No harm, no foul. The four-day delay in starting the Kentucky Downs meet will be largely forgiven and forgotten when a 10-race opener unfolds amid sunshine Wednesday at the turf-only track in south-central Kentucky. Saturday was supposed to have been opening day, but the remnants of Hurricane Harvey led track officials to postpone until Wednesday. A redraw was not necessary, meaning the exact same card remains intact. Kentucky Downs offers low takeout, monstrous purses, and big fields, all conducted amid a charming county-fair atmosphere and with the use of an undulating, European-style, irregularly shaped course with a 1 5/16-mile circumference. First post daily is 1:25 p.m. Central, with the remaining dates being Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, and Sept. 14. The opening-day feature remains the $400,000 Tourist Mile, renamed for the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner after formerly being known as the More Than Ready Mile. Carded as the eighth race, it drew a field of nine older horses, none of whom figures as a standout. Shining Copper could be the favorite, but given that he has been sidelined more than a year, that role might fall to Irish Strait. Based at the Fair Hill training center in Maryland with Graham Motion, Irish Strait came to peak form in two races this summer at Monmouth Park, winning the Grade 3 Red Bank before finishing second to Money Multiplier in the Grade 2 Monmouth. Shining Copper, meanwhile, has been cranking up at the Trackside training center in Louisville, Ky., after spending months in rehabilitation at owner Ken Ramsey’s farm near Lexington, Ky. The 7-year-old gelding is back with trainer Mike Maker after spending a year with Chad Brown. “We had him on the underwater treadmill and got him back to jogging,” said Ramsey, the leading owner each of the last four years (2013-16) at Kentucky Downs. “He looks great and is training extremely well. The flat mile ought to be just right for him.” One of the fringe players is Western Reserve, who was claimed for $62,500 in June by the Turf Stable Racing of Rusty Jones. The 5-year-old gelding nearly recouped the entire investment by winning a $100,000 stakes at Indiana Grand in his only start for new trainer Kent Sweezey. “I really feel he can handle any type of ground,” Sweezey said. “He couldn’t be coming into the race any better.” Hootenanny also could figure into the Tourist mix. Winner of the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, the 5-year-old horse is “stretching back out to his best distance,” said Wesley Ward, who has won or tied for the Kentucky Downs training title three times (2008-10-14). The Tourist Mile is one of four straight stakes on the card, along with the $150,000 One Dreamer (race 6), the $350,000 Juvenile Fillies (race 7), and the $350,000 Juvenile (race 9). All of the stakes are part of the new Jockey7 Wager, which will encompass the last seven races each day. The Wednesday opener also includes three allowances (races 3, 4, 5) worth $140,000 to $145,000, and two maiden-special events (races 2, 10) worth $130,000. Purses for all non-claiming/starter races include substantial bonuses restricted to horses eligible to the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund. Stables from New York, Florida, Canada, and other faraway destinations will join those from Kentucky and the Midwest. With Saratoga and Del Mar having ended, quite a few jockeys from both coasts will travel to Kentucky Downs at some point during the brief meet. After opening day, Jose Ortiz and Florent Geroux will be among those to ride for the duration. Geroux was the leading rider at both the 2015 and 2016 meets. One unintended effect from the Saturday postponement was a conflict for several jockeys with the card at Indiana Grand, where four six-figure stakes also are being run Wednesday. Robby Albarado and Jesus Castanon will ride at Kentucky Downs; Gabriel Saez and Miguel Mena will ride at Indiana; and Tuesday scratch times were to determine a decision from Manny Cruz. Kentucky Downs, which straddles the Kentucky-Tennessee border, is situated on a land rich with history. The most recent chapter began in 1990, when Dueling Grounds opened as a steeplechase track. The current owners, a partnership led by Corey Johnsen, took over in 2007, and four years later they installed the Instant Racing machines that have afforded such a lucrative purse structure. A combination of alluring factors has made Kentucky Downs the No. 1-ranked track in each of the last three years by the Horseplayers Association of North America. Most notable is takeout, which is the lowest on the continent, with 16 percent on win-place-show, 14 percent on the pick five, 18.25 percent on exactas, and 19 percent on trifectas. Last year, aggregate handle was a track-record $22.54 million – up 34 percent over the prior record – but two of the five dates were Saturdays. Given the scheduling change, that won’t be the case this year, which will make attaining that high mark a challenge.