Justin Mustari, 26, becomes youngest NHC winner
Justin Mustari, a 26-year-old Illinois resident, became the youngest winner ever of the National Horseplayers Championship when he tabbed a 20-1 shot late in the contest on Sunday to take home the $725,000 first prize.
Mustari had the best three-day tally among 563 entries in the NHC, an annual event held in Las Vegas that was postponed from February to last weekend due to the coronavirus pandemic. He finished the contest with a bankroll of $370.80, besting Jose Arias, the 2014 NHC winner, who had $347.20.
Mustari led the contest going into the semi-final round on Sunday but was sitting fourth going into the last mandatory race on Sunday afternoon. He landed on Rose’s Crystal in the eighth race at Del Mar.
“I had to give myself a chance to win with this kind of money,” Mustari said, according to a release from the organizer of the NHC, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. “I definitely didn’t like this horse as a top pick but I had to find something in the range that could get me there.”
After ascending to the top of the leaderboard at the close of Saturday’s races, Mustari had said that he focused on picking winners, rather than prices.
Mustari works for his father’s insulation contracting company in Des Plains, Illinois. His father, Frank, and his uncle Dan also qualified for this year’s NHC.
“I’ve got to buy a house because I still live with my parents,” Mustari said. “My dad has been the reason I play this game and he taught me everything I know, so I have to give a lot of credit to him.”
This year’s NHC was held at Bally’s Las Vegas, seven months after its usual date. Contestants qualified through contests held during the usual calendar rotation. The next NHC is scheduled for February.
A number of contestants this year were given exemptions because of health concerns, with their eligibility transferred to the 2022 contest. The NTRA also transferred some of the purse money from this year’s event to next year’s contest.
Contestants in the NHC make a total of 52 mythical $2 win-and-place bets over the course of the three-day tournament. For the final round, contestants are all required to play the same races.
Arias earned $200,000 for his second-place finish, moving him up to second all-time in NHC earnings, with $956,000.