Harmac ($56.40) upsets Bruce D. Memorial in synthetic debut

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – Perennially underrated throughout his brief career, Harmac rallied at yet another big mutuel Saturday to pull a 27-1 upset in the third running of the $75,000 Bruce D. Memorial on the Arlington Million undercard at Arlington Park.

Patiently ridden by Miguel Mena, Harmac surged past Smoke ‘n’ Gloat in the final 100 yards of the seven-furlong Polytrack race, prevailing by 1 3/4 lengths. He returned $56.40 after finishing in 1:36.10.

Harmac, trained by Grant Forster for Elizabeth Southam, was making his synthetic-surface debut. In five prior starts, the Langfuhr gelding had won twice, at odds of 35-1 and 11-1.

Kitten’s Cat was third and a late-running Society Beau was fourth in a field of eight 3-year-olds.

The $2 exacta (3-4) paid $286.20, the $1 trifecta (3-4-5) returned $810.50, and the 10-cent superfecta (3-4-5-10) was worth $309.94.

The Bruce D. honors the late Bruce Duchossois, son of longtime Arlington chairman Richard L. Duchossois.

The victory by Harmac eliminated the vast majority of tickets in the late pick five (races 8-12), which started with the Bruce D. and drew $388,583 in all-sources handle.