The $1 million Travers Stakes ended in dramatic fashion Saturday with 33-1 longshot Golden Ticket and heavy favorite (2-1) Alpha hitting the wire at the same time for a photo finish dead heat in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The two horses will split the $600,000 first-place prize money.
Without any of the major contending horses from this year's Triple Crown race participating at Saratoga, Alpha, who finished 12th in the Kentucky Derby, emerged as the heavy favorite for Saturday's "Midsummer Derby" in upstate New York.
Golden Ticket, on the other hand, was a last-minute entry into the 2012 Travers Stakes by trainer Ken McPeek. The photo finish dead heat is only the second victory of Golden Ticket's career.
The Nick Zito horse Fast Falcon finished third, with Atigun finishing 4th and out of the money.
For more on the Travers Stakes, including odds, check this Storystream and SB Nation New York. Also check out SBN's horse racing blog, And Down The Stretch They Come.