Bygone era begins with Kelso win
Jockey Graham Lee sent the Karen McLintock-trained seven-year-old (3-1) into the lead after jumping the fifth hurdle, at which stage he made the rest of the running. Powering away up the run-in, Bygones Of Brid easily defeated Soft Spoken Guy (40-1) by nine lengths, with the 5-2 favourite, Predictive, six lengths further adrift in third.
This was fifth-season trainer McLintock's biggest success, which has paved the way for a possible shot at the big time.
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Hide AdShe said: "He is in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham but he will only go if the ground is on the soft side – I took him out of the Neptune as it looked too hot. He is the best horse I have trained and he handles soft and heavy ground.
"He seems to go through it easier than most and if he missed Cheltenham we would have a look at Aintree if it was soft there. But if the ground dries up, we will pop him over a few fences and then put him away for next season when he will go chasing."
A race at the Punchestown Festival is also a possibility for Bygones Of Brid, carrying the colours of Ulsterman James Callow, who bought him off McLintock after he had won his two bumpers.
Lee had earlier initiated a double when Ferdy Murphy's Bedlam Boy (4-9 favourite) made it three wins from four starts this season in the Cyril Alexander Memorial HBLB Novices' Chase.
Murphy said: "We knew this would not be his ground, but we thought that if we had to run him somewhere he might as will go for a 20,000 race as one for 3,000.
"He won't be going to Cheltenham, but the space between this race and Aintree is just right. He will go for the race we won with Kalahari King last year (John Smith's Maghull Novices' Chase]."
Denis O'Regan matched Lee's double feat when striking on King O'The Gypsies and Sa Suffit.
King O'The Gypsies duly delivered the goods as the well-backed 13-8 favourite in the Terry Frame Joiners Novices' Hurdle.