The latest NHC is in the books, and now it’s time to work on getting back there (or getting to the BCBC). For many contest players, one of the favorite ways to accomplish that mission is to participate in the Pick Your Prize Handicapping Challenge, slated for June 4 at Monmouth Park.
Based on 200 entries, the Pick Your Prize event—which can be played on-track, at Xpressbet or, in New Jersey, at 4NJBets—will offer 18 2023 NHC spots, four Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge berths and cash prizes totaling $65,000. Those who do better get a higher “draft choice” when it comes time to “Pick Your Prizes” at the end.
Our first qualifier to the Monmouth “PYP” headlines the Friday featured-tourney schedule.
If you elect to buy your way into the Pick Your Prize, it’ll cost you $2,000. However, a seat can be had for $156 in Friday’s Live-format, 1-per-15 qualifier.
The same pricing parameters are in effect for Friday’s Pick & Pray qualifier to the $350,000 Guaranteed Players Championship (middle leg of the Tourney Triple) here on April 9-10. A $156 entry fee gets you a 1-in-15 chance at a $2,000 seat for the all-cash “PC”.
An important date on each year’s contest calendar is the Keeneland Grade One Gamble, which takes place this year on Saturday, April 23rd. Offering cash and seats to the 2023 NHC and the 2022 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, the Gamble can be played this year either on-track at Keeneland or online at Xpressbet. You can earn a $3,500 spot in the Gamble in Friday’s Pick & Pray for an entry fee of $207. That works out to a winning ratio of 1-in-20.
The same entry fee and winning ratio appliest for Friday’s Pick & Pray to the 1/ST Ultimate Betting Challenge. Entries cost $207 each, and one of every 20 will earn a $3,500 spot in the March 5th contest, which can be played from either Gulfstream, Santa Anita or Xpressbet.
For cash game specialists, there’s Friday’s HT Tour event, our $15,000 Guaranteed No Limit Pick & Pray, which carries an entry fee of $190.
Over at HorsePlayers on Friday, you can play our very first qualifier to the 2023 NHC.
It’s a $75 Pick & Pray with two seats guaranteed and a winning ratio of 1-per-143.
Contest races for Friday are the 5th through 10th from Gulfstream and the 6th through 9th at Tampa Bay Downs—10 races in all.
Saturday is the day for the weekend’s richest tourney.
It’s Saturday’s HT Tour event, a $30,000 Guaranteed, No Limit cash tourney. Entries cost $350 apiece. The format for it this week is Live.
Operating as a Pick & Pray (as it always does) is the Saturday Big Bucks tourney. It’s an “up-to-$20,000” game with a guaranteed pot of $10,000. Entries—at $1,150 per shot—are limited to 20 (unless we get a late arrival or two from last-minute Saturday feeders…in which case the pot will exceed $20,000). Payouts go just to the top three finishers with the winner collecting 70 percent of the net pool, the runner up getting 20 percent, and the third-place finisher picking up the remaining 10 percent.
Your second opportunity of the weekend (of three) to win a $2,000 Monmouth Pick Your Prize entry comes on Saturday. Again, it’s a $156, Live-format affair with a winning ratio of 1-per-15.
The same can be said of Saturday’s Players Championship play-in. Entries cost $156 in this Live-format game and the grand prize is a $2,000 seat.
For $207, you can take a Live-format swing at grabbing a $3,500 Keeneland Grade One Gamble seat. The winning ratio here is 1-per-20.
Saturday’s $15 Jackpot Pick 4 tourney, a Pick & Pray, will have a carryover of $1,013. In our Pick 4 Jackpot games, going four-for-four means you win or share the Jackpot. (You don’t have to be the only winner.) Meanwhile, 70% of the daily net pool gets paid out to players via the traditional $2.00 win/place scoring system. The other 30% goes to the Jackpot pool. Entries in these Jackpot Pick 4 tourneys are limited to three per person.
The Jackpot Pick 4 races for Saturday are the 8th and 9th at Tampa Bay Downs and races 10 and 12 from Gulfstream.
There are two featured qualifiers at HorsePlayers on Saturday—one for the NHC and one for the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge.
The NHC qualifier is a $165 Pick & Pray with two spots guaranteed and a winning ratio of 1-per-65.
The BCBC game is a $179, Live-format qualifier with at least one $10,000 entry certain to be won regardless of participation. The winning ratio here is also 1-per-65.
Saturday’s featured-tourney races are the 7th through 12th from Gulfstream; the 7th through 10th at Tampa Bay Downs; and races 3 and 5 from Santa Anita—12 races all together.
Eight more featured tourneys come your way on Sunday.
We’ll again offer opportunities to qualify for the Pick Your Prize Challenge, the Players Championship, the Keeneland Grade One Gamble and the 1/ST Ultimate Betting Challenge. All four play-ins will be contested in Live format.
Sunday’s HT Tour battle is our $20,000 Guaranteed, No Limit cash game. Entries go for $250 each in what is a Live-format game this week.
The Sunday Big Bucks game is always run in Live format. It’s an up-to-$20,000 battle with $7,500 Guaranteed and an entry fee of $1,150. Entries for this one are limited to 20, and payouts are made only to the top three finishers.
We’ll also have a $15 Pick 4 Jackpot tourney on Sunday. The Jackpot amount will depend on how many played in the Saturday Pick 4 Jackpot tourney—and whether anyone hit it. Check our website or our Twitter feed starting on Saturday night for updates. Our Pick 4 Jackpot games are always Pick & Prays, and this one is no exception.
The Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge has the featured-tourney spotlight to itself on Sunday at HorsePlayers.
It’s a Live-format, Low Ratio BCBC qualifier requiring an entry fee of $500 . The winning ratio is 1-per-23. At least one $10,000 entry for next November is guaranteed to be headed out the door in this one.
It all shapes up as an exciting weekend (with some especially good racing at Gulfstream and Tampa Bay Downs on Saturday). We hope you can spend at least a small portion of it here with us.