Printer Friendly Page 

Open Water pours it on to take Everett

Open Water was a smooth winner of the Everett (Benoit Photos) Southern Equine Stable, Mike Smith and Whispering Oaks Farm's Open Water bided her time well back of the dueling leaders in Saturday's Grade 2, $150,250 Marjorie L. Everett Handicap before putting in her bid just exiting the turn and pulling off the one-length victory under jockey Joe Talamo. The Eric Guillot-trained daughter of Include ran 1 1/16 miles over Hollywood Park's Cushion Track in 1:44 to earn her first stakes win. Maker or Breaker settled on the lead when the gates opened with Sister Kate just to her inside down on the rail. Those two drew away from the rest of the field through splits of :23 1/5, :46 2/5 and 1:10 4/5, but the swift pace took its toll on the duo. Both Lady of Fifty and Open Water were making up serious ground as the front runners rounded the turn and soon swamped them, with Open Water going best of all. The dark bay miss easily drew away to finally score her first black-type win in her ninth try. "Her last two works were very impressive," Talamo said. "She galloped out real strong. It really worked out great. You could tell they were rolling up front. On this track you just can't go that fast early. She was in between horses at about the 4 1/2 (furlong pole) and (Lady of Fifty) was kind of pressing me a little, so I took back and went outside of her. At that time, she took a couple of breathers and I think that really helped down the lane. She was really game."

Open Water paid $21.40, $6.20 and $3.20 as the 9-1 second longest shot on the board. Lady of Fifty, the 3-5 favorite, came next and had 4 1/2 lengths to spare over I Dazzle, while Maker or Breaker filled out the superfecta. Sister Kate and Lady Aspen completed the order under the wire after More Chocolate was scratched.

"She got in the gate and went to kicking," said I Dazzle's rider, Garrett Gomez. "She got her left rear leg caught up a little bit on the side. It was on a pad and she wasn't scrambling, so I don't think it affected her performance."

Open Water made a splash in her career openers, taking her debut by five lengths and then posting a 10 1/2-length optional claiming score for then trainer Oscar Modica while going a mile in both cases on Turfway Park's synthetic Polytrack.

Subsequently privately purchased and transferred to Guillot, the Kentucky-bred miss found herself on the West Coast making her stakes bow in the Las Virgenes just a month later. Open Water finished third on that occasion in her dirt debut before throwing in a subpar seventh in the Hollywood Oaks next out. Placings in the San Clemente Handicap and Del Mar Oaks followed, then the dark bay posted close fifths in both the Garden City when shipping to Belmont Park last September and Autumn Miss in her return to California in October.

Open Water closed out 2012 with a runner-up effort in the Bayakoa Handicap on December 8 and entered the Everett off a sixth-place run in the La Canada in her four-year-old bow on January 20. She's now accumulated $270,750 in career earnings to go along with her 14-3-2-3 mark.

"She loves this track, that's why I gave her a little freshening after Santa Anita," Guillot explained. "She danced every dance last year and she was always the bridesmaid, never the bride. She only got back April 1.

"She's got a great pedigree. Maybe she's good enough to be a Southern Equine broodmare. She's a Grade 2 winner now and her second dam is Flanders. I think she can go a mile and one-eighth and I'll probably run her back in the (Grade 1) Vanity (Handicap on June 15)."

Bred by Overbrook Farm, Open Water is a granddaughter of multiple Grade 1-winning champion Flanders being out of the A.P. Indy mare Biscayne Bay. Her dam is a half-sister to champion and black-type producer Surfside as well as Grade 2 victor Battle Plan.

Open Water's fourth dam is the Grade 3-scoring Secretariat mare Cinegita, and farther back this female family has also produced Broodmare of the Year Ace Card and classic-winning Horse of the Year One Count.

Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com

More Graded Recaps:

Bradester takes flight in Salvator Mile

Dogwood Trail leads to Azalea winner's circle

Grand Bili captures Carry Back

Big Blue Kitten regains United Nations title

Merry Meadow crowned in Princess Rooney

Send this article to a friend