Paul Calia Leads NTRA National Horseplayers Championship Entering Sunday’s Final Table
Las Vegas, NV (March 12, 2023) – Paul Calia from Kansas City, MO leads the 24th NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) with a bankroll of $343.90 at the conclusion of Sunday morning’s Semifinal round. The top 10 will continue on to compete in this afternoon’s Final Table, where the ultimate winner will be named Horseplayer of the Year and take home the $800,000 prize. Bankrolls from previous rounds carry over to the Final Table, where players must select one horse for a mythical $2 Win-Place wager on each of the same seven races.
The Final Table players, in descending order by bankroll:
- Paul Calia (first entry), $343.90
- Francis Boustany, $301.50
- Gary Fenton, $295.20
- Paul Calia (second entry), $280.90
- David Browning, $277.00
- George Novick, $275.80
- Steven Wells (second entry), $270.60
- Joseph Paese, $268.50
- Steven Wells (first entry), $266.00
- Steve Nemetz, $265.90
The Final Table mandatory races are (all times PT): Oaklawn Park Race 7, 1:50 pm; Gulfstream Park Race 10, 2:06 pm; Aqueduct Race 9, 2:25 pm; Santa Anita Race 5, 2:35 pm; Oaklawn Park Race 9, 2:54 pm; Golden Gate Park Race 6, 3:14 pm; Santa Anita Park Race 7, 3:29 pm.
In a separate Consolation Tournament for players that did not reach the Semifinals round, Karen Richards of Pembroke Pines, FL, won the $10,000 top prize with a bankroll of $130.40 from 10 optional races. The Consolation Tournament started with bankrolls reset to zero. Cash prizes totaling $50,000 were awarded, from the $10,000 first prize down to $1,000 for 20th.
For the complete Caesar’s Race and Sports Book NHC Leaderboard and other contest information, please visit NTRA.com.
The three-day NHC wraps up Sunday evening with the annual Champions Dinner at the Horseshoe Event Center. In addition to its three presenting sponsors ― Caesars Entertainment, Horseshoe Las Vegas and RTN ― the NHC is supported by official partners Daily Racing Form, EquinEdge, Four Roses Bourbon and Race Lens.
To sign up for the NHC Tour, go to www.ntra.com/membership.
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 and is named Horseplayer of the Year. For more information on the NHC, visit NTRA.com/nhc.
ABOUT THE NTRA
The NTRA, based in Lexington, Ky. and Washington, D.C.,, 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. For more information visit NTRA.com.
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