On a very chalky day at Keeneland on Saturday, it became clear that the way to survive in a $2500 bankroll tournament was to focus on the favorites and press your opinions.

That strategy paid off in a big way for Ed Deicke, a wealth management specialist from Lido Beach, NY, when he crushed the exacta in the final race, using prohibitive favorite First Mission over 35-1 longshot Commandperformance.  Ed had a $1076 exacta worth $18,755, propelling him to a victory worth $40,000 in prize money, a $10,000 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge entry and a free entry into the Spring Keeneland Grade One Gamble (he was already double-qualified for the NHC).

Second place finisher Jake Ballis of Lexington, KY used a similar strategy, tying two strong favorites in the 9^th and 10^th together for a $3857 double that yielded $14,387 and a check for $20,000 along with a BCBC berth.

Robert Traynor of Oceanside, CA took a slightly different path to his third-place finish.  Bob had a $1000 double using 5-2 Accede in the 8^th and 7-5 shot Mawj in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II for an $11,030 hit.  He then hit 2-5 First Mission in the 10^th with a $2126 win wager that moved him into third place, good for $10,000, a BCBC berth and an entry into the National Horseplayers Championship.

Joining the top three at next month’s BCBC at Santa Anita are 4^th place finisher Marshall Gramm, 5^th place finisher Mike Castagnoli, and 6^th place finisher Tim Yohler.

Traynor, Gramm and Castagnoli will be joined at the 2024 NHC by Chris Savage, Tom Maloof, Jim Videtic, Dick Jerardi, Gary Steichele, Jim Metzger, and Jim Tipps.

The tournament drew a total of 200 participants, on track and online with XpressBet, TVG, NYRABets and HPI. For full standings please click here.