Controversy overshadows National Treasure’s victory

HORSE RaCInG

Baffert horse euthanized before Preakness Stakes

By Dave Sheinin WASHINGTON

POST

BALTIMORE

– The sport of horse racing and all its fans and stewards had a little more than five hours Saturday to travel between the poles of tragedy and triumph.

Between Havnameltdown’s ontrack death at Pimlico Race Course in the afternoon haze and National Treasure’s dazzling victory in the Preakness Stakes under the long shadows of evening, the music kept blaring from the infield festival stage, six other races went off without a hitch, and Bob Baffert trended on Twitter – and not for any good reasons.

Because the Preakness is the second jewel in horse racing’s Triple Crown, the quick version of history from Saturday will first note National Treasure’s victory over runner-up Blazing Sevens and five other rivals in the smallest Preakness field in 37 years.

The victory ruined the Triple Crown hopes of Kentucky Derby winner Mage, who finished third, and gave Baffert his record-breaking eighth Preakness title.

“It’s been a very emotional day,” Baffert said, choking back tears during NBC’s postrace interview.

See PREAKNESS, 3

Koepka captures his old magic to take third-round lead at PGA

By Alan Binder NEW YORK TIMES

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Four years ago, less than a week before he won his second consecutive PGA Championship, Brooks Koepka allowed the world inside his swaggering mind.

“One hundred fifty-six in the field, so you figure at least 80 of them I’m just going to beat,” he said at Bethpage in 2019. “You figure about half of them won’t play well from there, so you’re down to about maybe

35.And then from 35, some of them just – pressure is going to get to them. It only leaves you with a few more, and you’ve just got to beat those guys.” Keep in contention long enough, he reasoned, and “good things are going to happen.”

He returned to the mix last month at the Masters Tournament, where he surrendered his lead to Jon Rahm during the final round. And now he is in the mix this weekend at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club, where he fired a field-best 4-under-par 66 on a rain-soaked

Saturday, giving him a onestroke lead over Corey Conners and Viktor Hovland with a round to play. He had also scored a tournament-leading 66 on Friday, after a 72 on Thursday.

All of that is rumbling forth from a man with a wrenching medical history, a man who last year was trying (and failing) to shatter car windows at Augusta National Golf Club after a missed Masters cut, a man who just Thursday played a round that he said was “the worst I’ve hit it in a really long time.” He finished that

See PGA, 8