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Original Intent, claimed for $8,000 in September of 2020 at Churchill Downs and trained by Bentley Combs, won his third race in a row on Saturday in Oaklawn Park’s famous farewell for the meet, the “Trail’s End”.

The gray son of Creative Cause has racked up earnings of $73,490 in four starts this year after winning back to back races at the Fair Grounds on the dirt and turf prior to his Oaklawn Park success.

Congrats to the entire team for checking off a major bucket list item!

Whereshetoldmetogo picked up where he left off last year, with another stakes win, marking his third stakes victory in a row and his fourth time in a row finishing first past the wire.

The now six year old Whereshetoldmetogo, most known for his biting exploits at three, now has 10 wins in 25 starts with earnings of $586,291.

Ten Strike Racing has 11 two year old’s being broken at Paul Sharp’s farm in Williston, Florida, and they are progressing as well as you would hope. Below are some updated photos of some of our exciting prospects.

 

Lord Nelson – Reina Maria, colt ($460,000 Keeneland September)

Classic Empire – Rever de Vous, colt ($375,000 Fasig-Tipton September)

Liam’s Map – Locked On, colt ($220,000 Fasig-Tipton October)

Khozan – Battling Brook, filly ($50,000 Keeneland November 2019, half-sister to Warrior’s Charge)

 

The breaking process will continue into the early spring and we hope to have them with their respective trainers before summer.

 

Ten Strike Racing went three for three at the Fair Grounds yesterday, winning second race on the card with Longleggedlaverne before taking the late double with Channel Won and Luck of the Draw respectively.

Trained by Bentley Combs, Longleggedlaverne swooped late to take the second race on the card in what was also his second race off the claim.

In the 8th race, Channel Won went gate to wire over 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf in his first race off the claim before Luck of the Draw posted an emphatic 2 1/2 length score in a state-bred first level allowance going 1 mile and 70 yards on the dirt with both horses coming out of the barn of trainer Matt Shirer.

From Bloodhorse:

The economics of horse ownership and playing the ponies are uphill battles, with owners strapped by the high cost of training fragile Thoroughbreds and horseplayers pitted against a takeout significantly higher than sports wagering.

Yet Marshall Gramm, an economics professor at Rhodes College in Tennessee, is realizing sizable returns in both endeavors. Gramm collected $492,750 by winning the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge contest in November, and the racing partnership he heads with co-founder Clay Sanders, Ten Strike Racing, surpassed $3 million in earnings in 2020, including partnerships with outside owners.

In total, Ten Strike had 65 victories from 332 starts, connecting at nearly a 20% strike rate. The partnership recorded wins with 12 different trainers at 16 different tracks, notching nine stakes wins.

Graded stakes winners for their stable included Dot Matrix, winner of the John B. Connally Turf Cup Stakes (G3T), and Warrior’s Charge, winner of both the Razorback Handicap (G3) and Philip H. Iselin Stakes (G3).

Additionally, other 2020 stakes horses owned by Ten Strike Racing, either solely or in partnership, have flourished over the past month, including Portal Creek, who came within a neck of capturing the Go for Wand Handicap (G3) when second at Aqueduct Racetrack Dec. 5; Lucky Move, who triumphed in the Obeah Stakes and Empire Distaff Handicapbefore taking the Dec. 13 Bay Ridge Stakes at Aqueduct; and Whereshetoldmetogo, who notched his fourth black-type win in taking the Dec. 26 Dave’s Friend Stakes at Laurel Park.

Gramm’s accomplishments, both as a horseplayer and owner, might be compared to owning Netflix and Amazon stock in today’s marketplace.

The results could not have come for a bigger fan of the sport. Gramm, whose passion for horse racing began as a gambler after reading handicapping books authored by Andrew Beyer, regularly participates in horseplayer contests in addition to his active involvement as an owner. He has played in the BCBC five of the last six years, with his best finish being a fifth in 2018 before winning it in the fall.

“To win is kind of legacy-making for me, since I’m kind of known as an economist and a horse owner, and I think of myself as a horseplayer first,” Gramm said. “It’s important that my original attachment to the game is through being a horseplayer. Everything else is secondary. My interest in horse ownership is only in part enabled by being a horseplayer. My love of horse racing came from betting first.”

From that love evolved an interest in ownership, though his first venture was not an immediate success. Seeing a pedigree he liked in a Gulch mare named Aunt Dot Dotrunning for a $5,000 tag in claiming race in August 2008 at Philadelphia Park, which is now known as Parx Racing, he and some friends made arrangements with trainer Donald White to claim her with the intention of ultimately making her a broodmare.

White needed to win a three-way shake to acquire the filly, and after he won the shake, another owner immediately offered $10,000 for her, Gramm said. The offer was declined.

Before she was retired, she lost all eight of her subsequent starts at higher claiming and starter allowance levels, only once finishing in the money.

“A wise man would have taken that money, taken the $5,000 profit,” Gramm said. “But we ended up keeping the mare and winning that three-way shake and turning down that money sort of made all the difference. She’s had two stakes winners, including Dot Matrix, who I still own and has earned over $650,000 and is a grade 3 winner.

“In part, just pure luck, the first horse I claimed turned out to be this nice broodmare. And what I thought was a nice pedigree at the time, I wouldn’t think so now. She’s for me the foundation of all this.”

From there, his ownership operation grew, with he and Sanders claiming horses together in 2010 after a chance meeting when Gramm spoke economics to a group of charter financial analysts, of which Sanders was an attendee. Sharing a common interest in horse racing, somewhat rare for two individuals living in Tennessee, where there is no live racing, they became fast friends.

“It’s like you’re both members of the same cult,” Gramm said.

They would become partners in High Point Thoroughbred Partners, the leading owners in 2013 at Parx Racing and Monmouth Park. The group was also the ninth leading owner by wins in 2013 throughout North America.

Eventually, he and Sanders pursued other partnerships, buying stakes in horses in racing ventures managed by bloodstock agent Peter Bradley. The 2014 female turf champion Dayatthespa was one runner in which Sanders was a partner.

Through their association with Bradley, Sanders and Gramm met Liz Crow, who had joined Bradley Thoroughbreds as director of racing after graduating college. Now a rising star in the bloodstock industry, she was still establishing her career just five or six years ago.

Sanders and Gramm spotted potential in Crow, who purchased eventual stakes winner Allied Air Raid for them when acting on behalf of Bradley Thoroughbreds, the owners said. Allied Air Raid, a son of Midshipman, was a $50,000 purchase from the Paul Sharp consignment at the 2014 Ocala Breeders’ Sales June 2-Year-Olds and Horses of Racing Age Sale.

More buys followed, and Crow would become the stable manager and bloodstock agent for Ten Strike Racing, formed by Gramm and Sanders in 2016.

“Really, I was completely an unknown factor, as was (trainer) Brad Cox at the time, and they really put a lot of faith in me and encouraged me to go out on my own, made me think I could do it,” Crow said. “Really, without them, I’m not sure I would be where I am, to be honest. You need somebody to say, ‘Yeah, you can do this. Go out and do it on your own, and we’ll be there to back you. You can book our mares, and you can buy us a couple of yearlings.’ It gave me the confidence I needed to take that leap.”

Though Crow now has a far longer list of clients, she remains committed to Ten Strike Racing, group chatting with Gramm and Sanders daily and texting them more than 10 times a day as they plot races and communicate with the dozen trainers they employ.

The most well-known of those trainers is Brad Cox, whose barn has grown in scope and quality since Ten Strike began employing him about five years ago. At the time Cox had 20-30 horses, Gramm and Sanders said. Now he has one of the largest stables in the country with strings this winter in Kentucky, Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas.

During their first meeting, Sanders recalled how the Kentucky-based Cox possessed a keen knowledge of their horses, primarily claiming runners in the Mid-Atlantic at that time.

“He could tell you what (race classification) condition they were, who trained them. They weren’t even on the circuit he was training on,” Sanders said. “His dedication and obsessiveness with horses—in other areas of my life, I’ve always known uber-successful people to be obsessive with their craft, and you could tell right away Brad was one of those people.”

As Cox has become more in demand, training more high-level runners, including some for Godolphin and Juddmonte Farms, Ten Strike Racing understands some of its horses might need to go to other trainers, some of whom are on smaller circuits. Some are young, ambitious trainers like Brittany Russell, Matt Shirer, and Jason Barkley, and others offer more experience, such as Randy Matthews and Juan Carlos Guerrero, trainers Gramm describes as almost like family to him.

Crow communicates with Ten Strike’s trainers, though Sanders and Gramm also do so. The owners are also keen to take her advice, though they admit to having made one error after speaking with her years ago. The agent had bought prospects during the 2016 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, and they and other clients analyzed her presented offerings. Calling themselves pedigree snobs, Sanders and Gramm said they chose an Uncle Mo  filly that didn’t work out, while another one of the yearlings, a Tapizar  filly, went to the partnership of Michael Dubb, Sol Kumin’s Monomoy Stables, The Elkstone Group, and Bethlehem Stables.

That Tapizar filly became champion Monomoy Girl, a winner of $4.4 million who sold at The November Sale, Fasig-Tipton’s premier breeding stock sale, last year from Crow and Bradley Weisbord’s ELiTE Sales consignment for $9.5 million. Monomoy Girl remains in training for Spendthrift Farm with Cox at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

Gramm later bet on Crow and Cox in the BCBC, which included $322,000 in prize money in addition to the more than $170,000 he won in the live-money tournament over two days. The Cox-trained and Crow-selected Aunt Pearl was a day-one play for Gramm in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T), and the next day, he went “all in” on Monomoy Girl to win the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1). He liked their merits as a handicapper, though admits his faith in Crow, Cox, and the other connections in their patient, Distaff-focused management of Monomoy Girl left him feeling she was poised for a peak effort.

Both prevailed, leaving him in a position to aggressively play sizable exactas in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), focusing on Authentic , who he envisioned as a threat to steal the race, with Tom’s d’Etat  and Improbable.

Authentic and Improbable ran 1-2, and Gramm edged friend Jonathon Kinchen for the BCBC title. He acknowledged the stars were aligned for him on the final day.

“Monomoy Girl got a great trip and Swiss Skydiver stumbled, and Authentic got loose on the lead,” he said.

He savored the victory at home with his wife and family in Memphis, not attending the Breeders’ Cup due to COVID-19.

“We had greek takeout and watched ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ with the kids,” Gramm said. “Hell, I didn’t even crack open a bottle of whiskey. It was a regular Saturday night at home.”

The movie choice was apropos. As Ferris Bueller opined during the film, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

From the Daily Racing Form.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – A year after losing a nose decision to Mrs. Orb in the Bay Ridge Stakes, Lucky Move turned the tables on that mare in Sunday’s $100,000 Bay Ridge, beating her by a half-length in the race for New York-bred females at Aqueduct.

In a race run similar to last year’s Bay Ridge, Lucky Move, under Kendrick Carmouche, surged by Mrs. Orb and Dylan Davis three jumps from the wire to get the victory. Last year, Lucky Move rallied from farther off the pace and made the lead a jump before and a jump after the wire, but not when it counted.

“I had that nose in mind from last year when I lost this race,” said Carmouche, who rode Lucky Move in 2019 as well. “I knew they were going to go slow up front, I just had to sit and bide my time and hopefully my filly kicked with the other filly.”

Last year, the half-mile went in 52.30 seconds. On Sunday, the half-mile went in 52.64 as Singular Sensation, under Manny Franco, set the pace, stalked by Mrs. Orb with Firenze Fire in third and Lucky Move last, but always within two lengths.

It took until inside the sixteenth pole for Mrs. Orb to wrest the lead from Singular Sensation. Carmouche waited as long as he could to really ask Lucky Move to run and, when he did, she responded to get there in time.

Lucky Move, a 6-year-old daughter of Lookin At Lucky owned by Ten Strike Racing and trained by Juan Carlos Guerrero, covered the 1 1/8 miles 1:56.54 and returned $4.40 as the second choice.

“My horse kicked really good for me and I just had to ride her home from there,” Carmouche said. “She had me in a good spot the whole way.”

The win was the seventh from 32 career starts for Lucky Move and her second straight stakes win, having also beaten Mrs. Orb in the Empire Distaff in October at Belmont.

Davis said he felt Mrs. Orb was in a good spot early on Sunday, but she had to work too hard to get by Singular Sensation in the stretch.

“She locked eyes with [Singular Sensation] and barely got by her,” Davis said. “She’s a steady grinder, once she gets there she kind of [eases] up a little bit and here comes [Lucky Move] on the outside.”

It was the fifth straight second-place finish this year for Mrs. Orb, who is 0 for 6 since winning last year’s Bay Ridge.

Mrs. Orb was second by 1 1/2 lengths over Singular Sensation. Firenze Freedom finished last. Kilkea and Sky Kitten were scratched.

Portal Creek, who was claimed for $25,000 by Ten Strike Racing in February of this year, made her graded stakes debut on Saturday in the G3 Go For Wand at Aqueduct.

Showing her trademark speed, she put on an outstanding performance, pushing co-favorite Sharp Starr to her limits from the top of the lane to the wire. While Portal Creek would finish 2nd, she was only beaten a neck while posting a career best 96 Beyer Speed Figure after back to back victories at Parx.

From the Paulick Report.

Ten Strike Racing Whereshetoldmetogo, disqualified from a stakes win in his previous start, outran favored Laki down the stretch and survived a double claim of foul to capture the eighth running of the $100,000 Frank Whiteley.

Laki broke sharply from his outside post but ceded the early lead to longshots Arthur’s Hope and Zenden, in front after a sharp opening quarter-mile in 21.59 seconds. Day the Music Died, who broke a step slow, rushed up the rail to be third with Laki settled in fourth.

Owned in Partnership with Madaket Stables, Michael Kisber and Black Cloud Racing Stable, Whereshetoldmetogo ($9.80), racing in mid-pack early on, began gaining ground quickly along the inside around the turn as the half went in 44.42 seconds and Laki was steered to the far outside. Whereshetoldmetogo and jockey Sheldon Russell split Day the Music Died and Zenden approaching the stretch and took over the lead as Laki swept in to challenge on the outside. The two battled through the lane with Whereshetoldmetogo holding off Frank J. De Francis Dash (G3) winner Laki by a nose.

Both jockey Horacio Karamanos and trainer Damon Dilodovico lodged a claim of foul against Whereshetoldmetogo while fourth-place finisher Charge to Victory claimed against Laki, both incidents coming outside the quarter pole. Both were disallowed.

“We had a good trip. He came up the inside,” winning trainer Brittany Russell said. “I know we had a little issue there and I was hoping we didn’t get DQ’d but it looked like it wasn’t as big of a thing as maybe we originally thought. I felt like our horse was full of run and he’s tough and he’s game and he kept his head down, so I was confident.”

Whereshetoldmetogo was racing third time for Russell, having run fourth in the Sept. 5 Primonetta at Laurel and disqualified to second for lugging in mid-stretch of the Sept. 26 New Castle after hitting the wire 1 ½ lengths in front.

From Past the Wire.

Making the biggest wagering score of his life, Marshall Gramm, an economics professor at Rhodes College and a racehorse owner from Memphis, Tenn., nailed a cold exacta with Authentic and Improbable for $170,250 in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) to propel him to victory last Saturday in the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge.

The 12th annual Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, Thoroughbred racing’s biggest live-money tournament, held Nov. 6-7, featured 430 top horseplayers wagering on the two-day card of the 37th Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington.

Gramm, 47, finished with a total score of 170,250 points. Combined with his first-place prize of $322,500, Gramm had total winnings of $492,750. That put him ahead of second-place finisher Jonathon Kinchen, NYRA/Fox Sports television handicapper and analyst. Kinchen compiled 161,025.20 points, and combined with his second-place prize of $215,000, he had total winnings of $376,025.20. Dylan Donnelly, from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., finished third with 136,200 points and $118,250 in prize money, for total winnings of $254,450.

In this year’s BCBC, each player was required to fund a $2,500 buy-in and a $7,500 betting bankroll ($10,000 total). All buy-in monies were applied to the prize pool, making the total prize pool $1,075,000. Players made real wagers (win, place, show, exacta, trifecta and daily double) with their $7,500 bankroll on 22 races over the two days and kept all monies earned from their wagering.

A big sports fan who grew up in Washington, D.C, Gramm loved “numbers and statistics,” and learned the handicapping game by reading books from noted racing journalist and author Andrew Beyer.

Gramm has played in the BCBC five of the last six years, registering his best finish in 2018, taking fifth place. He has been teaching economics at Rhodes College since 2000 and currently chairs the department. Gramm has taught a course at Rhodes called Economics of Racetrack Wagering Markets, which he describes as a class on “decision making, price discovery and probability.” Along with Clay Sanders, he is also co-managing partner of Ten Strike Racing, a stable that has won 338 races, including stakes winners Dot Matrix, Long on Value and Warrior’s Charge.

Gramm experienced a range of emotions when he learned that he had won the tournament. “When I hit (the exacta), I was thrilled, my biggest score ever. You know you’ve had a great day, but it was nerve-racking, and a relief, and I will always be able to say that I am a BCBC Champion.”

In this year’s BCBC, Gramm was in contention throughout. On Friday, he cashed a $600 daily-double wager on Vequist in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1), followed by Aunt Pearl (IRE) capturing the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1). Those bets earned him $17,350 and he closed out the first day of competition in seventh place.

On Saturday, Gramm went “all in” on Monomoy Girl winning the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1), wagering his $18,165 bankroll and more than doubling his money. After hitting on a minimum show bet in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1), Gramm went into the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic in 11th place with $36,930. In the climactic race of the World Championships, he made six individual exacta wagers using Authentic, Improbable and Tom’s d’Etat. Gramm wagered $7,500 on the Authentic-Improbable combination and won the tournament.

Runner-up Kinchen had nothing but praise for Gramm. “Marshall is a dear friend and I am very happy for him. The BCBC is the Masters of handicapping contests. It’s not all about the money, it’s about the title. I wanted to win, but there are about three people in the world I am ok running second to, and Marshall is one of them.”

Homebred Aegean Sea romped home at Parx yesterday in her third lifetime start, coasting under the wire 4 1/2 lengths in front of her nearest competition.

 

Sent off favored at 3-1, the two year old Pennsylvania-bred filly by Strong Mandate broke well and sat just off the pace. Under confident handling from jockey Luis Ocasio, she strode clear into the stretch without ever really being challenged.

Aegean Sea’s win marked a banner day for Ten Strike as Portal Creek won an allowance later in the card and Hollee Peach took a race at Presque Isle, making for an undefeated, three for three day.

 

On Friday at Keeneland, Lady Rocket will look to stay unbeaten when facing winners for the first time in a first level allowance race. a $420,000 two year old in training purchase, Lady Rocket’s debut was worth the wait. After stumbling out of the gate and gaining nearly every excuse to run a good 2nd, Lady Rocket shot through a gap late to get up to win by a head, earning a strong 84 Beyer Speed Figure.

Lady Rocket will break from post position #7 on Friday, with a scheduled post time of 6:03 PM EDT.