With a cash prize pool of $145,000 plus a total of 10 berths to the three most prestigious handicapping contests – the NTRA National Horseplayers Championship, the Pegasus World Cup Betting Championship, and the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge – Sunday’s Ultimate Betting Challenge is one of the most popular on-track contests on the calendar. Players can participate at either of The Stronach Group’s flagship facilities, Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita Park. The player-friendly formats pay back 100 percent of entry fees ($1,500 on top of a $3,000 live bankroll) via the cash prize pool.

Lone Star Park and Aqueduct are also presenting on-track qualifiers on a weekend with 13 NHC berths up for grabs online and around the country. 

Details on this week’s NHC qualifiers are as follows:

SATURDAY

Lone Star Park First Chance, Lone Star Park, Grand Prairie, Texas
Prizes: Two NHC berths + $5,000 prize pool to top five
Format: 15 $2 Win and Place mythical wagers, eight mandatory races, seven optional races
Entry: Free
More: https://www.lonestarpark.com/handicapping-tournaments/

Gotham Challenge, Aqueduct, Queens, N.Y.
Prizes: Two NHC berths + one Belmont Challenge berth + cash prize pool ($5,000 guaranteed to first)
Format: $25 minimum wager on 10 races (min. five from Aqueduct)
Entry: $500 ($250 live bankroll, $250 to prize pool)
More: https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/gotham-challenge

HorseTourneys.com
Prizes: Two NHC berths guaranteed
Format: $2 Win and Place mythical wagers, Pick and Pray (selections submitted before first contest race)
Entry: $165
More: https://horsetourneys.com/contest/294239
Feeders: Multiple $18 feeder contests daily this week

 

SUNDAY

The Stronach Group Ultimate Betting Challenge, Santa Anita Park and Gulfstream Park
Prizes: Five NHC berths + four Pegasus World Cup Betting Championship entries + one Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge entry + $145,000 cash prize pool to top 10
Format: WPS, Exacta, Trifecta; Min. $200 on six races; Min. $3,000 in total wagers
Entry: $4,500 ($3,000 live bankroll + $1,500 to prize pool)
More: http://www.santaanita.com/events/ultimate-betting-challenge-2/#.WqFbX66nHIV

HorsePlayers.com
Prizes: Two NHC berths
Format: $2 Win and Place mythical wagers, Pick and Pray (selections submitted before first contest race)
Entry: $165
More: https://horseplayers.com/contest/296186
Feeders: Multiple $18 feeder contests daily this week

Each NHC prize package includes NHC entry, four nights at Treasure Island and airfare reimbursement. This past February’s NHC 19 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 NHC
In its 20th year, the National Horseplayers Championship 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 buy-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.