Charlton punting challenge to be staged in Tom Hogan’s honour

Tom Hogan was in poor health when he and partner Sue Murray reigned supreme in last year’s Charlton Cup Day Punt Off, bringing the giant of Victorian harness racing much joy in what proved his final day of bookmaking on the sport he treasured.

And it seems perfectly fitting that Hogan’s name has been attached to the popular annual competition, which has its fourth staging at the north-west club’s big feature meeting this Sunday.

The Tom Hogan Charlton Cup Day Punt Off – as it’s now known – honours the late owner, breeder and punter who died aged 74 last September.

“I think it’s a fantastic gesture to name the punting challenge after Tom. He loved all of the fun and banter that went on during the course of the day,” Murray said.

“He was very competitive, so he was thrilled and proud when ‘we’ won last year.

“Charlton Cup was the last meeting we worked. Tom’s health was getting worse and he was starting to struggle to get around, but he was very determined to go.

“It really meant a lot to us both to be involved in the festivities and punters’ challenge on the day.

“The Charlton Cup and punters’ challenge is one of the many happy memories I have to look back on.”

The Tom Hogan Charlton Cup Day Punt Off sees entrants pay a $1000 fee, with $250 of that placed in an overall prize pool. The other $750 is bet across the day’s card and the punter with the highest balance after the final event is declared the winner. All participants are able to keep their final tally, while the leaderboard-topper takes home the added bonus of the entire prize pool and a trophy.

A stacked card will ensure a great day of racing on Sunday, with the North West Ag Services Charlton Trotters Cup and Community Bank Charlton Pacing Cup backed up by the Central Victorian Championship finals for both gaits.

Jackie Barker will be looking to land her second Charlton Pacing Cup in three years when she partners last weekend’s Horsham hero Sew What (gate nine) in the $30,000 feature, while Julie Douglas prepares both Kosimo (six) and Ideal Escape (eight) for the race.

The Jess Tubbs-trained One Over All (30m) resumes from a spell and is chasing a second-straight triumph in the Charlton Trotters Cup, but will have to battle Kelvin Barker’s Mercenary (10m) who has won both the Ararat and Horsham equivalents in recent weeks.

The Tom Hogan Charlton Cup Day Punt Off will prove a major part of Sunday’s TrotsVision coverage, with Toby McKinnon bringing you all of the action from the track throughout the afternoon.

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