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 in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States that hosts the annual Kentucky Derby. It opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was prominent in Kentucky for many years. The first ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

. 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 most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

. 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, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), 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 ...

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 ...

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 The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) is an American trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders, which is based in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1961, TOBA's stated mission is to "improve the economics, in ...

. In winning the 2003 running of the Locust Grove Handicap, Ipi Tombe became the first horse bred in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

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 On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...

, 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 (horse), Cigar. Mott earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1995, 1996, 2011, 2013. He was ind ...

(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 r ...

(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 (2004, 2005) * 2 -

Jon Court Jon Kenton Court (born November 26, 1960, in Gainesville, Florida) is a retired 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 L ...

(2001, 2015) * 2 - Julien R. Leparoux (2007, 2018) * 2 - Brian Hernandez Jr. (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 majo ...

(1993, 2003) * 2 - Glen Hill Farm (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 Horse races established in 1982 1982 establishments in Kentucky

History

Records

Winners

See also

References