2025 National Horseplayers Championship starts Friday

A record number of contestants are expected to vie for an unprecedented amount of prizes at this year’s National Horseplayers Championship, set to begin Friday for a three-day run at the Horseshoe Las Vegas to crown the 2025 Horseplayer of the Year.

According to estimates provided by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, which runs the tournament, approximately 625 contestants are expected to compete. Total prizes are expected to exceed $5 million, with $825,000 earmarked for the winner on Sunday. This year’s NHC is the 26th to be held.

The exact field has yet to be set. The NTRA is hosting a massive tournament on Thursday that represents the last chance for players to qualify.

A berth in the NHC has become the most sought-after prize of the hundreds of qualifying tournaments held in the lead-up to the tournament. Along with a berth, qualifying also includes airfare and a four-night stay at the Horseshoe. The NHC has no buy-ins.

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This year’s tournament will follow the format adopted in recent years that whittles the field down to a final table of the top 10 players on Sunday afternoon.

Players in the contest make mythical win and place wagers on races from an array of seven tracks racing Friday through Sunday – Aqueduct, Colonial Downs, Fair Grounds, Gulfstream, Oaklawn, Santa Anita, Tampa Bay Downs, and Turfway Park. The top 10 percent after two days of betting go on to compete for the top prize Sunday, prior to the final table being set.

Mike Gillum, last year’s winner, is back to try and win for a second consecutive year, something no contest winner has ever done. The winner of the NHC gets an automatic berth into the following year’s contest. Last year, Gillum won $800,000 for the grand prize, and he was honored at the 2025 Eclipse Awards dinner earlier this year as the 2024 Horseplayer of the Year.

“This year has been exhilarating,” said Gillum, a resident of Fishers, Ind., who is a regular at Horseshoe Indianapolis. “I have met so many new friends in the horse racing industry and have been on so many podcasts and radio shows just by winning the NHC.”

Another 12 previous contest winners are in the field this year. Contest players this year come from 43 different states and Canada.

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