Personal Diary rallies for Del Mar Oaks upset

Personal Diary entered Saturday's $300,750

Del Mar

Oaks winless since taking her maiden debut last August at Ellis Park, but

exited the nine-furlong turf test a Grade 1 winner for trainer Victoria Oliver.

The City Zip filly and jockey Corey Nakatani ran in last as My Conquestadory

established splits of :23 1/5, :46 4/5 and 1:11 on the front end. Sea Queen was

chasing in second while Famous Alice and Tepin kept each other company in the

third flight.

Sea Queen moved up to challenge My Conquestadory rounding the turn and

emerged in the lane with a short head lead. It wasn't long, though, before

Personal Diary came flying down the center of the track. The 9-1 shot had split

rivals on the turn and kept motoring in the stretch to be 2 3/4 lengths clear on

the wire. She stopped the clock in 1:47 2/5 over the firm grass to pay $20.20

for the win.

There was a five-horse photo for second as much of the pack converged at the

same time. Stellaris got runner-up honors by a neck over My Conquestadory, while

7-5 favorite Sea Queen was another nose back in fourth. Famous Alice followed by

a head and it was a half-length back to Diversy Harbor. Odisseia trailed by 6

1/2 lengths but still managed to get her neck in front of last-placer Tepin on

the line.

Istanford was scratched in favor of running in, and winning, Friday evening's

Sandy Blue Handicap. Maibaby was also withdrawn.

The best stakes performance Personal Diary was able to muster prior to

Saturday came two back in the June 14 Regret at Churchill Downs. The chestnut

miss was only a half-length behind in third, but was elevated to second by the

stewards via disqualification of the winner that day. In her only other stakes

tries, Personal Diary ran third in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies in her

second career start and seventh one race later in the Alcibiades at Keeneland.

The Kentucky-bred sophomore, who is campaigned by breeders G. Watts Humphrey

Jr. and St. George Farm Racing LLC, entered the Del Mar Oaks off a head second

in a July 27 off-the-turf optional claimer over the track. She improved her

career record to read 10-2-4-2 while nearly tripling her lifetime earnings to

$278,136.

Personal Diary is out of the winning Tiznow mare Latest Scoop, and comes from

a rich black-type female family. Her third dam is multiple Grade 1 queen

Banker's Lady, who would go on in the breeding shed to produce dual Grade 2

victor Banker's Gold as well as the dams of Group 3 diva Charity Belle and Grade

1-placed stakes scorer Bank Merger.

Personal Diary's fourth dam is multiple Grade 3-placed stakes heroine

Impetuous Gal, grandam of Grade 1-winning millionaires Daisy Devine and Ecton

Park. This female line also includes 2009 champion female sprinter Informed

Decision.

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