Date Posted: 15 June, 2026
The Royal Meeting gets underway on Tuesday at Ascot and we have two selections for the opening day of the world’s most prestigious flat racing festival. We are also going early on the US Open with a bonus pick ahead of Thursday’s first round at Shinnecock Hills.
Royal Ascot Day 1 — Tuesday 16 June
The going at Ascot is forecast to be good to firm, which suits the type of flat, consistent performances our model looks for. Royal Ascot is the defining week of the British flat racing calendar and Day One features three Group One contests. The quality is exceptional and the fields are competitive — exactly where our AI model excels.
PICK 1: More Thunder — Queen Anne Stakes — 4/1 — 1pt Each-Way
The Queen Anne Stakes is the traditional opener to the Royal Meeting, run over a straight mile. It is a race that rewards horses who travel comfortably through their race and finish strongly on quick ground.
More Thunder is trained by William Haggas, whose yard has been in brilliant form. The trainer stats back this selection strongly. More Thunder has shown consistent ability over a mile on good to firm ground and the straight mile at Ascot fits his running style well. At four to one this is strong each-way value in an open but high-quality field.
PICK 2: Bow Echo — St James’s Palace Stakes — 4/5 — 2pts Win
The St James’s Palace Stakes is the premier milers’ contest for three year olds at the Royal Meeting and one of the most prestigious races of the week. This is our strongest selection of the day.
Bow Echo is our highest-confidence play at the Royal Meeting and we are going two points win. His recent form is excellent and everything about his profile suits this race. Our analysis was very clear on this one — the form, the going preference, the profile all align. At four to five he is the deserving market leader and we are happy to take the short price given the strength of the case.
Bonus Pick — US Open Golf — Shinnecock Hills
The 2026 US Open begins on Thursday at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in New York. This is one of the most demanding tests in major championship golf. Links-style, exposed to Atlantic winds, firm and fast fairways, and rough that is absolutely unforgiving for anyone who strays off the fairway.
At Shinnecock, the stats that matter most are driving accuracy and precision iron play. Power without accuracy is a liability here. The players who tend to win US Opens at this venue are the disciplined, controlled ball-strikers rather than the bombers.
BONUS PICK: Russell Henley — US Open — 33/1 — 1pt Each-Way (8 places)
When our analysis went through the full US Open field, Henley’s course fit at Shinnecock stood out immediately. He has the best driving accuracy of any player in the field — a stat that is arguably the single most important metric for this specific venue. His iron play is elite and crucially, his game profile is built around hitting fairways, hitting greens, and grinding out consistent rounds rather than going for broke.
The 2018 US Open at Shinnecock was won by a player with exactly this kind of profile. Controlled, accurate, disciplined. Henley fits that template better than almost anyone in the field.
At 33/1 with eight places, the each-way return potential is exceptional. This is outstanding value for a player who fits this course better than his price suggests.
Subscribe to our free newsletter on Substack and every pick lands directly in your inbox.
