If you’re pumped for opening weekend at Saratoga and Del Mar, HorseTourneys gives you a reason to be even more excited—a $40,000 Guaranteed tourney on Saturday that has no limit as to how high the purse could grow. It’s just one of 16 featured tourneys this weekend to go along with some special Saratoga-only contests on their Friday opening day.
Our Friday kickoff to the weekend takes on added significance given the fact that the Spa opens its doors on this day.
Loyal Friday players will be glad to see their trusty friend, the up-to-$12,500 Pick & Pray on the schedule. As usual, this game will have a guaranteed purse of at least $6,000. Contest races are the 7th through 10th from Saratoga; the 8th through 10th from Gulfstream; and the first three from Del Mar—10 races in all.
Also on the Friday slate is an array of Saratoga-only tourneys, including an up-to-$10,000 contest ($2,000 guaranteed, Pick & Pray) and an up-to-$5,000 game ($1,000 guaranteed, live format. There’s also a special, Saratoga-only, entry-only qualifier to October’s Orleans Fall Classic. The winning ratio for this Pick & Pray is just one in 10.
So as long as you like the Spa, you can play for big prizes on Friday, no matter what your budget is.
Our featured schedule on Saturday offers a similarly vast array of options.
Topping the list is our aforementioned $40,000 Guaranteed tourney. It’s a live-format competition with an entry fee of $450. Should we get past 105 entries or so, the pot will grow larger and larger with mo max imposed on the final purse.
There’s also an NHC “Low Ratio” qualifier on the menu. Here, you pay $500 to play, but your winning ratio is just 1 in 21. If your attitude is “NHC or bust” then this is a good game for you.
There are also three other qualifiers on Saturday for brick-and-mortar events later in the year. For $164, you can compete for a $3,500 package to both days of the August 10-11 Saratoga Challenge. For $79 you can win a $1,000 package ($500 entry plus $500 for travel) to the Orleans Fall Classic on October. 11-13. Or for just $63, you can participate in our Last Chance tourney for the Hawthorne OTBs Summer NHC Qualifiers on July 27-28. All three of these qualifiers will be Pick & Prays.
The 12 contest races for these important featured tourneys are the 7th through 11th at Saratoga; the 8th through 10th from Woodbine; and the first four races from Del Mar.
Using the same contest races, HorsePlayers gets into the act on Saturday with a “regular” BCBC qualifier.
At least one $10,000 entry is guaranteed to be awarded in this $179 buy-in game, which carries a winning ratio of 1 in 65.
There are nine more featured tourneys on Sunday, including several “biggies.”
Of a most urgent nature on Sunday is our Last Chance qualifier to the popular Del Mar Handicapping Challenge, held the following weekend. One in 25 entries on Sunday will earn an $8,500 (including $500 for travel) package to the July 28-29 event.
Back on this Sunday’s schedule is a qualifier for the rich Pegasus World Cup Betting Championship on January 25-26. Win this qualifier (1 in 30 will do so) and you will be playing on World Cup day with a fat $12,000 live betting bankroll.
Another high-end Sunday qualifier is the one for The BIG One. Two packages are guaranteed in the tourney. Winners will advance to Laurel on September 22-23 and compete for 10 NHC seats, 10 BCBC entries and 10 Horse Player World Series entries in a field that will not exceed 57. And all packages to The BIG One are all-inclusive. Travel, hotel, welcome dinner, full buffets and open bar at the track are all included.
If September is too far down the road for you to think about, you can play for a $1,000 package to the Monmouth Super Qualifier on August 25. Seven NHC spots and two BCBC entries will be on offer at this Jersey Shore contest.
On October 14, Keeneland hosts its NHC/BCBC Challenge. You can qualify for it here on Sunday when one in 25 entries will earn a $3,500 package to the tournament known for always being expertly run by Keeneland contest impresario Jim Goodman.
Cash specialists (and aren’t we all?) will again have strong Sunday action via our up-to-$20,000 game with a purse guaranteed at a minimum of $12,000 no matter how many ultimately sign up. The entry fee is $195 with a maximum of 118 entries allowed in.
And, of course, it wouldn’t be Sunday without an up-to-$5,000 (with $2,000 Guaranteed) Exacta tourney. It’s $125 to play, and contestants must pick a three-horse exacta box in each tourney race. The winner is based on total overall return on a $1 play. Remember that, in our Exacta tourneys, there are no price caps.
There’s another pair of featured tourneys at HorsePlayers on Sunday—one for the NHC and one for the BCBC. Both will be live-format competitions.
The NHC qualifier goes as a “regular” contest with a 1 in 65 winning ratio, a $165 entry fee, and two seats guaranteed.
The Sunday BCBC qualifier, meanwhile, will be a “Low Ratio” competition. It will have a $500 entry fee, a low winning ratio (1 in just 23), and one $10,000 prize (BCBC entry) guaranteed.
Whether you’re shooting to qualify for a brick-and-mortar tourney down the road or just looking forward to some spirited tourneys involving terrific racing from Saratoga and Del Mar, we hope you will find one or more of the above contests to your liking this weekend. Good luck!