Qualifiers for Keeneland, Santa Anita on tap

There is a full slate of contest action on DRF Tournaments this weekend. The featured event is a Grade 1 qualifier for the $1 million, no-takeout World Championship of Handicapping. The WCH is an online handicapping championship event that will take place early next year and normally costs $5,000 to play. Saturday’s qualifier costs $580 and will send one in 10 players to the WCH. Players also have the option of feeding into the Grade 1 qualifier through Round 1 contests that cost $95 and advance one in seven entries.

The other featured event for Saturday is a Keeneland Challenge one-day qualifier. The contest costs $410 to play and one in 10 will win a spot in the event. The Keeneland Challenge will be held on-site at Keeneland on Oct. 15, has a $3,000 entry fee, and is a live-bankroll event. Players winning seats on Saturday will also get $500 in travel.

Players will have a second chance to qualify for Keeneland on Sunday in a contest that costs $350 and will provide a Keeneland entry only (no travel money) to one in 10 entries.

Also this weekend, players should be on the lookout for feeders for the upcoming Santa Anita Autumn Challenge qualifier, which takes place Sept. 30, featuring a card with many top Grade 1 races, including the Awesome Again and Zenyatta stakes. The dates of the actual Santa Anita contest are Oct. 7-8. It is one of the key live-bank events of the fall. Players can make their way into the qualifier through direct purchase for $230, or via a feeder which costs $54. One in five entries move on.

In addition to feeders and qualifiers, players will find credit-builders, winner-take-alls, and matchup contests. Matchups are a great way to start for new contest players as they are run at a variety of price points and you only need to beat one other player to win. Winnings can be reinvested to fund future contest play.

There is a lot of great information at the DRF Tournaments site. In addition to seeing all the available contests from 48 hours out, as well as the complete sequences of races involved, you can also view leaderboards past and present to see what other players are playing. By viewing successful players’ picks, you can help build your own strategies for various contest formats.

To check it all out, go to tournaments.drf.com.