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Millennium Farms stallion Even the Score
continued his excellent year when his son Take the
Points scored his second Grade 1 win in this weekend's
Jamaica Handicap at Belmont Park.
Even the Score, a son of Unbridled's Song, was
a Top 10 Freshman Sire last year and is a Top 10
Sophomore Sire in 2009. His 41 winners include
Take the Points, Four Gifts, winner of the Eight Belles
Stakes(G3) at Churchill Downs, and Scorewithcater, who
defeated Kentucky Derby(G1) winner Mine That Bird in the
Borderland Derby.
Even the Score's 2009 progeny earnings are over
$2.3 million.
For a recap of the Jamaica, see the story
below, courtesy of The Blood-Horse.
Take the Points Game in
Jamaica Victory
 Starlight Partners Take the Points
was rated off the leaders and took the lead rounding the
turn to post a game head victory over Straight Story in
the $300,000 Jamaica Handicap (gr. IT) at Belmont
Park on Oct. 10.
Ridden by Edgar Prado for trainer Todd Pletcher,
Take the Points ran along in fourth as favored
Courageous Cat led through a quarter mile in 24.84
seconds before he relinquished the lead to Chapin Beach.
Take the Points made a challenge leaving the half-mile
pole, moved between horses to assume a narrow lead on
the turn and battled with Straight Story in the stretch
before holding off the challenger for the victory. The
son of Even the Score completed 1 1/8 miles over a
turf course rated firm in 1:48.51.
The winner paid $7.40, $3.80, and $2.30 as the
second choice in the seven-horse field. Runner-up
Straight Story, with Javier Castellano aboard, was
worth $6.70 and $2.90 and Courageous Cat, the favorite
ridden by Ramon Dominguez, paid $2.30.
It didn't quite unfold the first quarter of a mile
the way we thought it would, Pletcher said. We
thought Mark Hennig's horse (No. 5, Chapin Beach) would
probably be on the lead. (Take the Points) got
away a little slow and kind of swept around the outside,
but it looked like he settled down the backside well and
had a good trip from there.
I think this horse is really finding himself now
and learning how to run and learning how to finish off a
race, the trainer said, referring to the Jamaica and a
victory in Arlington Park's Secretariat (gr. IT)
previous to the Oct. 10 victory.
He got a little rank on me early, Prado
said. I thought I was going to be about 10
lengths behind. There was a lot of speed in the
race, but (Chapin Beach) got left and (Straight Story)
didn't want to go to the lead the pace was very
moderate. He was very comfortable, and he was
doing everything easily. He's a horse that can run
on both dirt and turf. The times he was running on
dirt, he was getting mature, he was getting himself
together. I think now he's a better horse than
before.
With the victory, Take the Points improved to 4-2-1
in 10 starts, with earnings of $685,600. An early
contender on this year's Triple Crown trail, Take the
Points was converted into a turf horse after finishing
13 th in the BlackBerry Preakness (gr. I). In his
first grass effort, the 3-year-old was fourth in the
Colonial Turf Cup (gr. IIT) and then third, beaten only
a half-length, in the Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) before
the Secretariat.
Pletcher said Starlight Partners' Jack Wolf faces a
dilemma on where to go next with Take the Points. The
logical next step, the Breeders' Cup World
Championships, are a question mark since the Jamaica
winner is not Breeders' Cup eligible. The trainer said
the colt could be supplemented to the Cup and that the
Nov. 29 Hollywood Derby (gr. IT) was also an
option.
Produced from the Fred Astaire mare Ginger Ginger,
Take the Points was bred in Kentucky by Phoenix
Farm.
For more on all the Millennium Farms
stallions, visit www.millenniumfarms.com.
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