Milnerton trainer Candice Bass-Robinson and Sean Veale got the new Hollywoodbets Durbanville season off to a flying start under sunny skies on Wednesday when the Millstream Farm-bred Amen Corner flashed her speed to go all the way to win on debut.
The Hollywoodbets Durbanville Welcomes You Maiden Plate only hosted six starters after the withdrawal of the original favourite Cliffscape, and produced a rousing finish at the picturesque Country Course.
Happiness is…owner Petrus du Toit and Bloodstock specialist Kurt Felix celebrate with Sean Veale (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Starting at 7-1, Amen Corner, a daughter of Moutonshoek stallion The United States (Galileo) was off and away from the jump, and they never saw her again.
Sporting Post-sponsored jockey Sean Veale kept the small filly balanced and rode her to the line to beat stablemate Precocious (16-1) by three quarters of a length. No time was published.
Precocious is probably bred to go 2000m, so this could be considered a very nice debut!
Hollywood Racing’s Inside Voice (16-1) stayed on a further 1,25 lengths back in third, with the 7-10 favourite Plumbago Park running a modest fourth after going down with some hesitation.
Purchased for R160 000 off the CRS 2024 Winter Yearling Sale by Bass Racing, Amen Corner races for a partnership of Petrus du Toit, Sterling Miller, James Grant and Gary Player.
“She’s not a big filly, but I just had to have her on her walk at the sale. She shows lots of natural speed,” added Betway trainer Candice Bass-Robinson.
Good run on debut! Amen Corner dashes home under Sean Veale (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
The winner’s name Amen Corner essentially refers to the 11th, 12th and 13th holes at Augusta National, which are also some of the most famous holes in all of golf. Collectively, they make up golf’s most famous trio.
More preciously, Amen Corner is the second shot of the par-4 11th hole, the entire par-3 12th hole and the first half of the par-5 13th hole. However, if you refer to Amen Corner as the 11th, 12th and 13th in their entirety, it’s not like many people will correct you.
The term was coined by legendary sportswriter Herbert Warren Wind, who used it in a 1958 Sports Illustrated piece when trying to find the most suitable name for the area of the golf course in which a crucial moment of the tournament happened. He was inspired by the jazz song “Shoutin’ in that Amen Corner” by Mildred Bailey, and he was also influenced by other key “corners” in the sports world, like baseball’s “hot corner” and football’s “coffin corner.” The name stuck.
Racing returns to Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Saturday 8 March.
