Look past last-out winners

STICKNEY, Ill. - Three of the eight horses in the main body of the featured sixth race Sunday at Hawthorne won their most recent start, but handicappers might be better served looking toward a couple of last-out losers.

Geeg and Miss Triss both won entry-level turf allowance races at Arlington, and Inbetween Rainbows won an entry-level allowance with a claiming option on the Arlington Polytrack, but Polo Lounge and Shares Perfection - respectively fifth and second in their most recent appearance - are the two preferred contenders.

As of Friday afternoon, there still was a chance that Shares Perfection would instead race Saturday in the Indian Maid Handicap here, but trainer Richie Scherer said there was a 90 percent chance Shares Perfection would go in the Sunday feature, a second-level allowance at 1 1/16 miles on turf.

"I think that's where she probably belongs," Scherer said.

Shares Perfection came on strong during early summer, scoring consecutive wins over maidens and entry-level allowance horses on the Arlington turf. Her forward progress halted with a ninth-place finish in the $100,000 Lady Canterbury, but even there, Shares Perfection was beaten less than five lengths after racing wide.

"She just never really relaxed the whole race," Scherer said. "She kind of was in run-off mode."

Shares Perfection bounced back Sept. 1 at Arlington with a second-place finish in a second-level allowance race, beaten only by Tremendous One. Tom Proctor trains Tremendous One, and Proctor has a chance to beat Shares Perfection again, this time with Polo Lounge. Freshened through the summer, Polo Lounge finished fifth behind Shares Perfection last time, but with a journey that was more than mildly eventful.

"I don't think she's had the best of trips her last couple races, actually," said Proctor.

Polo Lounge has a nice late run, but no early speed, and her chances very much depend on pace and luck.

"I look for her to run good, but she's one-dimensional," Proctor said.

Scherer's brother Gary also has a horse for Sunday's sixth, Street Sign, who won a turf race here in the spring. T C's Sweetie makes her grass debut for trainer Kelly Von Hemel, while Del Mar Delight will go off at boxcar odds. Sweet Aptitude will start only if the race is rained onto dirt, which seems unlikely.