Oak Grove, KY — Odds-on favorite Oh Look Magic persisted through a methodical first-over push to thrust forward in the straightaway and hold his ground at the beam to win the $36,000 Open Trot at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel on Tuesday (May 28).

Leaving from post six, Oh Look Magic (driven by Devon Tharps) floated off the wings and landed in fourth as It’s A Herbie (Verlin Yoder) asserted from the pylon post for the front to a :28.2 first quarter. It’s A Herbie cruised unfazed to a :58 half, where Pioneer As (Tony Hall) pulled off the pylons from fifth and forced Tharps’ hands to flush first-over into the backside.

Oh Look Magic, though caught in the death seat, coasted along the rim as It’s A Herbie dashed to three-quarters in 1:26.2. Tharps then ground closer to It’s A Herbie through the final turn while Pioneer As loomed behind for the stretch drive. Oh Look Magic grabbed the lead on the spin for home and kept digging as Pioneer As built momentum down the center of the track. Tharps found the line in time to snatch the neck win over Pioneer As while It’s A Herbie settled for third at the pylons and Swan Flyer (Brandon Bates) gave chase off a pocket trip for fourth.

Oh Look Magic dug in late to prevail in Tuesday’s Open Trot at Oak Grove. Mark Herron photo.

Ron Burke trains Oh Look Magic, a 4-year-old gelding by Lookslikeachpndale, for owners Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC. He won his 10th race from 32 starts, has now banked $252,276, and paid $3.38 to win.

Live racing at Oak Grove resumes on Monday (June 3) at 3 p.m. (CDT) and features a Late Pick-5 carryover of $590.40. Free program pages for every race day, courtesy of TrackMaster, are available on the Oak Grove Racing website.