There is an advantage to running first in the finals. At least, that's the way Steven Feiner saw it.

"When we saw the cattle being settled, we knew if we put up a good score it'd be hard to beat," he said. "This herd wasn't going to get any better as it got deeper in the bunch."

Feiner's assumptions held true. He rang up 220 on Lena Boon to win the $50,000 Amateur 5/6-Year-Old finalof the 24th annual Augusta Futurity at the Augusta-Richmond County Civic Center on Sunday morning.

Feiner, of Los Angeles, collected the first prize of $6,710. First go-round winner Bret Parsons of Congerville, Ill., and Haley Bop Hickory placed second at 217 for $5,031, while Crystal Morrison and Onesmartone finished third (216.5, $3,354).

On Lena Boon, a 5-year-old mare by Peptoboonsmal out of Sweet Lil Lena, Feiner opened the third day of the futurity at 8 a.m. with his run. The final marked just the second time Feiner has shown his horse since purchasing her 10 months ago.

"We liked her," said Feiner, who also the 1999 Amateur for 4-Year-Olds. "We brought her out to California and I showed her once there in Burbank in the 4-Year-Olds. I didn't do any good, but she felt good."

Lena Boon's feelings were part of the game plan.

"Today we wanted to keep her just a little bit more fresh so she'd be a little more explosive through her turns," Feiner said. "We thought if we cut three cows, we had a good shot at winning. Of course with cutting, you never know."

Twelve horses qualified with a score of 215.5 or better. After notching his 220 in the first run, Feiner watched the 11 other horses come up short.

"This was a high-scoring event going into the finals," he said. "So you're watching every horse. Every horse there was capable of scoring similar or going over."

Now it's back to work for Feiner, who is the president of two clothing lines - XOXO and Baby Phat. He left Augusta Sunday for Los Angeles and will fly to New York today.

"I don't have as much time as I'd like (to show cutting horses)," said Feiner, who owns about 20 horses, seven of them show horses. "This year, we have a lot of good horses. I'm just going to make the time."