The annual free-to-enter Countdown to the Cup Handicapping Tournament begins Saturday. More than $7,000 in weekly and overall prize money will be awarded. The contest is offered each Saturday from Sept. 19 through Oct. 24. Points are awarded based on mutuel payouts of each contestant’s selection in each contest race. Top scores win weekly prizes as do overall cumulative totals.
Saturday’s contest track is Churchill Downs. They begin their 11-race card, which includes the Grade 3 Dogwood, at 5:00 p.m. Entries must be submitted prior to first post.
More information and complete rules and schedule are on the CONTEST PAGE.
Big Tournaments produce Big results
Canterbury’s largest handicapping contests, the Ultimate NHC Qualifier and the 19th Dog days of Summer, were held last weekend.
The Ultimate NHC Qualifier format required entrants, each beginning with a $400 live bankroll, to wager at least one-half of the current bankroll in each of six mandatory Canterbury races. So if a player wagered $200 in the first race and cashed for $4,000 his bankroll would be $4,200 and the next contest wager would be at least $2,100. That is exactly what happened last Friday. That early leader had a $900 bankroll two races later but did re-rally and ended up in third place with $2,806, just $32 shy of second. The format is diabolical and not for the faint of heart, but can force a few people to have a big night.
The two largest bankrolls at the conclusion won entry to the National Handicapping Championship in Las Vegas.
Dan Flanigan of Medina, last year’s winner, successfully defended his title, winning the Ultimate NHC Qualifier with $4,302. Frank Mustari from Chicago was second with $2,838.
The Dog Days of Summer Handicapping Tournament, the longest running and likely the first live bankroll contest in North America, is a two-day event which awards the winner an NHC entry plus a $10,000 entry to the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge and a trip to Keeneland. Second place is an NHC entry. The top five also receive cash prizes.
Total entry fee was $650 with $400 being the live betting bankroll. Over the two days, entrants could make any wager on any track offered at Canterbury.
The winner was Janice Houston of Maryland with $4,498. Second was Brian Chenvert of Rogers with $3,990.
Win a trip to Hawthorne and chance to qualify for the NHC
Going on now are Super Satellite Contests for the Oct. 24 Hawthorne Challenge Satellite which will send a player to Chicago for a chance to win their way to Las Vegas. A $10 entry could vault you to $750,000 in cash. Details right here.
Cash In On Pro Football Prognostication
The weekly Perfect Pick contest is underway. Each Sunday contestants must correctly select the winners of the noon pro games plus a couple of over/unders. A minimum of $1,000 in prize money is available to those that are perfect. No winners? The cash carries over, as it did for this Sunday when there is $2,000 in the pot. There is no entry fee but to get the full share, players must meet minimum wagering requirements during the afternoon. The rules are here.
