08 February 2024 , 16:08
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Star golfers Brooks Koepka and Graeme McDowell are set to swap the links for the racecourse later this month to watch their Cheltenham Festival prospect run.
The pair are co-owners of the Harry Derham-trained Givemefive who has made a flying start to his hurdling career, winning by 18 lengths at Warwick on his latest start.
US Open hero McDowell and Koepka, who claimed back-to-back victories in the same event in 2017 and 2018 and has also won three PGA Championships, became owners with Derham after a nearest the pin shoot-out. McDowell challenged the trainer during a Pro-Am golf tournament, promising to put together a syndicate to own a horse if Derham came out on top.
A break in the golfing calendar means both Koepka and McDowell are hoping to pay a visit to the Kempton on February 24 to see their horse contest the Adonis Juvnile Hurdle.
“They are going to come because they are flying from Florida to the Middle East and are going to stop over, hopefully watch ‘Five’ run really well and then carry on to the Middle East,” said Derham..
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“I don’t think Brooks has ever been racing, but he’s a first-time owner who has had a horse who has won two races so is obviously enjoying it.
“He’s really enthusiastic about it and he and one of his best mates, Daniel Gambill, own the horse with Graeme. They are obviously loving it because they have a really exciting horse and it will be good to give them a nice day out at Kempton – and hopefully ‘Five’ will read the script.”
Givemefive: heading to Kempton for his next startA short at the Cheltenham Festival, in either the Triumph or Fred Winter Hurdle, could depend on Givemefive’s showing.
“Givemefive is going to run in the Adonis and depending on how he gets on there, he could run at Cheltenham,” continued Derham. “The Adonis will tell us more. He was really impressive last time out, but that form didn’t work out yesterday.
“I don’t think he has done enough to run in the Triumph straight away and officially on ratings he has a stone to find with the favourite, which sounds quite a lot, and the Adonis will tell us. I’m not using the Adonis as a stepping stone though, and for a trainer who has only been training a year, it is an enormous deal to have a runner in that race and we will go there all guns blazing.”
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