ELIZABETH BANKS WALKS THE RED CARPET IN WINNING PALM BEACH KENNEL CLUB’S
$50,000 ARTHUR J. ROONEY, SR. PATRICK’S INVITATIONAL!
West Palm Beach, Fl. – Irish Eyes Were Smiling on the D. Q. Williams Kennel as Elizabeth Banks put in an award-winning effort to win the 43rd running of Palm Beach Kennel Club’s $50,000 Arthur J. Rooney, Sr. St. Patrick’s Invitational, Saturday afternoon, March 16.
And she had to earn it.
In the green dance, it was February’s $50,000 James W. Paul 3/8ths Mile champion Elizabeth Banks surprisingly breaking on top, only to be outrushed to the first turn by Jim Bowie.
Following in the second wave was Gettin The Money, Dutch Dillinger and Barts Iron Bank.
Feeling pinched in on the inside as they rounded the first turn, Gettin The Money shoved off his rivals to the outside which allowed 14-1 longshot and track veteran Draft King to slip through and started the chain reaction which took race favorite, and Elizabeth Banks sister, Duxbury out of competition and allowing JT’s In The Bank to save ground on the inside.
Heading into the final turn, it was Elizabeth Banks trying her best to pass Jim Bowie on the inside, but he was unrelenting. This slowed down the pace of the race which allowed the hard-closing Draft King and JT’s In The Bank to gain ground with every stride.
Finally, Elizabeth Banks had had enough and made a power move, pushing Jim Bowie out of the way just in the nick of time.
As they headed down the homestretch, it was Elizabeth Banks in the lead, being chased by the veteran Draft King.
As an old handicapping adage goes, “a closer usually can’t catch a closer”. And that’s exactly what happened as Elizabeth Banks went on to win the $50,000 Arthur J. Rooney, Sr. St. Patrick’s Invitational by one length in a 545-Yard Royal Palm clocking of 29.85 seconds and returning a healthy $9.40 to her supporters.
Draft King, JT’s In The Bank and Gettin The Money finished second, third and fourth, respectively
Elizabeth Banks collected a lot of the “Green” for herself and her connections, a cool $25,000.
The complete St. Pat’s order of finish:
1st – Elizabeth Banks (Pat C Clement – WW Lonesome Dove, D. Q. Williams)
2nd – Draft King (Pat C Clement – Keen Katy, Arthur Agganis Kennel)
3rd – JT’s In The Bank (Pat C Sabbath – Julianne Hough, Koppe, Staats & Collins)
4th – Gettin The Money (Offthebrakedrake – Goodluck Topaz, D. Q. Williams)
5th – Jim Bowie (KC And All – Atascocita Sasha, Brindle Kennel)
6th – Dutch Dillinger (Kiowa Mon Manny – Chasmo’s Ginger, Lester Raines)
7th – Barts Iron Bank (Dragon Fire – Barts Accountant, James Douglas Kennel)
8th – Duxbury (Pat C Clement – WW Lonesome Dove, Rader Racing Kennel)
In historical perspective, Elizabeth Banks is the third Greyhound in the history of the track to win both the $50,000 James W. Paul 3/8ths Mile Derby and $50,000 Arthur J. Rooney, Sr. St. Patrick’s Invitational, joining the ranks of Bill Davidson Kennel’s Jawa Leonas Best (2003) and Rader Racing Kennel’s RG’s Saintly Guy (2004).
Honors also for Steve Sarass. Steve became the first owner in Palm Beach history to be the owner of the winning Greyhound in four-consecutive stake events, Duxbury in December’s $20,000 Dick Andrews Futurity and $50,000 He’s My Man Classic and Elizabeth Banks in the Derby and St. Pat’s Invitational.
Palm Beach Kennel Club honors Arthur J. Rooney Sr. and honors his legacy with our annual St. Patrick’s Invitational. “The Chief” was the founding owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, established in 1933 and bought the Palm Beach Kennel Club in 1970 and Yonkers Raceway in 1972. He was also an outstanding athlete playing football, baseball and amateur boxing. He will always be remembered as one of the most popular figures in sports.
Contact: Jeff Prince (561) 683-2222, Ext. 126 / jprince@pbkennelclub.com
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