By NOEL MICHAELS
LAS VEGAS - Kent Meyer intended to leave Las Vegas and fly back to Iowa on Saturday night, but his plans quickly changed when the Daily Racing Form and the NTRA gave him 100,000 reasons to stick around. Meyer topped a field of 261 of the best horseplayers from around the country to win the fifth annual DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship, which concluded Saturday at Bally's Las Vegas.
Meyer, a 38-year-old landlord from Sioux City, Iowa, won first prize of $100,000 and earned the crown of DRF/NTRA Handicapper of the Year for 2004. Total prize money for the two-day event was a record $240,000.
Meyer got out of the gate quickly in the two-day national handicapping finals, hitting a bet on the tournament's first long-odds winner, Jersey Gia, who paid $35 to win and $16.80 to place in Friday's second race at Aqueduct. Meyer then remained in the top three in the standings throughout the contest thanks to a total of 10 winners in the 30-race contest.
"I knew going in that this is a really tough tournament to win, but I knew if you had a couple big days you could do it."
Meyer, who describes himself as an avid horseplayer who is rarely seen not carrying a Racing Form, compiled a contest-winning total of $238.40 based on mythical $2 win-and-place bets on 15 races per day on each day of the two-day contest. The total was good enough to outduel runner-up David Krosunger of Team Monmouth/Meadowlands, who finished a close second with $232.60. Krosunger, a 43-year-old print shop manager from Wallington, Penn., led at the end of day one and at various other times during the contest before settling for the second-prize of $40,000.
Eight races each day were mandatory plays and the remaining seven were optional plays on the races from several tracks including Aqueduct, Golden Gate (limited), Gulfstream, Laurel, Oaklawn, Sam Houston (limited), Santa Anita, Turf Paradise, and Turfway (limited). Meyer made only $3.20 in Friday's mandatory plays but crushed his seven optional plays with five winners and $132.40 in total earnings on day one. He then won five more races and $106 on Saturday including Farnum Alley in race five at Gulfstream ($35.20 to win, $10 to place) to cement the victory.
"I usually look at a race and see if I think I can beat the favorite, and you're always looking for prices in tournaments," Meyer said. "My horses weren't finishing second. When my horses were up there they were all winning, and that's probably why I won the tournament. I knew going in this is a really tough tournament to win, but if you had a couple big days you could do it."
Meyer was making his second straight National Handicapping Championship appearance after qualifying for the second time at the Bettor Racing OTB in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He used last year's trip to Las Vegas as an opportunity to elope, and ended up finishing 32nd in NHC IV two days later. He returned as a more seasoned and focused player this year, however, and his experience showed.
"I had so much fun last year, I really just wanted to qualify again. I think [last year's experience] helped me a lot," Meyer said. I'd never been in anything like this before, and I was much more comfortable this time. It's nerve-wracking to hear the hooting and hollering around the room. It got to me last year, but I didn't pay much attention to it this year."
For Meyer, it was a hard-fought win over Krosunger who hung tough throughout the tournament. "I had a great time and I almost won it," Krosunger said. "I didn't make any mistakes."
After the top two, it was more than $20 back to third-place finisher Randy Franklin, of Scottsdale, Ariz. who finished with $210.70. Franklin, 47, is a former long-time Daily Racing Form handicapper who now works as a money-runner for an Arizona casino. Franklin qualified at Turf Paradise's December tournament, and then stuck mainly to playing Turf Paradise in the optional races to compile his tournament total.
"You play what you know, and I did well at Turf Paradise," said Franklin, who earned $15,000 in prize money for finishing third." Advertisement
The top five was rounded-out by fourth-place finisher Marth Carl of Los Angeles (Santa Anita) with $$201.10, and fifth-place finisher Brendan Leehy from Omaha, Neb. (Horsemen's Park) with $138.40. Carl won $8,000 in prize money. Leehy took home $5,000.
The sixth through 10th-place finishers all won $2,000 in prize money. They were Brent Shigenaka (Bally's-Las Vegas) with $178.20, Ralph Buston (Emerald Downs) with $172.60, John Hirsch (Maryland Jockey Club) with $171.40, Mark Peeples (Los Alamitos) with $167.80, and Larry Kaplan (Arlington) who had $167.20.
Several other prizes were awarded on both days of the contest, including a total of $12,000 in daily prizes ($6,000 per day) and $10,000 in bonuses ($5,000 per day). Based on Friday's final scores, Krosunger won $3,000 in daily prize money ($151.20). Meyer earned $2,000 for second with $132.40. Carl won $1,000 for third with $123.10. Players also competed for a bonus prize of $5,000 by selecting the winners of seven Head2Head bonus match-ups. Only one entrant, Kelly Kirby of Tulsa, Okla. (Fair Meadows), hit all seven match-ups on Friday to collect the entire $5,000 prize pool. Five players hit 7-of-7 Head2Head match-ups to split $5,000 on Saturday ($1,000 each) including Juan Lopez (TVG), Joe Pastor (Emerald), John Ray (Fair Grounds), Stacey Wagner (AQHA), and Ron Hopkins (Turfway).
The top scorers on day two were Larry Kaplan (Arlington) with $146.60, John Hirsch (MJC) with $138, and R oss Gallo (Autotote) with $135.20. They earned $3,000, $2,000, and $1,000 respectively.
Players also competed as members of four-person teams in a separate team contest based on where they qualified. The championship-winning team hailed from Colonial Downs. The quartet of Harry Damgaard, Dave Durkin, Berkley Kern, and John Vitale totalled $542.60 and won first prize of $25,000 ($6,250 each). Teams from Horsemen's Park ($499.90) and Arlington ($493.10) finished second and third. The Horsemen's Park team won $10,000 ($2,500 each), while Arlington won $5,000 ($1,250 each).
A media charity contest was also hosted and mirrored the main event. The winners of $10,000 for charity were Team TV, which consisted of Todd Schrupp and Frank Lyons of TVG, and Jeff Medders and Randy Moss of ESPN and was captained by Dave Tuley from the Daily Racing Form.
Nice to see TuleytheTout captain the winning media team
LAS VEGAS - Kent Meyer intended to leave Las Vegas and fly back to Iowa on Saturday night, but his plans quickly changed when the Daily Racing Form and the NTRA gave him 100,000 reasons to stick around. Meyer topped a field of 261 of the best horseplayers from around the country to win the fifth annual DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship, which concluded Saturday at Bally's Las Vegas.
Meyer, a 38-year-old landlord from Sioux City, Iowa, won first prize of $100,000 and earned the crown of DRF/NTRA Handicapper of the Year for 2004. Total prize money for the two-day event was a record $240,000.
Meyer got out of the gate quickly in the two-day national handicapping finals, hitting a bet on the tournament's first long-odds winner, Jersey Gia, who paid $35 to win and $16.80 to place in Friday's second race at Aqueduct. Meyer then remained in the top three in the standings throughout the contest thanks to a total of 10 winners in the 30-race contest.
"I knew going in that this is a really tough tournament to win, but I knew if you had a couple big days you could do it."
Meyer, who describes himself as an avid horseplayer who is rarely seen not carrying a Racing Form, compiled a contest-winning total of $238.40 based on mythical $2 win-and-place bets on 15 races per day on each day of the two-day contest. The total was good enough to outduel runner-up David Krosunger of Team Monmouth/Meadowlands, who finished a close second with $232.60. Krosunger, a 43-year-old print shop manager from Wallington, Penn., led at the end of day one and at various other times during the contest before settling for the second-prize of $40,000.
Eight races each day were mandatory plays and the remaining seven were optional plays on the races from several tracks including Aqueduct, Golden Gate (limited), Gulfstream, Laurel, Oaklawn, Sam Houston (limited), Santa Anita, Turf Paradise, and Turfway (limited). Meyer made only $3.20 in Friday's mandatory plays but crushed his seven optional plays with five winners and $132.40 in total earnings on day one. He then won five more races and $106 on Saturday including Farnum Alley in race five at Gulfstream ($35.20 to win, $10 to place) to cement the victory.
"I usually look at a race and see if I think I can beat the favorite, and you're always looking for prices in tournaments," Meyer said. "My horses weren't finishing second. When my horses were up there they were all winning, and that's probably why I won the tournament. I knew going in this is a really tough tournament to win, but if you had a couple big days you could do it."
Meyer was making his second straight National Handicapping Championship appearance after qualifying for the second time at the Bettor Racing OTB in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He used last year's trip to Las Vegas as an opportunity to elope, and ended up finishing 32nd in NHC IV two days later. He returned as a more seasoned and focused player this year, however, and his experience showed.
"I had so much fun last year, I really just wanted to qualify again. I think [last year's experience] helped me a lot," Meyer said. I'd never been in anything like this before, and I was much more comfortable this time. It's nerve-wracking to hear the hooting and hollering around the room. It got to me last year, but I didn't pay much attention to it this year."
For Meyer, it was a hard-fought win over Krosunger who hung tough throughout the tournament. "I had a great time and I almost won it," Krosunger said. "I didn't make any mistakes."
After the top two, it was more than $20 back to third-place finisher Randy Franklin, of Scottsdale, Ariz. who finished with $210.70. Franklin, 47, is a former long-time Daily Racing Form handicapper who now works as a money-runner for an Arizona casino. Franklin qualified at Turf Paradise's December tournament, and then stuck mainly to playing Turf Paradise in the optional races to compile his tournament total.
"You play what you know, and I did well at Turf Paradise," said Franklin, who earned $15,000 in prize money for finishing third." Advertisement
The top five was rounded-out by fourth-place finisher Marth Carl of Los Angeles (Santa Anita) with $$201.10, and fifth-place finisher Brendan Leehy from Omaha, Neb. (Horsemen's Park) with $138.40. Carl won $8,000 in prize money. Leehy took home $5,000.
The sixth through 10th-place finishers all won $2,000 in prize money. They were Brent Shigenaka (Bally's-Las Vegas) with $178.20, Ralph Buston (Emerald Downs) with $172.60, John Hirsch (Maryland Jockey Club) with $171.40, Mark Peeples (Los Alamitos) with $167.80, and Larry Kaplan (Arlington) who had $167.20.
Several other prizes were awarded on both days of the contest, including a total of $12,000 in daily prizes ($6,000 per day) and $10,000 in bonuses ($5,000 per day). Based on Friday's final scores, Krosunger won $3,000 in daily prize money ($151.20). Meyer earned $2,000 for second with $132.40. Carl won $1,000 for third with $123.10. Players also competed for a bonus prize of $5,000 by selecting the winners of seven Head2Head bonus match-ups. Only one entrant, Kelly Kirby of Tulsa, Okla. (Fair Meadows), hit all seven match-ups on Friday to collect the entire $5,000 prize pool. Five players hit 7-of-7 Head2Head match-ups to split $5,000 on Saturday ($1,000 each) including Juan Lopez (TVG), Joe Pastor (Emerald), John Ray (Fair Grounds), Stacey Wagner (AQHA), and Ron Hopkins (Turfway).
The top scorers on day two were Larry Kaplan (Arlington) with $146.60, John Hirsch (MJC) with $138, and R oss Gallo (Autotote) with $135.20. They earned $3,000, $2,000, and $1,000 respectively.
Players also competed as members of four-person teams in a separate team contest based on where they qualified. The championship-winning team hailed from Colonial Downs. The quartet of Harry Damgaard, Dave Durkin, Berkley Kern, and John Vitale totalled $542.60 and won first prize of $25,000 ($6,250 each). Teams from Horsemen's Park ($499.90) and Arlington ($493.10) finished second and third. The Horsemen's Park team won $10,000 ($2,500 each), while Arlington won $5,000 ($1,250 each).
A media charity contest was also hosted and mirrored the main event. The winners of $10,000 for charity were Team TV, which consisted of Todd Schrupp and Frank Lyons of TVG, and Jeff Medders and Randy Moss of ESPN and was captained by Dave Tuley from the Daily Racing Form.
Nice to see TuleytheTout captain the winning media team
