Live Oak Plantation’s 2-year-old colt Golden Hawk wasted little time in parlaying his Sept. 4 maiden special weight win at Woodbine into graded black type. The chestnut son of Tapit had eked out a head victory in his debut at seven furlongs on Woodbine’s turf course; one month later he went wire to wire in the Oct. 9 Grey Stakes (G3) over Woodbine’s Tapeta surface and posted a 5¼-length victory (VIDEO).
Trained by Mark Casse, Golden Hawk was ridden by Patrick Husbands and completed the 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.38 under top weight of 118 pounds.
Live Oak bred Golden Hawk in Kentucky from the unraced Gone West mare Gone Purrfect, whom the Florida-based farm had purchased for $1.5 million at the Keeneland September yearling sale in 2007.
Golden Hawk’s Canadian victory was a bit of a homecoming for the family. His dam, a full sister to 2004 champion sprinter Speightstown, was produced from the Storm Cat mare Silken Cat, who won the 1995 Mazarine Stakes at Woodbine for Sam-Son Farm before being privately purchased by Aaron and Marie Jones.
Golden Hawk is Tapit’s 20th black-type stakes winner of 2016 and his fourth juvenile winner, joining Grade 1 winners Sweet Loretta and Pretty City Dancer and listed winner Silvertoni.
Tapit just missed having a juvenile graded stakes double on the day. Minutes after Golden Hawk’s Grey Stakes, Tapit’s 2-year-old son Ticonderoga overcame a poor start to finish second in the Grade 3 Bourbon Stakes at Keeneland.