Mississauga, ON — A funny thing happened to Brent MacGrath as he dropped Beach Glass into the entry box for the 2023 Jim Ewart Memorial, set for this Saturday (Sept. 9) at Eldorado Scioto Downs as part of the richest night in Ohio harness racing history.

He found out the horse wasn’t eligible.

Unable to find a list of eligibles online to confirm that the horse could be dropped into the box, MacGrath contacted Scioto Downs and eventually got in touch with the race office to confirm his horse was good to go. In this case, a $10,000 supplemental entry fee was needed to make that happen.

It’s fair to say then that MacGrath and connections of Schooner II Stable feel confident in their 4-year-old — a 4-year-old making his seasonal debut in the $260,000 Ewart Memorial against a group of older pacers in midseason form averaging 16-plus starts to this point with four already sporting wins in the 1:47 range. That group includes 2023 Canadian Pacing Derby winner Tattoo Artist and 2023 William R. Haughton Memorial winner Charlie May.

Despite the competition, despite the lack of older starts, and despite drawing post nine — the statistically worst post at Scioto with a 5.7 win percentage — Beach Glass has been installed as the 3-1 second choice on the morning line.

Read the full story on the Standardbred Canada website here.