Muir Beach dismissed rumors of her demise as the two-time defending horse of the meet bounced back from a mini-slump with a strong win Saturday in the $40,000 Queen of the Green Handicap at Turf Paradise.

The 5-year-old Muir Beach, owned by Dennis Weir and trained by Dan McFarlane, was sent off the 7-5 favorite in the mile turf race. Under leading rider Glenn Corbett, she bided her time, found room along the rail, burst through, and shot clear to win by 1 1/2 lengths. She covered the distance in 1:36.08 on firm turf.

Tax Refund ($6.40) scored her second straight victory on Polytrack when she came from slightly off the pace to post a 3 1/4-length victory in the $50,000 Holiday Inaugural Stakes at Turfway Park.

A 4-year-old filly ridden by John McKee for trainer Bob Holthus, Tax Refund was coming off a win over high-priced optional claimers at Keeneland. It was her fifth win in 12 starts this season.

Beautiful Bets, the 5-2 second choice in a field of 11 female sprinters, finished second with Bluesbdancing third.

Kid Grindstone had some early pace, Patriot Act had none, and that was all the difference in the Tenacious Handicap on Saturday at Fair Grounds. Seizing the lead from lone-speed Tepexpan at the top of the long Fair Grounds stretch, Kid Grindstone had just enough in the tank to hold clear a fast-finishing Patriot Act to win the Tenacious by a diminishing neck.

Patriot Act, long on reputation but still not a stakes winner on the eve of his 5th birthday, might be the horse to watch in Fair Grounds stakes early in 2007, but on this day it was Kid Grindstone who got the candy,

MIAMI - Trainer H. Graham Motion won't arrive in south Florida until after Christmas. But the English-born horseman received an early present when Ballast rallied to a 1 1/4-length victory over the 19-1 Bob's Proud Moment in Saturday's $100,000 at Calder.

Trainer Cole Norman had two horses test in excess of the permitted levels of total carbon dioxide in the $150,000 Jean Lafitte Futurity at Delta Downs on Nov. 3, and for the second offense has been suspended six months in a ruling issued by track stewards. He has appealed the ruling to the Louisiana Racing Commission and the case is scheduled to come before the commission in January, according to stewards at Delta.

MIAMI - Amorama had piled up plenty of frequent flyer miles but had nary a victory to show for her travels this season, until Saturday when she returned to south Florida to post a come-from-behind one-length victory over Bayou's Lassie in the $100,000 at Calder.

MIAMI - Meditations turned in the most eye-catching performance of Saturday's Grand Slam I program at Calder and served notice she could be a force to reckon with in the 3-year-old filly division this winter at Gulfstream Park by roaring to a 10 3/4-length triumph in the $100,000 Three Ring Stakes.

Adhrhythm, the even-money favorite coming off a seventh-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, finished last in the field of seven 2-year-old fillies.

In a major resurgence, Remington Park, which opened a casino in November 2005, posted extreme gains in average daily handle during its Thoroughbred meet that closed on Tuesday. The Magna-owned track is in Oklahoma City.

Handle on Remington's live races from all sources was $873,833 per night this meet, a gain of 58 percent from the $549,701 average during the corresponding meet in 2005. Of the total amount, an average of $795,334 a night was bet on the track's races offsite, a 65 percent increase from the 2005 average of $481,012.

Jockey Harry Vega swept both stakes for South Carolina resident 2-year-olds aboard heavy favorites at Philadelphia Park.

Vega guided No Mine for Me ($3) to a comfortable victory in the $45,475 Christopher Melser Memorial for colts and geldings. One race later, Vega collected his third win on the card in the $41,900 Donna Freyer for fillies when Suzy Smart ($4) held off Welcome Inn by a neck.

Both stakes were restricted to horses who spent at least 90 days in South Carolina.

Adore the Gold ($3.60) was much the best in the $85,000 H. Steward Mitchell for 2-year-olds at Laurel Park.

Ridden by Joe Rocco for trainer Mike Gorham, Adore the Gold won for the third time in four starts, drawing away in the stretch to a four-length victory over the previously unbeaten Cahill's Touch.

Crafty Bear was another 4 3/4 lengths back in third.

Owned by John Murphy Sr., Adore the Gold previously won the $100,000 Dover at Delaware Park.

The winning time for seven furlongs on a fast track was 1:24.59.