Keeler Johnson's picks and plays Aug. 14

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares picks and plays for Monday, Aug. 14 at Thistledown, Presque Isle Downs, and Assiniboia Downs, along with horses to play in the $1,203 Super High 5 carryover at Louisiana Downs.

Today’s special offers from TwinSpires include:

• Presque Isle Downs $2,000 Late Pick 5 Hit It & Split It: Hit the Late Pick 5 at Presque Isle Downs to win your share of an additional $2,000 jackpot.

Picks and Plays

Thistledown: Race 3: Maiden Special Weight (5 1/2 furlongs, 1:50 p.m. ET)

#4 Feeling Easy (8-5) has finished second in her first two starts over this track and class level, earning improving Brisnet Speed ratings of 48 and 55 that top Monday’s field. Timothy Hamm has gone 17-for-86 (20%) at Thistledown this meet, and Feeling Easy will be guided by hot apprentice jockey Luis Rivera Jr. (who rides with a five-pound weight allowance), so Feeling Easy definitely ranks as the filly to beat.

Let’s key Feeling Easy on top of trifecta tickets emphasizing #6 Authoritarian Girl (5-2) underneath.

Selections

• #4 Feeling Easy (8-5)
• #6 Authoritarian Girl (5-2)
• #5 Miz Keeta (4-1)

Wagers

• $8 Trifecta: 4 with 6 with 1,5 ($16)
• $7 Trifecta: 4 with 1,5 with 6 ($14)
  Total: $30

Presque Isle Downs: Race 7: Satin and Lace S. (six furlongs on Tapeta, 5:42 p.m. ET)

#8 Marissa’s Lady (5-2) boasts four wins and a second from five starts over synthetic tracks, highlighted by a trio of sprint stakes wins at Turfway Park. Her lone defeat on synthetic came in a route race, and she recently wired a six-furlong $50,000 allowance optional claimer at Presque Isle Downs by three lengths over next-out stakes winner Jill Jitterbug.

Under Presque Isle’s runaway leading jockey Pablo Morales, Marissa’s Lady is a logical choice to take home top honors in the Satin and Lace. Presque Isle stakes winner #5 Ready To Venture (7-2) can battle with #3 Do You Love Me (6-1) and #1 Yuugiri (4-1) for places in the trifecta.

Selections

• #8 Marissa’s Lady (5-2)
• #5 Ready To Venture (7-2)
• #3 Do You Love Me (6-1)

Wagers

• $20 to win on #8 Marissa’s Lady
• $5 Trifecta: 8 with 5 with 1,3 ($10)
• $5 Trifecta: 8 with 1,3 with 5 ($10)
  Total: $40

Assiniboia Downs: Race 3: CTHS Sales S. (six furlongs, 9:25 p.m. ET)

#2 Justlemmeatem (9-5) earned a field-best 71 Brisnet Speed rating when finishing second by a neck in his debut sprinting 4 1/2 furlongs on July 4 at Assiniboia Downs. Less than three weeks later, he came back to win over the same track and distance by 4 1/2 lengths, earning a 64 Brisnet Speed rating tied for the second-highest number in Monday’s field.

Let’s key Justlemmeatem on top of a cold exacta using longshot filly #6 Vindictive Miss (10-1) for second place. She earned a 64 Brisnet Speed rating when finishing third (3 1/2 lengths behind Justlemmeatem) on July 4 and is adding blinkers and Lasix for her second start, opening the door for improvement.

Selections

• #2 Justlemmeatem (9-5)
• #6 Vindictive Miss (10-1)
• #5 Commandoslastdance (8-5)

Wagers

• $20 Exacta: 2 with 6

Carryover Watch

Louisiana Downs: Race 7: $1,203 Super High 5 carryover (7:53 p.m. ET)

If you want to win a share of Monday’s $1,203 Super High 5 carryover at Louisiana Downs, you’ll have to decipher a mighty tough race.

The 50-cent wager is available to play in Race 7, a $25,000 allowance optional claimer taking place over 6 1/2 furlongs on dirt. An overflow field has been entered, with 12 runners in the main body of the field and two more on the also-eligible list. Assuming 12 horses face the starter, there will be 95,040 possible Super High 5 outcomes for bettors to consider.

It’s difficult to recommend complete tickets without knowing if either of the also-eligibles will draw in; after all, analyzing 14 horses equates to 240,240 possible Super High 5 outcomes. So instead, we’ll highlight a couple of key contenders worth building tickets around. Regardless of how the final field unfolds, the following two horses should have every chance to finish in the top five:

#5 Biloxi (6-1): This four-year-old gelding hasn’t missed the exacta in four starts this year. Three starts back, he dominated a $25,000 claimer at Evangeline Downs by four lengths, after which he finished second and first in a pair of allowance sprints over the same track. His last three Brisnet Speed ratings are 84, 90, and 86, right around the par winning number (90) for Monday’s conditions. Expect this stretch-running son of Jess’s Dream to be gaining ground down the lane.

#9 Requisition (7-2): Requisition started the year with three consecutive defeats, but he’s stepped up his game in recent months, winning three of his last four starts. On May 8, Requisition trounced a seven-furlong $17,500 claimer at Louisiana Downs by 3 3/4 lengths, beating a pair of next-out winners with an 83 Brisnet Speed rating. He was even sharper in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance on June 19 at Louisiana Downs, beating a couple more next-out winners with a 90 Brisnet Speed rating. Racing for the hot jockey/trainer duo of Joel Dominguez and Steve Asmussen (20% winners together over the last two months), Requisition is a viable win threat in Monday’s contest.

Good luck!