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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lexington, Ky.
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August 14, 2018
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The size of the Walnut Ring and the pressure of a Championship played no effect on the 4-year-old Bordeaux, owned by Douglas Wheeler and ridden by Hunt Tosh. The flashy chestnut took home the blue ribbon and $9,676.63 in prize money in the First Round of the 3'/3'3" Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship, which will pay out $193,532.50 over three days of competition, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
"I didn't know coming into here...in this environment, in this big ring, with him being that young if he would get lost," said Tosh. "But he handled the environment perfectly. He went great."
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| Hunt Tosh rode Douglas Wheeler's Bordeaux to the top spot and a check for $9,676.63 in the first round of the 3'/3'3" Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship. Credit: Tricia Booker/USHJA |
Competing at the 3' fence height, Bordeaux scored 94, 88 and 90 for a total of 272, 4 points higher than the rest of the field of 145 horses and many arguably more experienced.
"He's very young, kind of inexperienced, but he's been great since we started him," said Tosh, of Alpharetta, Georgia. "He did his first show this winter in Florida. He's only shown a handful of times, but every time we've shown him, he's been very straightforward and simple."
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Courtney Lenkart
and Lori Mathews' Alisto placed second and earned a paycheck of $6,851.05. Credit; Tricia Booker/USHJA
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Tier II Rider Courtney Lenkart, of Bartonville, Texas, also had a banner day with two of her mounts finishing in the top 10. Lenkart piloted Alisto, owned by Lori Mathews, to second place with 268, earning $6,851.05 in prize money. Patricia Griffith, of White Plains, New York, rounded out the top three on Callie Seaman's Endeavor with 263.5 points and $3,967.42.
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Patricia Griffith and Callie Seaman's Endeavor captured third place and $3,967.42. Credit: Tricia Booker/USHJA
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"It's so wonderful for the 3'/3'3" green horses that they offer this kind of money and give them the opportunity to jump for this," said Tosh.
The First Round of the Championships were judged by three panels: Carleton Brooks and Chance Arakelian on Panel One, Bobbie Reber and Shane George on Panel Two, and Chris Wynne and Holly Orlando on Panel Three.
The 3'/3'3 Championship features three rounds of competition over three days. Today's First Round paid out $38,706.50 to the top-30 placings. Horses will return for the second round tomorrow, August 15, and will again compete for $38,706.50.
The top 30 horses, including those tied for 30th, with the highest cumulative scores from Rounds 1 and 2 will advance to the final Championship Round on August 16, where they will start with a clean slate and compete for $77,413.
The Second Round of the 3'/3'3" Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship will begin at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow in the Walnut Ring of the Kentucky Horse Park. Live streaming coverage will also be available of every round on
EQSports.Net. Members can save 50 percent on their subscription with the coupon code USHJA2018.
Green Hunters competing at 3'6" and 3'9" will also contend for a Championship title on Thursday, August 16, after the conclusion of the 3'/3'3" Championship.
For those unable to watch the week-long competition in person,
EQSportsNet
, official broadcaster of the 2018 Platinum Performance/USHJA Hunter Week, will provide wall-to-wall live streaming coverage of and on-demand access to every round of both Championships. Coverage of the final rounds includes expert commentary and course visualization with live scoring throughout.
USHJA members receive a 50 percent discount on their monthly EQSportsNet subscription by inputting coupon code USHJA2018 when subscribing.
The USHJA thanks the Official Sponsors who helped to make these championships possible, including: Charles Owen, Inc., the Official Helmet of the USHJA; CWD, the Official Saddle of the USHJA; Parlanti International, the Official Riding Boot of the USHJA; Professional's Choice, the Official Horse Boot of the USHJA; Rood & Riddle, the Official Equine Hospital and Veterinary Pharmacy; Platinum Performance, title sponsor of the Green Hunter Incentive and International Hunter Derby Championships; The Clothes Horse, the Official Cooler of the Championships; EQSportsNet, the Official Host Broadcast; Hunter Championship Award Sponsors: Essex Classics, FITS Riding, and Shapley's; and Supporting Sponsors Envisian and Nightwatch™.
For more information including the complete schedule, orders of go, and online results for the 2018 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships, visit
www.ushja.org/GreenChampionship. For more information, including the complete schedule, orders of go and online results for the 2018 Platinum Performance/USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship, visit
www.ushja.org/IHDChampionship.
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Media Contact:
Megan Lacy
(859) 225-6723
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