HOLLYWOOD PARK : Garden Gal, Long Time Ago Head Landaluce Stakes Field

Garden Gal and Long Time Ago--just a nose apart in their first starts, a maiden race that was one tick off the track record of 1:02 4/5 for 5 1/2 furlongs--head a field of 11 entered in Saturday’s $100,000 Landaluce Stakes at Hollywood Park.

The Landaluce, due to decide the 2-year-old filly championship of the current spring/summer meeting, is a Grade III event to be contested at six furlongs.

Garden Gal, owned by Jan, Mace and Samantha Siegel, went wire-to-wire in winning her first outing in near-track record time. Martin Pedroza again will ride for trainer Brian Mayberry.

Long Time Ago, a daughter of Conquistador Cielo trained by David Hofmans, was six lengths clear of the third place finisher in her debut. Kent Desormeaux will be back aboard the Golden Eagle Farm filly.

Long Time Ago will race coupled with Alyfair, the daughter of Alydar who swept from 10th and last to win her racing bow on June 6 for trainer Richard Mandella. Laffit Pincay Jr. is the rider.

Another leading contender is sure to be Sawsan, who broke her maiden at Hollywood Park by five lengths before going to Golden Gate Fields to win the Joy To The World Stakes by three lengths. Eddie Delahoussaye has the call for trainer Richard Mulhall.

The complete field, in post position order, for the Landaluce Stakes:

Sawsan (Eddie Delahoussaye) 119; Lite Light (Corey Nakatani) 116; Spirited Susan (Russell Baze) 116; a-Long Time Ago (Kent Desormeaux) 114; Perky Slew (Robbie Davis) 116; Garden Gal (Martin Pedroza) 116; Consulate (Pat Valenzuela) 116; Shorouk (Corey Black) 114; Dragonetta (Gary Stevens) 116; a-Alyfair (Laffit Pincay Jr.) 116, and Dark Heat (Alex Solis) 116.

a-Golden Eagle Farm entry.

Moraga Handicap winner Annual Reunion will make her next appearance in Sunday’s $150,000 Hollywood Oaks. A Grade I test, the Oaks promises to attract an abundance of class and speed.

“It looks like the race could be loaded with fillies who like to go to the front,” noted trainer Gary Jones. “Fortunately for Annual Reunion, she likes to run at them from out of it.”

Bred in Kentucky by the John C. Mabees, Annual Reunion just missed in the recent Honeymoon Handicap, running second to Materco on June 2.

“She may have come up a little short in that race,” explained Jones. “I think the extra sixteenth on Sunday is just what she has wanted. If I were to concern myself with one particular detail, it would be coming from a turf race and running back on the dirt. Sometimes when these horses have the luxury of running on the turf, they don’t seem to fire back on the dirt.”

Longshot Lovlier Laura, ridden by apprentice Omar Berrio, came six-wide through the final turn and sprinted to victory Thursday in Hollywood Park’s $37,000 grass allowance feature.

Lovlier Laura, the 30-1 sixth betting choice of the crowd of 12,247, finished 1 1/2 lengths ahead of 92-1 shot I’m Chantel. Cash In Now, the 6-5 favorite, was a neck back in third in the field of eight fillies and mares, 4-year-olds and up. (Charts in Section C.)