Luke's Benefit and Brian Cawley clear the last at Punchestown© Photo Healy Racing
Commentator Dessie Scahill rightly dished out the plaudits to Ruby Walsh for his recovery from an early mistake on the favourite Troll D'Oudairies but that put the 'jolly' out of the race and it was left to Luke's Benefit to add to his 2011 and 2012 wins in the Punchestown.com Handicap Chase.
Brian Cawley rode the successful grey and now sees his claim down from seven to five pounds on the occasion of his twentieth winner. Always to the fore, Luke's Benefit had his opponents on the stretch in the straight.
Up the run-in he put six and a half lengths between himself and Kennoway with a length and a quarter back to the third placed Beckwith Star
Denis Hogan handles Luke's Benefit for the T & M Racing Partnership and he commented: "He's won that now for three years and that's brilliant. It's hard enough to get one never mind win the same race three times.
"He likes his own way and unless he's winning easy he tends to get swallowed up. That's his eight win though it'd be nice to get a better class of horse into the yard. A lot of the time we're dealing with double digit handicap ratings."
R. Walsh, rider of Troll D'Oudairies (FR) trained by Martin Brassil, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount made a very bad mistake at the second fence which brought him to a standstill and consequently was pulled up.
(AM & EM)
