Harness Racing: USTA kicks off handicapping tournament on Thursday

Northfield Park and The Meadows will be the first two contests in the USTA’s series of 10 free online qualifying contests for the $60,000 World Harness Handicapping Championship (WHHC), which will be held at the Meadowlands on April 19, 2014. The first qualifier involving Northfield Park will be on Thursday, Jan. 30, and The Meadows on Friday, Jan. 31.

For complete information, to register and enter the first week’s contests, please visit www.HorseTourneys.com. Each qualifying contest will be limited to 12 races and the wagering format will be a $2 win and place bet on each selection.

The USTA World Harness Handicapping Championship Online Qualifying Series consists of 10 tournaments that will be conducted from Jan. 30 through March 1 over five consecutive weekends and will involve handicapping races at 10 different USTA member racetracks. The winner of each qualifier gains a berth ($800 value) into the WHHC final at the Meadowlands.

First prize in the WHHC final is $24,000 with payouts to the top 10 finishers. For more information, visit the Meadowlands website at www.meadowlandsracetrack.com.

Contestants will be required to register once and enter each contest separately.

Check www.ustrotting.com for regular updates.

Following is the schedule of the 2014 USTA online qualifiers for the WHHC.

2014 WHHC Online Qualifiers

Date - Track - First Post (Eastern time)

Thursday, Jan. 30-Northfield Park-6 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 31-The Meadows-6:55 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 7-Meadowlands-7:15 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 8-Yonkers-7:10 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 13-Dover Downs-4:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 15-Cal Expo-8:45 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 21-Buffalo Raceway-6:40 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 22-Pompano Park-7:05 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 28-Maywood Park-8:10 p.m.
Saturday, March 1-Balmoral Park-8:10 p.m.

-edited release (USTA)