Five Iron Wins Fort Marcy S.
Saturday, Belmont Park
FORT MARCY S.-GIII, $150,000, BEL, 5-3, 4yo/up,
1 1/8mT, 1:48 1/5, gd.
1–FIVE IRON, 119, c, 4, by Sharp Humor
1st Dam: Tee Off, by Thunder Gulch
2nd Dam: Only Queens, by Transworld
3rd Dam: Queens Only, by Marshua’s Dancer
($17,000 yrl ’11 KEEJAN). O/B-Fred Michael Allor
(KY); T-Brian A Lynch; J-Michael J Luzzi. $90,000.
Lifetime Record: 14-5-2-2, $491,060. *1/2 to Back
Spin (Successful Appeal), GSP, $169,350. Click for
the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick
Rating: A+.
2–Summer Front, 119, h, 5, War Front–Rose of
Summer, by El Prado (Ire). ($475,000 2yo ‘11
KEEAPR). O-Waterford Stable; B-Graceville Breeding
(KY); T-Christophe Clement. $30,000.
3–Tetradrachm, 115, g, 5, Badge of Silver–Igraine, by
Cherokee Run. O-Wachtel Stable; B-Mrs Jerry
Amerman (KY); T-William I Mott. $15,000.
Margins: 1, 2, NK. Odds: 19.70, 3.05, 10.60.
Also Ran: Speaking of Which (Ire), Unbridled Ocean, Sky Blazer, Swift Warrior, Ghurair, Manighar (Fr), Seal Cove.
Five Iron capped a three-race win streak with a 2 1/2-length victory in the Sept. 1 GIII Saranac S. over the Saratoga lawn last September and concluded his 2013 campaign with a third-place effort in the GIII Hawthorne Derby. He opened 2014 with a dull ninth-place efforr in the Mar. 29 GIII Appleton S. at Gulfstream. The chestnut colt sprinted out to the early lead and opened up by a wide margin through fractions of :24.52 and :47.21. Given a breather turning for home, Five Iron found more down the lane and gamely held sway over a late-closing Summer Front. “When I spoke with [trainer Brian Lynch] he basically told me he’s a quirky, really strong horse,” explained winning rider Mike Luzzi. “If you try to rate him, or take hold of him, he’ll fight you and he’ll run off. It probably looked like he ran off, but I had him. I had him, he didn’t have me, which I was happy about. When we got that far in front, at the three-eighths pole, I said, ‘Might as well get away now and not wait for them to catch me.’ It worked out.”