Qualifying still open for National Handicapping Championship at TI

By RICHARD ENG SPECIAL TO THE LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

7 years ago

Construction is underway at Treasure Island hotel-casino Friday, May 16, 2014, in Las Vegas. The three-story retail space is expected to be completed by September. (Ronda Churchill/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Arrogate with jockey Mike Smith, left, wins the Breeders’ Cup Classic horse race over California Chrome, center, with Victor Espinoza at Santa Anita, Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, in Arcadia, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

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Part of the newly renovated race and sports book is shown at Boulder Station hotel-casino at 4111 Boulder Highway in Las Vegas on Thursday, March 3, 2016. Bill Hughes/Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Mirage and Treasure Island casino-hotels in Las Vegas are seen on Monday, Sept. 26, 2016. Brett Le Blanc/Las Vegas Review-Journal Follow @bleblancphoto

The Daily Racing Form/National Thoroughbred Racing Association National Handicapping Championship will be from Jan. 27 to 29 at the TI.

It’s not too late to qualify, either. On Thursday, the TI will host a Last Chance/First Chance Qualifier in its main ballroom. The entry fee is $500. A minimum of five seats to the NHC will be awarded.

If you are not already an NTRA Tour member, you should join. Nonmembers are playing for cash only. But it is a coveted seat that you want to win. A new wrinkle is if the tour member has already qualified twice for this year, then the person will be awarded a 2018 NHC berth instead.

Last year, the total NHC purse was $2.77 million, with first prize $800,000. It’s the kind of life changing score that is so seldom available in horse racing, much less in real life.

Tournament play has been the fastest growing segment in the horse racing industry. I have played in a lot of tournaments, and that includes a six-figure win with my tournament partner, Louis Filoso, in the 2003 Championship at The Orleans.

All horseplayers have good handicapping skills. Granted, some are better than others, but tournament play is a skill set far different from playing the races daily. It requires a strategy in which the tote board is your friend. The higher the odds on a horse you like, the more likely you are to play it.

You can’t rely on $6 and $8 horses as you might in real life. You need $20 winners and up to compete with the best tournament players. Thus, playing it safe in a tournament is playing to lose.

PEGASUS WORLD CUP FIELD

A maximum field of 12 has been set for the $12 million Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 28 at Gulfstream Park. It’s comprised of Arrogate, Breaking Lucky, California Chrome, Eragon, Keen Ice, Neolithic, Noble Bird, Prayer for Relief, Ralis, Shaman Ghost, War Envoy and War Story.

The field figured to max out for two reasons. First, each stall to the Pegasus was sold for $1 million. To have any chance of return on investment, you need a horse to start. Second, each starter that finishes the race will get $250,000. Even super rich people like to get some of their money back.

Horse racing has always had a bit of randomness to it. To win a big race, you have to enter your horse even if you are a long shot. California Chrome and Arrogate will be heavy favorites. Quite a few others will be as high as 100-1 to 200-1. Even if one concedes the top two spots to California Chrome and Arrogate, the third-place finisher will get $1.75 million.

SOUTH POINT SEMINAR

There will be a Pegasus World Cup handicapping seminar at 6 p.m. Jan. 27 at South Point. It will be hosted by John Kelly of eog.com and feature Patrick McQuiggan, house handicapper at South Point, and Ralph Siraco of the Race Day Las Vegas radio show.

ECLIPSE AWARDS

The Eclipse Awards from Gulfstream Park will be broadcast live at 5 p.m. Saturday at drf.com, gulfstreampark.com, TVG2 and xbtv.com.

Richard Eng’s horse racing column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. You can buy his Santa Anita Park picks at racedaylasvegas.com. You can email him at rich_eng@hotmail.com and follow him on Twitter @richeng4propick.