The smoke has cleared in Las Vegas, and the NHC is in the books. Some of the best players in the world did battle for handicapper of the year, and you can bet dollars to donuts they’ll have their ducks in-a-row for the new year. This handicapper is going to toss his hat in the ring, and I love the idea of playing for a trip to Vegas. The idea of playing in a tournament gets my blood pumping, and you can bet I’ll have my E-Z Win Forms in hand. Come to think of it, that’s how I got the idea to enter the contest this weekend. I started thinking about the handicappers that played in the NHC Championship, and the many methods of data they use. I wanted to know how the E-Z Win Forms would have held up against the 606 players.

For my query, I used the top three selections from the E-Z Win Forms. I narrowed it down to the top three and looked back on the results. Now, this is not to say you would’ve had every single winner in the mandatory races, but you also could have had the $128.20 winner at Oaklawn from them just as well. Using the top three E-Z Win Selections has always held water for me. Winning Ponies has the Last Race Rating, Composite Rating, Turf Class Rating, handicapping icons that keep you informed about the level of competition they are facing. If you like past performances, they have piles of information detailing rider and trainer stats and how they do as team and what their percentage is for the meet and for the year. With this test in place, here are the results from day one in the NHC Championship.

Race #1 – Tampa Bay Downs

The order of finish = 1 / 10 / 5 = The #1 was the top play and he returned $6.60 and $3.20 for $9.80.

Race #5 Gulfstream Park

The order of finish was 4 /1/8 = The #1 was the top selection paying $5.20 to place.

Race #4 Oaklawn Park

The order of finish was 11 / 5/ 3 = The top selection ran second and paid $6.80 to place.

Race #7 Aqueduct

The order of finish was 1 /6/ 11 = The tope selection won and paid $8 and $4.90 for $12.90.

Race #7 Fair Grounds

The order of finish was 7 /6/4 = The top selection ran second and paid $7.00.

Race #5 Santa Anita

The order of finish was 9 /5/ 2 = The top selection won paying $6.40 and $3.80 for $10.20.

Race #7 Golden Gate

The order of finish was 4 /8/ 5 = The top selection ran second and paid $4.80.

Race #7 Santa Anita

The order of finish was 6 /1 / 4 = The top selection won and paid $7.60 and $3.80 for $11.40.

 

You had to play the eight mandatory races and were given your choice to play seven optional from 50 other races. The format is $2 to win and place, and the cap is (20-1) on the win and (10-1) on the place. Just using the mandatory races, the E-Z Win Forms had a total of $68.10. This is not including the optional races of your choice. After day one was in the books the leader had a sweet total of $115.80 for the 15 races. The E-Z Win Forms had $68.10 NOT counting the optional races. The leader had a $47.70 lead having wagered on seven more races. This is not to take anything away from the incredible job of the leader. But Winning Ponies proved it could be an incredible tool in contest play. After only 8 races, I would have been in 60th place, and that is in the top 10%! For me, the answer will be pretty simple this Saturday. I’ll be using the E-Z Win Forms in my arsenal. If I get way behind, I can dive deep into the tier levels to find a bomb, or it may be the top pick! Win or lose, be sure to go back and check your data. See if you were getting the bang for your buck needed to take down the money. I can’t tell the future, but you can bet my sheets won’t be far from my reach. Wish me luck!