In case you missed it, last week we held the first installment of the Racing Dudes Handicapping Challenge! Nine races were involved in the competition between our very own Racing Dude, Aaron Halterman and Super Farrier, Kelby Von Hemel. It started close but ended in a route with a final score of $43.60 – $21.00.
The rules are simple. Fake $2 Win/Place wagers ($2 to Win and $2 to Place) will be made on the horse a player selects in each race. Only one horse may be selected per race. If a player’s horse wins, the player score is credited on both the Win and Place payouts. If the horse finishes second, the player score is credited only on the Place payout. And just so we’re clear, all wagers and payouts from races are NOT REAL and will be used for scoring purposes only. (Had to say it)
In the event of a late scratch, players may change picks provided given race has not started. If picks have already closed, the scratched horse will be replaced with the post-time favorite for that race.
Each weekend we will select 8 to 10 races from around the country and offer up a little handicapping challenge to anyone interested. However, to our surprise, we received a massive amount of interest last weekend to take on the Dudes! So much in fact that we are just simply drawing randomly this week to see who gets to take on our defending champ. Everyone will get a shot! Alright, let’s meet this week’s challenger to face the champ:
The Windy City Handicapper, Paul Mazur
Paul Mazur has played the thoroughbred racing circuit of Arlington Park and Hawthorne Race Course since 2008 and blogged about it since 2011. His blogs focus on the Chicagoland tracks of Arlington Park and Hawthorne Race Course with occasional road trips to horse racing’s biggest days (Breeders’ Cup, Kentucky Derby, etc.).
His work has also appeared at other racing sites, such as WirePlayers,IronMaidens Thoroughbreds, Thorofan, Graded Stakes and Danonymous Racing.
He’s also appeared on the “Post Parade” podcast and the “JTL Sports Show” on Chicagoland Sports Radio.
He also votes in the “NTRA Top 10 Thoroughbred Poll” Media Division. (Poll results are released each Monday/Tuesday)
His posts were selected as Best Posts by Chicagonow for July 2012 andDecember 2012. He lives, writes, and wagers in Chicago.
Click here to contact “Picks and Ponderings”. You can also follow him on Twitter at @heylaserbeam.
Alright, let’s check out today’s challenge races:
1 Gulfstream Park Race 3 (1:05 CST)
2 Gulfstream Park Race 4 (1:35 CST)
3 Tampa Bay Downs Race 6 (1:55 CST)
4 Oaklawn Park Race 2 (1:57 CST)
5 Aqueduct Race 8 (2:48 CST)
6 Gulfstream Park Race 7 (3:08 CST)
7 Oaklawn Park Race 5 (3:19 CST)
8 Oaklawn Park Race 8 (4:42 CST)
9 Fair Grounds Race 9 (5:25 CST)
10 Santa Anita Park Race 7 (5:30 CST)
The picks:
Halterman |
Race |
Mazur |
| #9 Valid Concept (3rd) | GP R3 | #5 Kwacha (1st 7.40 4.00) |
| #8 Love You Loads (Off) | GP R4 | #8 Love You Loads (Off) |
| #3 Guts and Glory (1st 5.80 3.00) | TB R6 | #7 Lawyer Charles (Off) |
| #9 Kathleen (2nd 3.80) | OP R2 | #12 Miss Addicate (1st 5.00 2.80) |
| #5 Henry’s Gal (3rd) | AQU R8 | #8 My Girl Madison (2nd 3.20) |
| #8 Tie Dye (2nd 5.20) | GP R7 | #5 Hit Squad (Off) |
| #12 Uptown Babe | OP R5 (Cancelled) | #2 Jess N Nat |
| #8 Justa Runner | OP R8 (Cancelled) | #7 A.P. Corsair |
| #4 Unlatch (Off) | FG R9 | #5 Adios Nardo (2nd 2.60) |
| #3 Cook Inlet (Off) | SA R7 | #5 Designer (Off) |
| $17.80 | Score | $25.00 |
You think you can hang with the big boys (or girls)? Want to take the winner? Shoot us an email by visiting our contact page and let us know you’re interested! We’ll even plug your website, blog, Twitter feed, handicapping skills, etc. And who knows… defend your title long enough and we may even throw in a prize!
