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New Yorker Harrison Has Lead As NHC Reaches Final Table Round

David Harrison of Webster, N.Y., leads the 2022 NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas, with a bankroll of $325.60 following Sunday morning's Semifinals round.

The top 10 continue on to this afternoon's Final Table presented by Caesars Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company, where the ultimate placings will be determined for the $725,000 grand prize down to $50,000 for 10th. 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:

Bankroll, Name, Hometown, Qualifying Site, Past NHC success

1. $325.60, David Harrison, Webster, N.Y., HorsePlayers.com, 3-time NHC qualifier

2. $295.20, Albion Benton, Manchester, N.H., HorsePlayers.com, 3x qualifier

3. $291.80, Ryan Patrick Scully, Montgomery, Ill., Hawthorne Race Course, first-time qualifier

4. $263.40, David McCarty, San Diego, NHC Tour, 8x qualifier

5. $257.60, Frank Paros, Jupiter, Fla., Canterbury Park, first-time qualifier

6. $252.80, Sally Goodall, Las Vegas, NTRA / HorseTourneys.com, 20x qualifier, NHC Hall of Fame

7. $245.10, Shirley Wolff, Holmdel, N.J., Horseplayers.com, 3x qualifier

8. $240.40, Mike Somich, Raleigh, N.C., Lone Star Park, 3x qualifier, Day 2 highest earner

9. $239.10, Kevin Smith, Coral Gables, Fla., Bally's Last Chance, 2x qualifier

10. $234.00, Dale Day, Yukon, Okla., NTRA free contest, first-time qualifier

The Final Table mandatory races are (all times PT): Gulfstream Park Race 10, 1:42 p.m.; Fair Grounds Race 7, 2:05 p.m.; Sam Houston Race 6, 2:23 p.m.; Fair Grounds Race 8, 2:36 p.m.; Sam Houston Race 8, 3:23 p.m., Sam Houston Race 9, 3:53 p.m.; Santa Anita Park Race 9, 4:34 p.m.

Sam Houston's stakes-laden Houston Racing Festival card is part of the Final Table for the first time since the Final Table's debut as the climactic round of play in 2014.

In addition to the $725,000 first-place cash prize, the winner of the Final Table will receive an Eclipse Award as the 2022 Horseplayer of the Year and will be honored at next year's Eclipse Awards ceremony. The upcoming Eclipse Awards on Feb. 10 will honor 2021 champions, including 2021 NHC winner and Horseplayer of the Year Justin Mustari.

NHC Tour winner Kevin Costello advanced to the Semifinals with both of his entries, finishing 19th ($206) with Entry 1 and 53rd with Entry 2 ($173.60), which was the one eligible for a $5 million bonus if he could have won the NHC. Costello was the only player with two entries in the Semifinals round.

For the complete TVG Leaderboard and other contest information, please visit NTRA.com.

In a separate Consolation Tournament for players that did not reach the Semifinals round, David Wolff of Holmdel, N.J., husband of Final Table player Shirley Wolff, won the $10,000 top prize with a bankroll of $141.60 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.

The three-day NHC wraps up Sunday evening with the annual Champions Dinner at the Bally's Event Center.

In addition to its three presenting sponsors – RTN, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas – the NHC is supported by official partners Daily Racing Form, EquinEdge, FanDuel Group, Four Roses Bourbon, NYRA Bets, Race Lens, TVG, and 1/ST Bet. The Final Table, where only the top 10 players advance to determine final placings based on seven climactic races, is sponsored by Caesars Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company.

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McCarty Maintains National Horseplayers Championship Lead Into Final Day

David McCarty of San Diego grinded out another day of consistent mid-range prices to maintain his lead after Day 2 of the 2022 NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas. McCarty has amassed a bankroll of $248.80 to lead 643 entries in the richest and most prestigious handicapping contest in the world. Sally Goodall, inducted into the NHC Hall of Fame last year, sits a menacing second with $245.60.

All players made mythical win-place wagers on 18 races Friday and 18 races on Saturday from eight racetracks. McCarty, making his eighth NHC appearance, began the day atop the TVG Leaderboard with a mythical bankroll of $162.80.

“My biggest winner today was 7 or 8-1 and yesterday it was 13-1,” McCarty said. “I haven't had any bombs. I wanted to get another $100 today and I almost got there. I've just been bouncing around between chalk and mid-priced horses.

“I'd like to capitalize on the fact that I'm already up there and at least finish in the top five.”

McCarty, 79, is a biotechnology consultant who ran multiple startups, including one that was purchased by a company that soon went public. He is a Turf Club member at Del Mar. McCarty has been playing horses since he was a teenager and ran daily double wagers to Santa Anita for his friend's father.

Goodall, a 20-time NHC qualifier, moved into the top 10 with a win in Tampa Bay's fourth. Five-year-old mare Moniques Daredevil won easily at 8-1 stretching out to two turns on the dirt.

“You have strategies and sometimes they work, sometimes not,” she said. “Every day is different and you just hope for the best. I like to make pedigree plays and today they worked for me.”

Both women in the NHC Hall of Fame are in the top 10. Judy Wagner, the 2001 NHC winner, is seventh with $201.80. There are two former NHC winners among the top 10 – Wagner and 2019 champ Scott Coles (ninth, $200.70).

NHC Tour winner Kevin Costello made the cut with both of his entries, sitting in 16th ($187.40) with Entry 1 and 54th with Entry 2 ($162), which is the one eligible for a $5 million bonus should he win the NHC.

The leading earner on Day 2 was Mike Somich, who put together a $169.80 performance. Even after getting blanked on Day 1 the performance was enough to make the cut in 37th place with $169.80. Somich, 38, of Raleigh, N.C., will receive a Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge entry worth $10,000.

The three-day NHC concludes Sunday at Bally's. The top 64 entries (top 10%) after today's Day 2 action carry their mythical bankroll into Sunday's Semifinals round, which will require mythical win-place wagers on 10 races from a menu of 22 races. The top 10 from the Semifinals advance to Sunday afternoon's Final Table presented by Caesars Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company, to determine the 2022 NHC champion. The grand prize winner will receive the $725,000 first-place prize and an Eclipse Award as Horseplayer of the Year.

For the complete TVG Leaderboard and other contest information, please visit NTRA.com.

Defending champion Justin Mustari will not continue on to the Semifinals. He checked in at 108th ($137.20).

Canale Wins Charity Challenge
Michael Canale, senior producer of broadcast and video content at Oaklawn Park, won the 8th Annual NTRA NHC Charity Challenge presented by Four Roses Bourbon with a final bankroll of $87.30 from eight contest races. Matt Rybaltowski, the sports betting writer, finished second with $82.50 and Sean Clancy checked in third with $79.10.

Canale selected the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance to receive a $2,500 donation in his name to go along with another $2,500 committed to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund.

“I've been in this game well over 20 years and I just think it's important to give back to the horses and make sure they're well taken care of,” Canale said. “The two causes in acing that are closest to my heart are the jockeys, because I've gotten to know so many of them over the years and have such respect for what they do, and the horses.”

A field of 71 contested the NHC Charity Challenge. Canale, who covered previous NHCs on site in his roles as a producer with TVG and HRTV, joins an illustrious list of past winners: track announcer and jockey agent Jimmy McNerney (2021), broadcaster and public handicapper Jude Feld (2020), public handicapper Dawn Lupul (2019), racing executive and public handicapper Ed DeRosa (2018), public handicapper Ellis Starr (2017), broadcaster and handicapper Matt Bernier (2016), and broadcaster Bob Neumeier (2015).

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David McCarty Takes Early Lead In National Horseplayers Championship

David McCarty of San Diego leads after Day 1 of the three-day 2022 NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas. McCarty amassed a bankroll of $162.80, leading a total of 643 entries from 509 individual players in the richest and most prestigious handicapping contest. All players wagered on 18 races from around North America, including eight mandatory races.

McCarty, a biotechnology consultant, had his biggest score of the day with an optional play in Aqueduct's eighth race. Runningwscissors went gate to wire going six furlongs, paying $29.20 to win and $9.80 to place. He also had longshot winners with Miss Casey ($17.40) in Laurel's fifth and Crafty Princess ($14.20) in the Fair Grounds opener. Overall McCarty cashed with 20 of his 36 win and place plays.

McCarty is making his eighth NHC appearance.

For the complete TVG Leaderboard and other contest information, please visit NTRA.com.

The three-day NHC continues Saturday at the Bally's Event Center, which has been transformed into the world's largest race book. Day 1 bankrolls will carry over to Day 2, which will require mythical wagers on eight mandatory races and 10 optional plays. The top 10% of the field after Day 2 will continue on to the Semifinals round Sunday, and the top 10 will play at the Final Table presented by Caesars Race and Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company, to determine the ultimate rankings, including the $725,000 first-place prize, and Eclipse Award as Horseplayer of the Year.

In the last three years with 36 plays the cut line after Day 2 averaged $183.20 ($192.20 in 2020, $184.20 in 2019, and $173.40 in 2018). Last year there were only 35 races due to a weather cancellation on a mandatory race. This year's top 10 percent will include the top 64 players. The current 64th place spot belongs to Joseph Carnevale with a score of $81.10.

In addition to its three presenting sponsors―RTN, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas―the NHC is supported by official partners Daily Racing Form, EquinEdge, FanDuel Group, Four Roses Bourbon, NYRA Bets, Race Lens, TVG, and 1/ST Bet. The Final Table, where only the top 10 players advance to determine final placings based on seven climactic races, is sponsored by Caesars Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company.

Tour Winner Costello Playing for $5 Million Bonus

NHC Tour winner Kevin Costello (who goes by his middle name, Kevin, but uses his given first name, Joseph, in tournaments to make his taxes easier) is playing for what would be the biggest single payday in handicapping contest history if he can win this weekend's 23rd NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas. On top of the $725,000 first-place prize that everyone is dreaming of, the NHC Tour winner is eligible for a $5 million bonus if he can be the first to pull off the sweep.

The bonus is covered by a policy the NTRA purchases each year via Insurance Office of America (IOA). However, the premium is established for one entry and Costello is double-qualified this year with the maximum two entries. As a result, Costello had to pick which of his entries would be eligible for the bonus. He went with his second entry, which shows on the leaderboard as “Joseph Costello- 2.”

“There's a running joke with my friends that it always seems my second entry does better than my first,” Costello said. “I guess I tend to wing it a little more with my second entry. I have an inkling that, statistically, when I do win tournaments more of them have come from that second entry.”

Costello is a 6-time NHC qualifier.

Costello led the entire field after his first optional play of the day paid $32.40. Unfortunately, the payoff came on Entry 1, which is not eligible for the bonus.

Defending Champion Mustari Aims for Repeat

Justin Mustari, who became the youngest NHC winner in history last August at age 26, is looking to make history again this year as the NHC's first repeat winner.

“It feels good to walk back in this room again after everything that happened in the final race last year,” Mustari said. “It still feels like a miracle.”

Mustari, of Des Plaines, Ill., said after taking down the $725,000 first-place prize at #NHC2021 that he planned to buy a house for himself and girlfriend Paulina. That hasn't happened just yet because Mustari, like the expert horseplayer he is, insists on getting the price he wants.

“We were under contract one time but the seller backed out and the market right now is just so hard,” Mustari said. “I'm not going to buy anything way overvalued so I'm still waiting for the right one.”

Of course, another big check this year could allow Mustari to increase the top of his price range.

“I'm just chipping away today but tomorrow there are a lot of opportunities on the Pegasus card,” Mustari said.

Remington Announcer Day Makes NHC Debut

Track announcer Dale Day of Remington Park is making his NHC debut this year after qualifying in one of the free online contests open to all NHC Tour members on Horseplayers.com. Other track announcers who have qualified over the years include Travis Stone, Vic Stauffer, John Curran, and Nick Tammaro.

“I've been around horse racing a long time but I've never seen anything like this,” Day said. “You come down here in the morning and you just feel the anxiety.”

Day started playing in qualifiers three years ago after trying the free contest presented by “At the Races with Steve Byk.”

“I joined the NHC Tour after that and I've only played the free contests but now that I've been here and seen it I already know I'm going to be playing a lot more to try to get back,” Day said.

Day regaled a gaggle of NHC regulars with a story about a long-ago visit to Las Vegas with NHC Tournament Director and NTRA COO Keith Chamblin, who once worked with Day at Remington.

“It was December 1994 and we had just finished our season,” Day said. “Chamblin suggested we go to Vegas and we ended up with a big group from Remington.”

The group stayed at Barbary Coast and had a great time. After the first two nights, though, one member of the crew noticed that their considerable supply of booze, cigars and Daily Racing Forms seemed to be diminishing faster than could realistically be expected. The rest of the group chalked it up to excessive consumption.

Day came back to his room on the third afternoon and noticed that it smelled like cigar smoke, even though the group had been out all day. And that is when he found a stranger trying to hide in the back of the closet with a lit cigar and a fifth of whiskey.

“I was just buzzed enough to not be as scared as I should have been,” Day recalled. “I just looked at him and said, 'What are you doing?' He said it was his room. I told him, 'No, this is my room.' And then he jumped up and elbowed me and ran for it.”

Hotel security nabbed the trespasser, who confessed that he had been breaking into the room each day and helping himself to the Remington stash. Police later learned that the suspect had collected keys (back in the day of actual room keys as opposed to cards) from dozens of local hotels and had been ransacking them regularly for months.

Barbary Coast did reimburse Day for his room.

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$3.5 Million In Cash And Prizes Up For Grabs In National Horseplayers Championship

The 23rd NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) presented by Racetrack Television Network, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas kicks off Friday in Las Vegas, Nev., with over 500 horseplayers from across the continent competing for more than $3.5 million in cash and prizes, including $725,000 to the winner.

Competitors range from professional gamblers analyzing every angle looking for a giant payday to deer-in-the-headlights rookies happy just to be here. All of them have one thing in common; there are no buy-ins at the NHC, thus everyone has earned their way into the prestigious event by qualifying in an NTRA-sanctioned qualifying contest held during the previous 12 months.

The contest runs Friday to Sunday at Bally's Las Vegas.

The NHC is the richest and most prestigious handicapping contest in the world. In addition to its unequaled cash prize the winner earns an Eclipse Award and the title of “Horseplayer of the Year.”

The NHC cash prize pool of $2,339,550 will be paid out to the top 10%, which means the top 64 finishers from a field of 643 entries will get a check of at least $10,000. The field comprises 509 individuals, 134 of whom are “double-qualified” with the maximum of two entries. A portion of the cash prize pool also goes to $50,000 in prizes for the Consolation Tournament open to the remaining 90% of players who do not make the cut after Day 2, as well as to three Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge entries worth $10,000 apiece. The cash prize scale boasts six-figure checks for the top four – $725,000 to the winner, $200,000 for second, $150,000 for third, and $100,000 for fourth. The top 10 that make up the Caesars Race and Sportsbook Final Table, Presented by Global Tote, a BetMakers Company, are guaranteed at least $50,000.

All qualifiers earned at least four nights at Bally's Las Vegas (rebranded this week Horseshoe Las Vegas as part of a multi-million dollar rebrand and renovation) and virtually everyone received travel stipends. NHC Tour prizes from 2021 NHC qualifiers account for another $355,500 to be officially awarded at Sunday night's annual Champions Dinner.

The NHC field will be reduced to the top 10 percent of players after the first two days. The highest 10 cumulative scores after the Semifinals round on Sunday morning will fill out the Final Table. Bankrolls amassed during Day 1, Day 2 and the Semifinals round will roll over to the Final Table, with the 10 finalists settling the NHC score in seven “mandatory” assigned races.

This year's track menu for mandatory and optional races comprises Aqueduct, Fair Grounds, Golden Gate Fields, Gulfstream Park, Laurel Park, Oaklawn Park, Santa Anita Park, and Tampa Bay Downs. Sunday's stakes-laden Houston Racing Festival card at Sam Houston Race Park will be eligible only for Final Table play.

“Interest in the NHC and NHC Tour has never been stronger,” said Keith Chamblin, NTRA chief operating officer and NHC tournament director. “We're so appreciative of the team at Bally's, our partners who hosted qualifiers in 2021, the NTRA staff, and, of course, horseplayers for all their support that makes the NHC a better experience every year.”

Players who do not make the Semifinals cut will still compete on Day 3, in a separate $50,000 Consolation Tournament.

A full scoreboard will be updated regularly at ntra.com/nhc, where fans and players can also find each day's contest race menu and news updates.

At the Races with Steve Byk will broadcast live on SiriusXM satellite radio (Sirius 219; XM 201) from Bally's and online at www.stevebyk.com daily, from 9-12 a.m. ET/6-9 a .m. PT on Friday and Monday, with bonus NHC coverage at www.SteveByk.com/listen-live-SiriusXM slated for 2-8 p.m. ET/11 a.m.-5 p.m. PT) Friday-Sunday. TVG will be reporting from Las Vegas throughout the event. Additional news and exclusive content will be shared on Twitter via the official NTRA account, @NTRA.

The NHC field is led by defending NHC champion Justin Mustari, who in 2021 at age 26 became the youngest NHC champion in the event's history.

As the 2021 NHC winner, Mustari received an automatic berth into this year's tournament to defend the title he won only six months ago, when the 2021 NHC was held in late summer due to a COVID postponement. Mustari amassed a winning bankroll of $370.80 over the three-day tournament from 52 mythical $2 Win and Place bets. He will seek to become the first-ever two-time winner of the NHC, as will nine other past winners that have qualified. The other qualifying champions are Thomas Goldsmith (2020), Scott Coles (2019), Chris Littlemore (2018), Ray Arsenault (2017), Jose Arias (2014), Michael Beychok (2012), Stanley Bavlish (2007), Steve Wolfson, Jr. (2003), and Judy Wagner (2001).

As the winner of the 2021 NHC Tour, Joseph (Kevin) Costello won $100,000 and an NHC berth. He is eligible for a $5 million bonus if he goes on to win at the 2022 NHC finals.

In its 23rd year, 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. NHC players qualified via contests hosted by 34 racetracks, casino race books, handicapping contest websites, Advance Deposit Wagering (ADW) platforms, simulcast distribution networks, horse owner associations, media outlets, and other Thoroughbred racing organizations.

The #NHC2022 qualifier hosts were: Aqueduct, At the Races with Steve Byk, Bally's Las Vegas, Belmont Park, Breeders' Cup, Canterbury Park, Colonial Downs, Del Mar, Gulfstream Park, Hawthorne, Hialeah, Horseplayers.com, Horsetourneys.com, Indiana Grand, Keeneland, Kentucky Downs, Little Red Feather, Lone Star Park, Los Alamitos, Meadowlands, Monmouth Park, NTRA, NYRA Bets, South Florida HBPA, Santa Anita, Saratoga, Sport of Kings, Race Lens, Tampa Bay Downs, The Big One, TourneyBets, Treasure Island, TVG, and Xpressbet.

The tournament format for the NHC is meant to be the best possible test of overall handicapping ability. Players attempt to earn the highest possible bankroll based on mythical $2 Win and Place wagers. Assigned “mandatory” races – eight per day on Day 1 and Day 2, and seven at the Final Table – are announced at least 36 hours prior to each contest day via direct e-mail to players and publicly on Twitter (@NTRA) and NTRA.com. The Mandatory Race Selection Committee is comprised of Steve Alford of William Hill, Jim Mulvihill of the Colorado Horse Racing Association, Brian Skirka of Monmouth Park and Eric Wing of HorseTourneys.com

The remaining 10 races on Day 1 and Day 2 and all 10 plays in the Semifinals round will be optional wagers on races at one of the seven designated tournament tracks.

On Saturday, the NTRA also will host an invitation-only online tournament, the 8th Annual NTRA NHC Charity Challenge presented by Four Roses Bourbon. A field of approximately 75 will compete for the $5,000 charitable prize with $2,500 set to be donated in the winner's name to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund and the other $2,500 going to the winner's charity of choice.

In addition to its three presenting sponsors―RTN, Caesars Entertainment, and Bally's Las Vegas―the NHC is supported by official partners Daily Racing Form, EquinEdge, FanDuel Group, Four Roses Bourbon, NYRA Bets, Race Lens, TVG, and 1/ST Bet. The Final Table, where only the top 10 players advance to determine final placings based on seven climactic races, is sponsored by Caesars Sportsbook and Global Tote, A BetMakers Company.

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. For more information on the NHC, visit NTRA.com/nhc.

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