Steven Wells certified as BCBC winner

Steven Wells, a 51-year-old bar owner from North Dakota and veteran tournament horseplayer, has been certified as the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, the largest live-money handicapping tournament in the U.S., Breeders’ Cup announced on Wednesday.

Wells, who has played in the BCBC since 2014, built up a winning bankroll of $158,000, with a large portion of the amount due to a $20,000 win bet on More Than Looks in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. More Than Looks paid $15.80.

Wells grew up in Arizona, where his grandfather and father owned and raced Quarter Horses. The first-place purse and his winning points total earned him a total purse of $573,200.

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“I am very satisfied,” Wells said. “I’ve won a lot of live-money tournaments, but this is the biggest.”

This year’s BCBC drew a record 585 entries, and 337 of those entries were played on-track at Del Mar over the Breeders’ Cup event on Nov. 1-2, according to Breeders’ Cup. The total prize pool was $1,462,500.

Tyler Sprague of Las Vegas, Nev., finished second and earned $411,400. Tyler Hoffman of Sylmar, Calif., finished third and earned $267,600.

Under the contest rules, players are required to provide a $2,500 buy-in and fund a $7,500 betting bankroll. The players are allowed to make win, place, show, exacta, trifecta, and daily double bets over the two-day event. Players retain any winnings from their bets.

Although the results of the tournament are posted after the Breeders’ Cup concludes, the results are not official until Breeders’ Cup conducts an audit of the entries.

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