LEXINGTON, Ky. (October 24, 2019) – Scott Coles, who became the youngest ever winner of the National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) when he took down top honors at the 20th edition of the tournament, will have a chance to add to his laurels when he plays for a $3 million BCBC-NHC Rolling Double Bonus at next weekend’s Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge (BCBC).

In his first time qualifying for the NHC – the world’s richest and most prestigious handicapping tournament for horseplayers – the 34-year-old Coles made history when he bested a field that had 668 entries, second largest in NHC history, and 522 individual players to earn the $800,000 first-place check this past February. The resident of Illinois and full-time futures trader can significantly pad his bankroll in the BCBC as more than $3.3 million is on the line for him when including the $300,000 tournament grand prize.

“I am very grateful to the NTRA for everything this year and for giving me such an incredible opportunity to play for a life-changing bonus,” Coles said. “Winning the NHC was a dream come true, and I am so thankful for the opportunities and friendships that have come from that. I look forward to competing against the best in my first BCBC and getting back out to Santa Anita.”

The BCBC-NHC Rolling Double Bonus is available to every BCBC and NHC winner as long as they win each contest successively, in either order. The 21st edition of the NHC will be held on February 7-9, 2020 at Bally’s Las Vegas Hotel.

The 2019 BCBC is a “real money” handicapping challenge. Players will be required to deposit $10,000, of which $7,500 will be the players’ bankroll for wagering during the Tournament. Tournament races will include all live races from Santa Anita Park on Friday, November 1 and live races through the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Saturday, November 2. Wager types permitted are Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Trifecta and Daily Double

Coles will play the BCBC from Santa Anita Park. BCBC entrants can play from the Breeders’ Cup host racetrack or satellite sites Churchill Downs, Gulfstream Park, or Monmouth Park, or online at TVG or Xpressbet.

Qualifying for the next NHC continues through January in contests held on-site and online. For more information on the NHC Tour and a complete contest schedule, visit NTRA.com/nhc.

For more on the BCBC, visit www.breederscup.com/bcbc. 

About the NHC

The NHC is the most important 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. There are no bye-ins to the NHC. Each year, the NHC winner joins other human and equine champions as an honoree at the Eclipse Awards. For more information on the NHC, visit NTRA.com/nhc.

About the NTRA

The NTRA, based in Lexington, Ky., is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 horse racing interests and thousands of individual stakeholders consisting of horseplayers, racetrack operators, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity, welfare and integrity of Thoroughbred racing through consensus-based leadership, legislative advocacy, safety and integrity initiatives, fan engagement and corporate partner development. The NTRA owns and manages the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance; NTRA.com; the Eclipse Awards; the National Horseplayers Championship; NTRA Advantage, a corporate partner sales and sponsorship program; and Horse PAC®, a federal political action committee. NTRA press releases appear on NTRA.com, Twitter (@ntra) and Facebook (facebook.com/1NTRA).

 

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