Shamrock Rose Clears Off in $100,000 La Lorgnette

TORONTO, ON – Conrad Farms’ Shamrock Rose found her second straight four-leaf clover on Saturday, running gate-to-wire to take the $100,000 La Lorgnette Stakes at Woodbine.

Breaking alertly from post 2 as the 5/2 favorite under Jerome Lermyte, Shamrock Rose faced early pressure from Time to Play and Avie’s Mineshaft through easy opening fractions of :24.98, :49.66, and 1:14.10. Dispatching her foes as she exited the far turn, Shamrock Rose drew off under a drive in the stretch to win the 1 1/16-mile all weather track event by 4 1/2 lengths in a final time of 1:44.37.

“Definitely, there was a sure game plan,” Lermyte said. “She just took a very good start, so I tried to make the best of it, and we had the chance to be able to rate the fractions a little bit – we went quite a slow pace. She did a very good performance today. I’m very happy, very pleased with her.”

Miss Mo Mentum secured second off the far turn and held on to give trainer Mark Casse the exacta. Cosmic Love overcame hitting the gate at the start to take third by a neck over A. A. Azula’s Arch, while Casse’s third runner, Hanalei Moon, faded from third in the stretch to finish fifth. Ladies Night took sixth ahead of a three-way photo for seventh, with Cascanueces necking out Avie’s Mineshaft and Peach of a Gal. Time to Play began dropping like a rock after the opening 1/2-mile and completed the order of finish. Miss Sienna was scratched.

Shamrock Rose’s win was her second straight following decisive 10 1/4-length score in the state-bred $100,000 Malvern Rose Stakes at Presque Isle Downs on August 5. The 3-year-old daughter of First Dude, who broke her maiden here at first asking in last fall’s Ontario Debutante Stakes, now carries a record of 8-3-2-1 with earnings of $217,687.

Shamrock Rose returned $7.20 to win, $4.10 to place, and $3.60 to show. Miss Mo Mentum brought back $6.20 to place and $5.10 to show, while Cosmic Love paid $9.90 to show.