At least eight horseplayers will be able to start packing their bags for Las Vegas after four tournaments this weekend that offer expenses-paid entries into the world’s richest and most prestigious handicapping contest, the NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) Presented by Racetrack Television Network, STATS Race Lens™ and Treasure Island Las Vegas, to be held February 9-11, 2018, at Treasure Island. Two separate on-track qualifiers take place at Canterbury Park, while affordable online qualifiers are set for Saturday on HorsePlayers.com, the official qualifying site for the NHC, and Sunday on HorseTourneys.com, an independently operated site which annually sends dozens of qualifiers to the NHC.
Details on this weekend’s NHC qualifiers are as follows:
FRIDAY
Canterbury Park NHC Ultimate Qualifier, Canterbury Park, Shakopee, Minn.
Prizes: Two guaranteed NHC entries
Format: Wager at least one-half of existing bankroll on each of Canterbury Park races 2,4,5,6,7,8.
Entry: $500 ($100 entry fee + $400 live bankroll)
More: http://www.canterburypark.com/racing-promotions/ultimate-nhc-qualifier
SATURDAY
Canterbury Park Dog Days of Summer Handicapping Contest (two days, Saturday and Sunday), Canterbury Park, Shakopee, Minn.
Prizes: Two guaranteed NHC entries (first place receives NHC + Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge entries) and cash prize pool for top five
Format: Wager a minimum of $200/day into any pools on Canterbury Park races
Entry: $650 ($150 entry fee + $100 to cash prize pool + $400 live bankroll)
More: http://www.canterburypark.com/racing-promotions/dog-days-of-summer-handicapping-tournament
HorsePlayers.com
Prizes: Two guaranteed NHC entries
Format: $2 Win and Place mythical wagers, live (selections can be made in real time until starting gate is half-loaded)
Entry: $165
More: https://horseplayers.com/contest/243110
SUNDAY
HorseTourneys.com
Prizes: Two guaranteed NHC entries (four maximum)
Format: $2 Win and Place mythical wagers, Pick and Pray (selections must be entered prior to first contest race)
Entry: $240
More: https://horsetourneys.com/contest/242965
Each NHC prize package includes NHC entry, four nights at Treasure Island and airfare reimbursement up to $400. This past January’s NHC 18 offered a record prize pool worth more than $2.9 million, including an $800,000 first-place prize.
One must be a current NHC Tour member to be eligible to win NHC entries. To sign up for the NHC Tour, go to www.ntra.com/membership.
For more information on the NHC and NHC Tour, visit www.ntra.com/nhc.
About the National Horseplayers Championship
In its 19th year, the NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (formerly known as the NTRA National Handicapping Championship) is presented by Racetrack Television Network, STATS Race Lens and Treasure Island Las Vegas. Equibase is the official data provider of the NHC and NHC Tour. The NHC is world’s richest and most prestigious handicapping tournament of the year for horseplayers and is the culmination of a year-long series of NTRA-sanctioned local tournaments conducted by racetracks, casino race books, off-track betting facilities and horse racing and handicapping websites, each of which sends its top qualifiers to the national finals. Each year, the NHC winner joins other human and equine champions as an honoree at the Eclipse Awards. The most recent NHC offered record prize money and awards totaling more than $2.9 million. NHC 19 will be held February 9-11, 2018, at Treasure Island Las Vegas.