by Frank Drucker, publicity director, Empire City at Yonkers Raceway

Yonkers, NY — Yonkers Raceway’s Friday night (Aug. 1) $44,000 co-featured Open Handicaps were won by wagering choices Camille (George Brennan, $2.90) and Theraputic (Brennan again, $4).

Camille, benefitting from a very generous assignment in the Mares Open Pace, left into a brief four hole from post position No. 5. She then moved around Fashion Mystery (Eric Carlson) and Robin Cruiser (Jordan Stratton) before a :27.1 opening quarter-mile. From there, it was nothing but fractional formalities (:56.2, 1:24.3 and 1:51.4, one tick off the track record for older mares — Western Graduate-1:51.3 in 2010).

The two lengths entering the lane was the same final margin at the wire. Two-time defending champ Robin Cruiser was second, with Fashion Mystery, Classy Lane Rose (Dan Dube) and JK Letitgo (Jason Bartlett) settling for the lesser loot.

For Camille, a 6-year-old millionaress daughter of Camluck co-owned as Burke Racing by trainer Ron Burke, Weaver Bruscemi, M1 Stable and Jack Piatt III, it was her fifth win in 16 seasonal starts. The exacta paid 19.20, with the triple returning $49.20.

The week’s marquee trot saw the in-form Theraputic — from post No. 4 — have no issues whatsoever. Making the lead well before a :28 opening quarter-mile, he continued on his merry way (:58.1, 1:27.1, 1:55.1).

He won by a couple of lengths over a first-up Bingo Queen (Brent Holland), with 42-1 rank outsider Some Like It Hot (Eric Goodell) third. Harbor Point (Bartlett) and For You Almostfree (Greg Merton) came away with the remainder.

Theraputic, a 4-year-old statebred Crazed gelding co-owned as Burke Racing by trainer Burke and Weaver Bruscemi, is now nine-for-17 this season (third win in last four tries). The exacta paid $25.40, the triple returned $204.50 and the superfecta paid $930.