Pick 3 of the Week: Sam Houston Saturday, Jan. 24

Sam Houston will host a handful of black-type races Saturday, and I will make an all-stakes Pick 3 play on the big card. 

Race 9 Wager

• $2 Pick 3: 3 with 1,5,6 with 2,3,4,5,8 ($30)

Race 9 – Texas Turf Mile

A compact cast of five sophomores will run eight panels on the green in the opening leg. The Joe Sharp-trained #3 Bohemian (4-1) will greatly benefit from the scratch of morning-line favorite #2 Remember Mamba (9-5) since that one posted an impressive allowance tally at Fair Grounds on Thursday. The Essential Quality filly will face the boys in this endeavor, but her last pair of wins were very good, and I expect her to thrive while making her local debut. Kentucky-bred gray has displayed an excellent closing burst in her last pair of assignments and will pass them all late under Ben Curtis. 

Race 10 – Groovy S. 

A cast of seven Texas-bred three-year-olds will scamper six furlongs on the main oval in the second piece of the play. The dash will come down to a trio of runners with unbeaten #1 Big Time Charlie (9-5), Texas Stallion S. winner #5 High Cinco (5-2), and two-time stakes hero #6 It’s All Right (7-5), and I see no need to try to omit any of the trio. I’m three-deep in the middle leg.

Race 11 – Houston Ladies Classic S. (G3)

A total of eight fillies and mares will run 1 1/16 miles on the dirt to close out the play. The race came up strong, and a case can be made for numerous ladies in the affair. My top pick in the tilt is #2 Queen Azteca (6-1), who seems to have fully acclimated to the states since importing from abroad. The four-year-old was last seen checking in a clear second in the Pippin S. at Oaklawn Park, and the Brisset pupil will be a nice price on this occasion. 

Pippin queen #3 Standoutsensation (3-1) has won five of her last six races for Tom Amoss and has never been better. Grade-1 placed #4 Take Charge Milady (9-2) is a two-time stakes heroine who has trained forwardly in advance of her first appearance since the summer for Kenny McPeek. The Brad Cox-trained #5 Yes It Tiz (8-1) is two-for-three on the dirt in her career and comes off a decent fourth in the Comely (G3) at Aqueduct. Two-time Grade 1 heroine #8 La Cara (9-5) will take a ton of money in the contest, and while I sure believe that she could win this, I don’t feel that she is a single in her four-year-old debut against a nice group.