CLASSIC OPEN Phil Rapp and Smart Little Jerry sweep the classic open division Phil Rapp wasn't letting on, but he knew he and Smart Little Jerry stood an excellent chance of winning this class and sweeping both Classic Division titles. Earlier in the evening, Rapp, riding Smart Little Jerry, had won the Classic Non-Pro with a blistering 224. After the Classic Non-Pro victory, Rapp said a sweep would be improbable because the competition would be stiffer against the professionals in the Classic Open. "To sweep it, everything would have to work out perfect," Rapp said. What Rapp didn't say at the time was that on the few occasions Smart Little Jerry worked in two finals on the same night, the stallion was always better the second time. "I knew if Jerry put a run down, he could be very competitive with any of those horses," Rapp said. Jerry didn't mark as high a score in the Classic Open finals as he did in the Classic Non-Pro finals, but a 222 still carried the day and completed the sweep of the Classic Division. He won $16,129 for the Classic Open victory. "He was better the second time," Rapp said. "He was right on the money." It took a horse of Smart Little Jerry's caliber to beat John Mitchell and his mare, Acres On Fire. The top horse through two go-rounds of this class, Acres On Fire continued to mark high scores, turning in a 220 in the finals to finish second. Rapp might have matched the 224 he and Smart Little Jerry recorded in the Classic Non-Pro finals if Rapp had been able to cut the third cow faster. The team worked first in the 20-horse finals. After a solid but unspectacular start, Rapp and his stud hooked up with what the cutters like to call a "money cow" because that kind of cow can win a cutting for a rider. "She was an outstanding cow," Rapp said of his second cut. With the dual victories, Smart Little Jerry joined the short list of "super horses" in Augusta. Smart Little Jerry, by Smart Little Lena out of Playboys Ruby, joined Cash Quixote Rio, Haidas Sugar Doc and Little Badger Dulce in the pantheon of great Augusta Futurity horses. Cash Quixote Rio and Haidas Sugar Doc are the show's only three-time winners, and Little Badger Dulce owns the arena record (a 227, set in 1995). "He's one of the best horses I've ever ridden," said Rapp of Smart Little Jerry, who was trained by Bill Riddle. "He's a great individual and he's cow smart. He's got his mother and father's intelligence and ability. He's just a super horse." As great as Smart Little Jerry is, Rapp couldn't rate the horse as an equal to Tap O Lena, the horse he rode to the Futurity Non-Pro title here in 1994. "I'll never ride a better horse than Tap O Lena," Rapp said flatly.