The Locust Grove Stakes is a Grade III American

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

for fillies and mares, age three and older, over a distance of miles held annually in September during the early fall meeting at

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. The current purse is $400,000.

History

The event is named after the site known as Locust Grove where a 1790 Georgian mansion is situated on 55 acres upriver from

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. The house was originally home to William and Lucy Clark Croghan. Lucy was the sister to explorers

William Clark William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Misso ...

and George Rogers Clark. They are the ancestors to

founder Col. M. Lewis Clark. The event was inaugurated on 31 May 1982 and was won by the Excitable Lady and was ridden by

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

Darrel McHargue Darrel G. McHargue (born September 26, 1954 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is a retired American Champion jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. One of five children from a family not connected to horse racing, he was first introduced to riding as a te ...

winning easily as the 3/10 odds-on favorite by 7 lengths in a time of 1:37.20 over the one mile distance. The following year the distance of the event was increased to miles. In 1986 the event's conditions were modified to a handicap. The following the event was held on the turf for the first time over a distance of miles and was won by longshot Luckiest Girl at 20–1. The following year the event was held at a shorter distance miles. Previously a Listed race, it was upgraded to Grade III status for 1998 by the

American Graded Stakes Committee {{short description, Organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders The American Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) based in Lexington, Kentucky is a trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders. ...

. In winning the 2003 running of the Locust Grove Handicap,

Ipi Tombe Ipi Tombe (foaled 10 October 1998 in the Marondera District of Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe) is a champion Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She was bred by Peter J. Moor, chairman of the board of directors of the Thoroughbred Breeders Associat ...

became the first horse bred in

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

to ever win a race at Churchill Downs. The event was idle in 2011 and 2012 and when it was renewed in 2013 the event was set back to the dirt and since then the event has been moved to the September short fall meeting the conditions allowed for three year old fillies to compete against the older mares as a stakes allowance race. Also due to not being held for to years the event lost its Graded classification. In 2016 the event regained its Grade III status once again. In 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...

, Churchill Downs did not schedule the event in their updated meeting.

Records

Speed record * miles: 1:42.86

Shedaresthedevil Shedaresthedevil (foaled March 2, 2017) is an American thoroughbred racehorse, best known for winning the 2020 Kentucky Oaks, the filly equivalent of the Kentucky Derby. She also won the Honeybee Stakes and Indiana Oaks at age three, the Azeri ...

(2021) * miles: 1:46.75 Shaconage (2004) * 1 mile: 1:35.76 Genuine Devotion (IRE) (2008) Margins *8 lengths – Frivolous (2015) Most wins * 2 - Colstar (2000, 2001) Most wins by a trainer * 4 -

William I. Mott William I. "Bill" Mott (born July 29, 1953, in Mobridge, South Dakota) is an American horse trainer, most notable for his work with Cigar. Mott earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1995 and 1996. He was inducted into the National ...

(1984, 1996, 1998, 2005) Most wins by a

* 2 - Charles R. Woods Jr. (1986, 1989) * 2 -

Shane Sellers Shane Jude Sellers (born September 24, 1966 in Erath, Louisiana) is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. At age eleven, he began working around horses and in 1983 rode his first winner at Evangeline Downs. Sellers won several national ...

(1995, 1998) * 2 -

Pat Day Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953, in Brush, Colorado) is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 an ...

(1983, 2003) * 2 -

Brice Blanc Brice Blanc (born January 16, 1973 in Lyon, Rhone, France) is a jockey in American thoroughbred horse racing. Blanc attended a jockey's apprentice school in his native France then, encouraged by trainer Ben Cecil, in October 1993 emigrated to th ...

(2004, 2005) * 2 -

Jon Court Jon Kenton Court (born November 26, 1960 in Gainesville, Florida) is an American jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. Having grown up in Florida, Jon Court began riding in Colorado at the now closed Centennial Park in 1980. He rode in Louisiana ...

(2001, 2015) * 2 - Julien R. Leparoux (2007, 2018) * 2 -

Brian Hernandez Jr. Brian Joseph Hernandez Jr. (born November 3, 1985, in Lafayette, Louisiana) is an American Eclipse Award-winning jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He began riding professionally in 2003 and got his first win on November 29 of that year at Lou ...

(2017, 2019) Most wins by an owner * 2 - Beverly R. Steinman (2000, 2001) * 2 -

Team Valor Team Valor Stable LLC is an American Thoroughbred horse racing stable based in Lake Worth, Florida. It was founded by Barry Irwin and Jeff Siegel who create partnerships (syndicates) with racing enthusiasts to race Thoroughbred horses at major ...

(1993, 2003) * 2 -

Glen Hill Farm Leonard H. Lavin (October 29, 1919 – August 2, 2017) was an American businessman, racehorse owner and breeder, and philanthropist, who, in 1955 founded the Alberto-Culver Company.

(2006, 2009) * 2 - G. Watts Humphrey Jr. (2015, 2017)

Winners

''Legend:''

References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 3 stakes races in the United States Mile category horse races for fillies and mares Churchill Downs horse races Recurring sporting events established in 1982 1982 establishments in Kentucky

History

Records

Winners

See also

References