Updated

The Turf Club is one of the most exclusive spots at Churchill Downs Racetrack outside of the Mansion, and it is never short on celebrities and other high-profile guests on Derby day.

Photographer Ron Bath and I took a tour of the Turf Club in the early afternoon Saturday and were immediately inundated with famous faces, such as country music stars Kix Brooks and Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry.

We also ran into multiple sports stars, including recently retired Major League Baseball slugger David Ortiz, who has become a Boston icon for his storied tenure with the Boston Red Sox, and NFL great Jerry Rice, who dazzled audiences with his quick feet and smooth hands while playing for the San Francisco 49ers.

Ortiz is featured in our gallery. Unfortunately, Rice was moving quickly (no surprise for a hall-of-fame wide receiver) and made it to the off-limits Turf terrace before we could grab him for a photo.

Other faces we ran into included Stephen Amell of the television show “Arrow” and movie star Jesse Eisenberg, known for movies such as “The Social Network” and “Zombieland.”

Dolvett Quince, a personal trainer on “The Biggest Loser” and grand marshal of the Pegasus Parade, was gracious enough to chat with us and even recorded a video greeting for my wife, who is a big fan.

To see our full line-up of Turf Club names we ran into, check out our gallery above.

Marty Finley covers economic development, commercial and residential real estate, government and sports business.


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