2011 Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship Online Kickoff Challenge

New in 2011: Mandatory Tour Membership
$45 makes you eligible for a shot at $2 million.
Join the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship Tour today.

All Tour members receive:
• Tour membership card containing NHC Tour account information
• Eligibility to compete for a seat at the January 2012 NHC in Las Vegas
• Twice monthly e-newsletter featuring photos and recaps of previously held tourneys, schedules and links to upcoming tournaments, tourney tips from previous NHC Champions and qualifiers, etc.
• Special offers from Daily Racing Form, including:
• 10% discount on the purchase of any DRF.com past performance plan - good for new and existing DRF.com members
• 20% discount on a single DRF Press order at check-out
• Season-ending, online tourney for top 100 Tour points leaders, offering 15 seats to the 2013 NHC
• Mentoring program, whereby veteran NHC Tour players and past Champions will provide tips and insights on tournament play to other Tour members
• Eligibility to receive benefits and discounts from NTRA Advantage partners
• Are eligible for NTRA Advantage discounts & benefits• Membership in the Horseplayers' Coalition, addressing player-centric issues in Washington, D.C.
• Exclusive offers and discounts on Thoroughbred racing memorabilia and collectibles
• Exclusive offers, including access to tickets to key events, at NTRA member facilities
• For more information on the NHC, click here.

The top five finishers in the January 2 tournament earn an automatic berth to the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, to be held January 2012, at Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Before you can enter the 2011 Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship Online Kickoff Challenge, you'll need to be signed up as a 2011 NHC Tour member.

Below are the tentative tracks that will be used for this contest. Please note free past performances will not be available and the contest will not be open to make selections until Friday, December 31. Please check back then.

Aqueduct
Fair Grounds
Santa Anita

Thanks for playing!

PLEASE NOTE YOU MUST BE A 2011 NHC TOUR MEMBER TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS CONTEST.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP FOR A 2011 NHC TOUR MEMBERSHIP.

NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook

News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.



ZENYATTA RUNNER UP AGAIN IN AP FEMALE ATHLETE OF YEAR VOTING
Zenyatta finished second this week to Olympic gold medal-winning American skier Lindsey Vonn as the Associated Press's 2010 Female Athlete of the Year. It was the second consecutive year that Zenyatta was the runner-up for the award.

Breaking the modern-day mark for consecutive wins held by Citation and Cigar, Zenyatta won the first 19 races of her career before losing by a head to Blame in the final start of her career, the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic on November 6 at Churchill Downs in Louisville.

Vonn, the first skier to win an AP Athlete of the Year honor since the Award's inception in 1931, received 77 votes to Zenyatta's 32 among the 150 cast.

The 6-year-old mare retired a North American earnings record for female horses of more than $7.3 million.

Zenyatta finished second to tennis star Serena Williams in the 2009 voting.

FAIR GROUNDS TO HOST CLAIMING CROWN FOR FIRST TIME IN 2011
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots in New Orleans will host the 13th running of the Claiming Crown on Saturday, December 3, 2011. Patterned after the Breeders' Cup, Claiming Crown is designed to reward Thoroughbred racing's "blue-collar" horses and will offer races at varying distances on both dirt and turf.

"Fair Grounds is proud to bring the Claiming Crown to New Orleans," said Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager of Racing for Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. "One of our stated goals has been to host top end national events at our racetrack, and the Claiming Crown certainly fits very well. We look forward to teaming with TOBA, the National HBPA and our local HBPA as we try to make the 2011 Claiming Crown a record-setting event."

"The Louisiana HBPA is happy the National HBPA and TOBA are bringing the Claiming Crown to Louisiana. We feel the Fair Grounds is a great choice to host this prestigious event. Claiming Crown rewards the horses that are the backbone of racing," stated Louisiana HBPA President Larry Robideaux.

This will mark the first time Fair Grounds has hosted the event, which debuted at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minn., in 1999. Canterbury has hosted 10 of the first 12 renewals of the event. The Claiming Crown was held at Philadelphia Park (now Parx Racing) in Bensalem, Pa., in 2002 and at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., in 2007.

Further details on the event's race lineup, purse structure, nomination and entry deadline schedule, and eligibility dates will be released soon.

REGISTRATION OPEN FOR FREE NHC "ONLINE KICKOFF CHALLENGE" ON JANUARY 2
Signups are now being accepted at NTRA.com for the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship "Online Kickoff Challenge" - a free, online handicapping tournament on Sunday, January 2. The five highest finishers among registered Daily Racing Form NHC Tour members will receive guaranteed berths in the $2 million (estimated) Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship (NHC) in January 2012 in Las Vegas. The five qualifiers will also receive roundtrip air travel and hotel accommodations for their trip to the 2012 NHC.

The Online Kickoff Challenge requires contestants to place hypothetical $2 win and place wagers on 10 designated contest races on Sunday, January 2. The 10 contest races will be chosen by tournament officials on Friday, December 31, and are scheduled to be selected from the January 2 cards at Aqueduct, Fair Grounds and Santa Anita Park (contest tracks subject to change). Free DRF past performances for the tournament races will be available at the contest site. All selections must be made no later than one minute prior to the scheduled post time of each mandatory race. The five players amassing the highest number of points based on the players' earnings (i.e. the highest final bankroll) from all $2 win and place wagers at the end of the competition will receive berths in the January 2012 NHC in Las Vegas, provided that they have registered for the 2011 NHC Tour prior to the start of the tournament.

To sign up for the 2011 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour, visit www.ntra.com/nhctour. The Daily Racing Form NHC Tour is a yearlong bonus series offering additional prize money and qualifying berths to the DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship to be held in January 2012 in Las Vegas. Membership in the 2011 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour is open to adults 21 years of age or older and requires a one-time membership fee of $45. Membership in the 2011 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour is mandatory in order for top finishers of sanctioned NHC qualifying events to be eligible to compete in the January 2012 NHC Finals in Las Vegas. The NHC Tour membership must be in place prior to the start of any given qualifying tournament in order for one to qualify for the NHC Finals at that qualifying tournament.

Among the many benefits of 2011 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour membership are free, online qualifying tournaments that are restricted to NHC Tour members. The first of these free, online qualifying tournaments will take place on January 2, 2011 at NTRA.com, where qualifying berths to the January 2012 NHC Finals will be offered to the five top finishers. Additional free, online qualifying events - offering a total of 15 additional berths to the NHC Finals - will be held later in 2011.

‘LUCK' PILOT, FIRST TWO EPISODES COMPLETE, DEBUT SET FOR FALL 2011
Production on the pilot and first two episodes of HBO's upcoming series, "Luck," is close to completion, and production and shooting for the series's third episode will resume at Santa Anita Park on January 10.

"Luck," which stars Dustin Hoffman, is the brainchild of renowned writer/producer David Milch, who has also created such hits as "Hill Street Blues," "NYPD Blue," and "Deadwood." Among the other notable actors involved in the first two episodes are Nick Nolte, Dennis Farina and John Ortiz, plus retired jockey Gary Stevens and active jockey Chantal Sutherland.

"Their production crew completed two weeks of work on and around the racetrack last week," said Santa Anita Community and Special Events Coordinator Pete Siberell.

Siberell noted that Milch is "excited" about the recently shot content.

"David said that everything went extremely well, and he was particularly happy with the racing action they were able to simulate," said Siberell.

Fair Grounds to host Claiming Crown in 2011

Lexington, KY, Monday, December 20, 2010 – Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots in New Orleans, Louisiana will host the 13th running of the Claiming Crown on Saturday, December 3, 2011. Patterned after the Breeders’ Cup, Claiming Crown was designed to reward Thoroughbred racing’s “blue-collar” horses and will offer races at varying distances on both dirt and turf.

“Fair Grounds is proud to bring the Claiming Crown to New Orleans,” said Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager of Racing for Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. “One of our stated goals has been to host top end national events at our racetrack, and the Claiming Crown certainly fits very well.  We look forward to teaming with TOBA, the National HBPA and our local HBPA as we try to make the 2011 Claiming Crown a record-setting event.”

“The Louisiana HBPA is happy the National HBPA and TOBA are bringing the Claiming Crown to Louisiana.  We feel the Fair Grounds is a great choice to host this prestigious event.  Claiming Crown rewards the horses that are the backbone of racing,” stated Louisiana HBPA President Larry Robideaux.

This will mark the first time Fair Grounds has hosted the event, which debuted at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota in 1999. Canterbury has hosted 10 of the first 12 renewals of the event. The Claiming Crown was held at Philadelphia Park (now Parx Racing) in Bensalem, Pennsylvania in 2002 and at Ellis Park in Henderson, Kentucky in 2007.

Further details on the event’s race lineup, purse structure, nomination and entry deadline schedule, and eligibility dates will be released soon.

The Claiming Crown is a partnership between the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association and the ThoroughbredOwners and Breeders Association. The Claiming Crown was created to be the claiming horse owner’s Breeders’ Cup; a special racing event, created for the "average owner," and featuring some of the most competitive horses in the country. The Claiming Crown has been held annually since 1999. For more information about Claiming Crown please visit www.claimingcrown.com.

Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, the nation’s third-oldest racetrack, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, Fair Grounds is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN); it also operates a slot-machine gamingfacility and 10 off-track betting parlors throughout southeast Louisiana. The 139th Thoroughbred Racing Season runs through March 27, 2011, highlighted by the 98th running of the Grade II, $1 million Louisiana Derby on March 26. Information about Fair Grounds can be found online at www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com.

TOBA, based in Lexington, Kentucky, was formed in 1961 and is a national trade organization of Thoroughbred owners and breeders. TOBA's mission is to "improve the economics, integrity and pleasure of the sport on behalf of Thoroughbred owners and breeders." Projects managed by TOBA include the American Graded Stakes Committee, The Racing Game, Sales Integrity Program and Claiming Crown. TOBA is the owner of The Blood-Horse Inc., and is represented on the Board of Directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association as a founding member.

The National HBPA, based inLexington, Kentucky, is the largest racing horsemen’s representative association in North America, with 30 affiliate organizations and over 30,000 member horsemen.  Big Dee’s Tack & Vet Supplies, Equineline.com, and Horseman Labor Solutions are proud corporate partners of the National HBPA, and TVG is the official television partner of the National HBPA

Lake becomes sixth trainer in history to win 5,000 races

History was made at Laurel Park Wednesday afternoon when Scott Lake became the sixth trainer in North American history to win 5,000 races when Communicator wired the field in the first race at the Laurel, Md., racetrack.

Only Dale Baird (9,445), Jack Van Berg (6,405), King Leatherbury (6,313), Jerry Hollendorfer (5,830) and Steve Asmussen (5,684) have more first place finishes.

"We are really proud of what the barn has accomplished," said Lake after reaching the milestone. "We owe it to all the owners, horses and my help. What is really cool is that we did our 3,000th at Philly (Philadelphia Park), the 4000th at Penn National and the 5,000th here. Those are the three places we did most of the winning."

The 45-year-old then saddled Flight to Eden to victory in the second race for his 5,001st career victory. Malcolm Franklin was aboard both winners.

From 2000-2009, Lake finished first or second nationally in wins each year, leading in 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2006. He ranks ninth this year with 191 trips to the winners’ circle after downsizing his barn from 287 horses at eight different tracks to 70 runners at two locations.

"We had an unbelievable run," added Lake, who won his first race at Penn National with Niminy Piminy in June 1987. "It will just take us a lot longer to get to 6,000, but I am a lot happier. Seventy horses is a good number for us."

Hafner Wins HPWS satellite contest

The Horse Player World Series satellite handicapping contest went as scheduled despite Saturday’s snowstorm. Ron Hafner braved the elements and set the tournament pace with a score in Calder’s third when a 44-1 speedball went gate to wire. Dave Langhoff challenged in the late stages after accumulating $100. He had two bullets remaining but missed the mark allowing Hafner’s final bankroll of $138.80 to stand at the best of 26 entries.

Hafner earned an entry to the 2011 Coast Casinos’ Horse Player World Series along with airfare and accommodations. Langhoff finished second with $102.80 and received $600 in prize money.
Hafner’s victory also gave him three Canterbury Handicapper of the Year points, jumping him over Ray Hassan, and, with just two contests remaining, makes Hafner the odds-on choice for the 2010 Canterbury Handicapper of the Year title and $2,000 in prize money.
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Lake Nears 5,000 Wins

Trainer Scott A. Lake is approaching a personal milestone of 5,000 all time wins. Through racing yesterday, December 14, Lake was at 4,999 wins. He has five scheduled starts for today; one at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races and Slots and four at Laurel Park.

Hawthorne adds Holiday Contest

If you plan to be in Chicago-land for the holidays you may want to consider Hawthorne's $10,000 Holiday Handicapping Contest on December 26.
The format is live money with no entry fee...... they do it right at Hawthorne!!!