Hollywood announces spring/summer stakes

The 74th running of the Grade 1, $500,000 Hollywood Gold Cup and the Grade 1,

$350,000 American Oaks headline a stakes schedule worth more than $6.8 million

for the 2013 Spring/Summer meet at Hollywood Park.

The 75th anniversary season begins April 25 and continues through July 14.

Over 1 1/4 miles on Cushion Track, the Gold Cup, which was won a year ago by

Game On Dude, will be run July 6 and is part of a stakes doubleheader. The card

will also feature the Grade 2, $150,000 Royal Heroine Mile for older fillies and

mares on turf.

The American Oaks, which featured a rail-skimming victory by favored Lady of

Shamrock in 2012, will be contested July 13 and is the last of six Grade 1s

during the meet.

An invitational for three-year-old fillies at 1 1/4 miles on turf, the

American Oaks anchors a program that also includes the Grade 2, $200,000 A Gleam

Handicap for older females at seven furlongs, the $150,000 Landaluce Stakes for

two-year-old fillies at six furlongs and the $150,000 Hollywood Juvenile

Championship for two-year-olds at six furlongs.

"Once again, the Hollywood Gold Cup and the American Oaks are the highlights

of the season,"' said Martin Panza, Hollywood Park's racing secretary and vice

president-racing. "The meet should get off to a good start with the

well-received Golden State series continuing on California Gold Rush Day (April

27)."

A Grade 1 on turf, the $300,000 Shoemaker Mile, will be run June 29, along

with the $250,000 Triple Bend Handicap, a Grade 1 at seven furlongs.

For the second consecutive year, the Grade 2 Swaps will be offered on July 4.

Offering a purse of $150,000, the Swaps, which is for three-year-olds at 1 1/8

miles, is the main attraction of a holiday card that kicks off the second to

last week of the 49-day meet.

The Hollywood Gold Cup and American Oaks programs are among 10 multiple

stakes days at the meeting. The first is Gold Rush XIV, the annual showcase for

California-breds.

Run at 1 1/8 miles, the $300,000 Snow Chief and the $250,000 Melair are the

main Gold Rush events. The Snow Chief is for three-year-olds while the Melair is

for three-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles. The other notable Gold Rush stakes

are the $125,000 B. Thoughtful, which is restricted to older fillies and mares,

and the $125,000 Tiznow for older horses. Both are run at 7 1/2 furlongs.

In addition to the simulcast of the Kentucky Derby, the May 4 card will

feature the Grade 2, $150,000 Mervyn LeRoy Handicap and the $70,000 Cool Frenchy.

The LeRoy, at 1 1/16 miles, is the first prep for the Gold Cup.

Along with the simulcast of the Belmont Stakes, the primary race June 8 is

the $200,000 Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap, a Grade 2 at 1 1/4 miles on

turf. There will be two other grass stakes for three-year-old fillies that

afternoon -- the Grade 2, $150,000 Honeymoon Handicap at 1 1/8 miles and the

$70,000 Manhattan Beach at six furlongs.

A Grade 2 at 1 1/8 miles, the $150,000 Californian, which was taken by Game

On Dude in 2012, will be run June 1.

The Vanity, which was captured by longshot Love Theway Youare a year ago,

will be offered June 15, the richest of three stakes that afternoon. A Grade 1

for older fillies and mares at 1 1/8 miles, the Vanity has a purse of $250,000.

The other stakes on the Vanity undercard are for two-year-olds at 5 1/2

furlongs -- the $100,000 Willard L. Proctor and the $100,000 Cinderella, which

is restricted to fillies.

The stakes schedule commences April 25 with the $70,000 Harry Henson. Named

in honor of the legendary track announcer who worked at Hollywood Park from

1958-1982, the Henson is for three-year-olds at six furlongs on turf.

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