by Charlene Polk, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Charlene Polk

Dover, DE — Although he heads to the gate as the morning line favorite in Thursday night’s (April 15) $100,000 Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund Final for 3-year-old colt and gelding trotters, the connections of Par Done My Putt say they would be happy with any check in the lucrative event.

They know the ups and downs of racing all too well, as the young trotter made a surprising break in last fall’s $100,000 DSBF final. Owner Michael Gannon and his wife, trainer Laura Gannon, are cautiously optimistic about how Par Done My Putt will do Thursday night at Dover Downs.

“With the money we’re going for any check would be nice,” said Michael Gannon, who bred and raised the colt. “Whatever we can get is icing on the cake.”

Icing on the cake because in just eight lifetime starts, Par Done My Putt has accumulated earnings of $97,400 for the Gannons. From those eight starts, the colt has missed the board just once, with four wins, two seconds and one third.

Fotowon photo

Par Done My Putt has won both of his starts as a sophomore.

The homebred son of Par One-Aggressive Ann comes into the race with first place finishes in both of his preliminary divisions. On April 1, the colt left from post four to cut the mile for driver Wendell Donaway, crossing the wire in 2:00.4. He followed that up with another win in 2:01.1 on April 8.

Gannon says he hasn’t been too surprised by Par Done My Putt’s success, since Donaway, who helped break the colt, was impressed with him from the start.

“He thought he was going to be a little something within two weeks of working with him,” Gannon said.

He said they had no problems breaking the colt, which surprised them after he proved difficult to wean from his mother.

“He was hard to get your hands on,” he said. “He was wild as a reindeer. Once we finally got the halter on him he just about trampled us.”

A few weeks of brushing and teaching the colt to lead brought him around though, and Gannon and Donaway haven’t had any trouble with him since. Training down as a 2-year-old on Gannon’s farm, Par Done My Putt didn’t quite “shine” like his owner wanted him to, but a trip to nearby Harrington Raceway quickly changed that.

“When we took him to Harrington he was up on his toes,” Gannon said. “Once he got to the racetrack he woke up.”

The trotter’s excitement hasn’t waned over the past year.

“When you back the trailer up to the barn to go to the track and you take him out of the stall he’s in just about a dead run to get to the trailer,” Gannon said. “He enjoys what he does.”

Par Done My Putt is currently the only horse the Gannons have racing, although older mare Wicked Rain and 3-year-old Nebuchadnezzar are expected to qualify later this year. They are also in the process of trying to get Aggressive Ann, who hasn’t had any offspring since Par Done My Putt, in foal.

Gannon, who raises chickens and has his own farm, said he and his wife prefer to raise their own horses.

“We’re not looking to do any claiming and all that,” he said. “We like the babies, we like to watch them grow.”

He added that having their own farm and being able to raise their own hay and oats took a lot of the financial pressure away from equine ownership, enabling them to relax and take their time conditioning the horses.

“We don’t push them,” he said. “They’re like members of the family.”

$100,000 DSBF Final–3-year-old colt/gelding trot
PP-Horse-Driver-Trainer-Morning Line
1-Super Delegate-Eddie Moore-Eddie Moore-4-1
2-Politico-Kim Vincent-Tui Stone-15-1
3-Ymi Special-Brandon Givens-Les Givens-8-1
4-Strike N Cash-Eddie Davis, Jr.-Harry Marsh, Jr.-6-1
5-Par Done My Putt-Wendell Donaway-Laura Gannon-2-1
6-Montabello Zeke-Jim Morand-Jay Baxter-6-1
7-Airborne Commando-Rod Allen-Carlo Poliseno-8-1
8-Wygant Knight-Anthony Morgan-Mark Waterman-9-2
AE1-Peepin Tom-Ron Hill-Ron Hill
AE2-Leland-Brad Hanners-Linda MacDonald