to roll for his debut. Phillip's Droppinthehammer--Alberts Magic colt, Als Hammered, came flying down the stretch to record a one-length victory in 1:59.4.
Reserved in fifth through the early going, the good-looking brown colt was moved to the outside by driver Marcus Miller as the field headed by the half-mile mark.
Following live cover which was being provided by Fox Valley Cadbury (driven by Ridge Warren), Als Hammered was just two and a half lengths off the lead of the pace-setting Fox Valley Rainier (Brian Carpenter), who had strolled through splits of :30.2, 1:02.1 and 1:32.3.
Tipping three wide for the stretch drive, Als Hammered proceeded to unleash a big :26.4 final quarter to go from fourth to first in the lane for the win. Fox Valley Cadbury held on well to finish second after the tough first-over journey. Daves Bid was third.
With a pair of carryover pools in the Pick 4 and the High 5 wagers on Sunday night, fans from throughout the country showed their support for the Balmoral product by producing two of the biggest pools in recent history for the two very popular wagers. Sunday night’s Pick 4, with its guaranteed pool of $25,000 and a carryover in excess of $12,000, ended up with a whopping $73,862 wagered into the pool. The High 5, which sported a carryover of more than $13,000 heading into Sunday’s action, produced a pool of $50,915.
(Balmoral)