Lexington, KY – August 15, 2024 – The third day of the 2024 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship took place on Thursday of the Bluegrass Festival Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park. One hundred thirty-four horses returned for the second round of the 3’/3’3” Championships as they tried to qualify for Friday’s Championship Round. Hunter Kay and Estero earned the highest score of the day, garnering a 270.5 from the judges to take home the blue ribbon. Nick Haness and Ultimate Romance placed second, while Kelley Farmer and Way With Words rounded out the top three. Farmer also had the highest combined score with Way With Words to claim the overall victory, while Kay was ranked second and Kate Conover was third overall with Courtside.
Kelley Farmer and Way With Words
The 3’/3’3” Championship consists of two rounds offered at both 3’ and 3’3”. All horses are invited to compete in the first round and second round, but the top 10 from the first round may elect not to compete in the Second Round. The top 10 horses from the Second Round are automatically qualified for the Championship Tier I Round. Lastly, the top 10 horses from cumulative scores from the First and Second Round qualify for the Championship Tier I Round. The 30 horses will advance to the Championship Tier I Round, where they start with a clean slate. A new course was created in the Rolex Stadium on Thursday by Ken Krome and Meghan Rawlins, once again allowing the young horses to showcase their style over the beautiful fences.
Kay was honored to earn the day’s top score with Estero, besting 143 horses on their way to the winner’s circle. “It’s definitely a little bit surreal, so I’m still pinching myself – it’s pretty incredible,” he expressed. “It’s the biggest win of my career and I am lucky to have such a great partner like Estero. This is definitely a championship we aim for all year. It’s something we look for in terms of when we’re looking to purchase horses for customers and going through the pipeline. They’ve created something really special in terms of finding young horses and producing young horses. It’s just amazing to be able to compete here – and winning a round is just incredible!”
Hunter Kay and Estero
Estero is an 8-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Ann Rice Ervin that was purchased from Havens Schatt after indoors and has been trained by Ron Danta and Danny Robertshaw with Kay in the irons. “We started showing him in the Green Hunterss in Florida, and he’s just awesome to ride,” said Kay. “In terms of preparation for today, I think we jumped four jumps in the schooling ring. He really felt ready yesterday he jumped great, and then today he just jumped out of his skin.”
Kay is looking forward to Friday’s final championship round and hoping to keep luck on his side. “We just want to keep him feeling good and I’m hoping to stay out of his way and give him the best ride I can tomorrow,” he concluded. “I feel so fortunate. There are so many great horses here, so hopefully we have more good luck tomorrow!”
The 2024 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship will conclude on Friday with the final championship round of the 3’/3’3” Championship. The week continues with the 2024 Platinum Performance/USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship, which will also get underway on Friday in the Rolex Stadium.
For more information about the Kentucky Horse Shows, please visit www.kentuckyhorseshows.com