Gold Tartini's upset win sums up a miserable day for stunned punters
It was a nightmare day for punters, but the win of David Hall's Gold Tartini was the nadir, as a horse described as weak by his trainer became the longest-priced winner of the season.
Gold Tartini (Ben So Tik-hung) scored at 161-1, destroying any chances of the Triple Trio going off and leading to a monster double of HK$77,825 when 54-1 shot Samadhi saluted in the following event.
It was the fourth triple-figure odds winner this season, after Victory Mascot, Windicator Power and Polymer Win all caused boilovers, but none were as big as yesterday's blow-out result.
The four-year-old's form-reversal came on a day when three horses paid more than 40-1 - Strathtay (42-1) had won earlier, Noble Flier (16-1) and Spectacular Award (20-1) adding to the misery.
Hall admitted he couldn't have made a case for his Private Purchase Griffin after four unplaced and unconvincing starts.
'As everybody can see, he is just a weak little horse,' he said. 'He has been very green and very scared, and I didn't think he had the confidence or the strength to go through with it, I thought he would take another six months here before he could hold his condition better and perhaps learn a little bit more.
'Today he got a quicker tempo and got to the outside, and even though he was a bit green, he was still able to win.'
Now that the first win is out of the way, Hall will have to weigh up how much the handicapper gives a horse that clearly may not cope with too much of a rise in the ratings.
'Nine times out of 10 a win like that will help their confidence,' Hall said. 'Obviously he can stay a bit and he will get better as he gets older. With another 12 months here, he will get stronger. I knew the horse had ability, but I didn't think he was actually ready to put it altogether and win today. It was a surprise, but as far as the future is concerned, he has some more wins in him for sure.'
161-1
The odds of Gold Tartini that threw punters well off on a day of huge upsets
