LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Zany was the favorite when the lone Kentucky Oaks future wager pool took place in March. She is still the morning-line favorite for the 152nd edition of the Grade 1, $1.5 million Kentucky Oaks, to be contested next Friday at Churchill Downs. However, after incurring her first loss last time out, she is the lukewarm 4-1 favorite in an overflow field that truly appears wide open. “It’s a very well-matched group of fillies, I think,” said Brad Cox, who will saddle Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks winner Prom Queen in this field. “There’s no standout, and there’s no throw-out.” Entries for the Kentucky Oaks and the following day’s Derby were taken on Saturday morning, and post positions were drawn between races on the opening-day card at Churchill Downs, on a balcony beneath the twin spires and overlooking the paddock. The field for the Oaks had crystallized several hours before, with Cox reporting during training hours that Paradise would go back to one turn in the Grade 2 Eight Belles on the undercard. Meanwhile, Todd Pletcher did not enter She Be Smooth, citing dissatisfaction with the way she was moving out of her Thursday breeze in Florida; and Lorelei Lee, who has only raced on Tapeta, opted for the Grade 2 Edgewood on turf on the undercard for Mike Maker. :: Get DRF Kentucky Oaks & Derby Betting Strategies by Marcus Hersh and David Aragona. Full analysis and wager recommendations! Even with those defections, 17 names were dropped in the entry box. The Oaks is limited to 14 starters, with field preference determined by points earned in designated races, in a series that began last September. Bottle of Rouge, trained by Bob Baffert, was declared out of the race with a cough, so first also-eligible, Lovely Grey, who was a $1,500 late nominee in April, drew into the field. The other also-eligibles, in order of preference, are Nycon and Resist. They have until scratch time at 9 a.m. the morning of the race to draw in. Zany is owned by Repole Stable, trained by Pletcher, and will be ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. The same connections have Kentucky Derby morning-line favorite Renegade, who drew the rail in the big Derby field. Moments earlier, Zany also drew toward the inside of the Oaks field, landing in post 2. The filly won her first three career starts, including the Grade 2 Demoiselle last fall in New York and the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa to start this year, before finishing second in an educational effort in the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes at Keeneland. Nick Tammaro took over oddsmaking duties at Churchill Downs this spring, assuming the role from Mike Battaglia, who retired following a 51-year run. Tammaro called the Oaks “a super wide-open race” for which he did install Zany as the favorite. “I really think there are six to eight win candidates in that race, between the 4-1 favorite and the 15-1 mark or so,” Tammaro said. “[Zany is] a little more lukewarm off the loss, but I don’t think it’s a loss the public is going to penalize her for too much, because she did run well, and I think she projects to get better going a mile and an eighth. I don’t think the inside draw is bad for her. I think she’ll be able to save more ground, and losing ground last out definitely hurt.” Percy’s Bar, the Ashland winner, was installed at 6-1 on the morning line as one of several fillies in a similar price bracket. Meaning, winner of the Grade 2 Santa Anita Oaks, is the second choice on Tammaro’s line at 5-1. She is followed by Percy’s Bar and Grade 3 Honeybee winner Explora, both at 6-1, and Grade 2 Fantasy winner Counting Stars and Prom Queen, both at 8-1. In equipment changes for the Oaks, Bella Ballerina, who has worn blinkers in all four of her starts, and who has been on the engine in both her outings this year, removes them for Friday’s race. The Kentucky Oaks will be run beneath the lights at Churchill Downs for the first time, with an 8:40 p.m. post time in a prime-time national broadcast window from 8 to 9 p.m. on NBC. The Oaks will be the last of 13 races on the card, which has a first post of 12 p.m. There are six other graded stakes on the undercard – the Grade 1, $1 million La Troienne for older fillies and mares; the Grade 2, $750,000 Alysheba for older horses; the Grade 2, $700,000 Eight Belles and Grade 2, $600,000 Edgewood, offering alternatives for the 3-year-old fillies; and the Grade 3, $500,000 Modesty routing and Grade 2, $500,000 Unbridled Sidney, both for fillies and mares on the turf. The complete Oaks field, with post positions, riders, and morning-line odds, and with the also-eligibles listed in preference order: 1. Explora, Flavien Prat, 6-1 2. Zany, Irad Ortiz Jr., 4-1 3. Search Party, Cristian Torres, 30-1 4. Counting Stars, Francisco Arietta, 8-1 5. Meaning, Juan Hernandez, 5-1 6. My Miss Mo, Micah Husbands, 20-1 7. Dazzling Dame, Luis Saez, 30-1 8. Bottle of Rouge, Mike Smith, Scratched 9. Always a Runner, Jose Ortiz, 10-1 10. Prom Queen, Javier Castellano, 8-1 11. Percy's Bar, Luan Machado, 6-1 12. Bella Ballerina, Tyler Gaffalione, 10-1 13. Pashmina, Ramon Vazquez, 30-1 14. Brooklyn Blonde, Kazushi Kimura, 30-1 Lovely Grey, Dylan Davis, 30-1 AE - Nyon - Jaime Torres, 50-1 AE - Resist, Brian Hernandez Jr., 30-1  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.