by James Beviglia, for Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs

Wilkes-Barre, PA — Favored Instant Photo hung on in a thrilling finish to win the $22,000 Open Trot, the featured race on Opening Day at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs on Tuesday afternoon, April 1.

Instant Photo led shortly after the quarter but was pressured at practically every step. His fractions of :27, :57.1, and 1:26 left him vulnerable to a closer in the stretch, and 23-1 longshot Tiger Laser filled that bill. But Instant Photo, driven and trained by Jim Raymer, held on to win by a head to cash in at odds of 3-2. The winning time was 1:57.4. Tiger Laser settled for second with Calchips Muscle third.

It was the second win of the year for Instant Photo, who is owned by Trillium Racing Stable of New Holland, Pa. The 5-year-old gelding added the winner’s share of the $22,000 purse to his career earnings of over $217,000.

There were 14 races on the card to kick off the Pocono meet. Dan Dube led the driving colony with three wins, while Joe Pavia, Jr., who missed most of last season’s Pocono meet due to injury, returned for two driving and training wins. Jim Taggart, Jr. and Anthony Napolitano also picked up driving doubles.