Course specialist Teed Up lands day one feature

Teed Up (7/2) was a fourth winning favourite in a row as he stayed on best to win the featured Connacht Hotel (QR) Handicap.

Held up in mid-division, the Gleneagles gelding made good headway down the hill to lead a furlong-and-a-half-out and was driven out to hold fast-finishing The Very Man by half a length. Shajak was the same margin back in third with Hms Seahorse completing the frame.

The course record of Teed Up now reads four wins and two seconds from six runs and he holds entries in both codes later in the week.

Winning trainer Emmet Mullins said: “The weather came for us today and probably didn’t suit a lot of others. He’s a proper little dinger of a horse and has such a good record around here — horses for courses and he loves coming back.

“The reason we bought him was the Ballybrit form and he’s paid off his purchase in spades.

“Ray (Barron) was very good on him. He hadn’t ridden for me before and I didn’t want to overload him with instructions. I just told him to take his time and if you get a gap on the hill make sure you go out and not in. He had a willing partner and it was great to see.

“It’s our summer marquee Festival and we don’t have too many social runners. They are all here with good chances and it’s going well."

Winning rider Ray Barron said: "It's my first ride in this race. I'd no ride in it all week and Emmet rang me on Friday. It was like Christmas getting the call.

"He broke well and travelled very smoothly throughout the race. I was nearly there too soon turning in but he was going so well that I kind of had to kick on. He got to the front too soon but he was tough and was very game all the way to the line.

"Around Galway, riding for Emmet and the Mee family, you always have a chance and it's nice that I could deliver for them today.

"I'm based with Charles Byrnes. I'm getting plenty of rides off Charles and am in a very privileged position and, I suppose as a result of that, I'm getting plenty of outside rides as well."

Quotes from Alan Magee