NEWS
NHC purse could reach $2-million in ’12 under new rules
Posted: Friday, September 03, 2010 2:12 PM
The prize pool for the 2012 Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship in Las Vegas is expected to rise to $2-million thanks to an expanded qualifying schedule and a mandatory $45 membership fee.
If the total prize pool reaches $2-million, the winner would take home $1-million, which is double the 2011 winner’s share. The first NHC, held in 2000, offered a total purse of $242,000, with $100,000 to the winner.
Qualifying tournaments, which previously were open only to racetracks that are NTRA members, will be open to all tracks to host with NTRA tracks paying a lower fee per NHC seat offered. The NHC field will increase from an estimated 321 in 2011 to approximately 500 in ‘12.
“The demand has been so great to host these qualifying tournaments that in order to grow the tournament, we’re going to allow non-NTRA member tracks to host qualifiers, but at an increased price level,” said the NTRA’s Eric Wing.
New for 2012 (which includes qualifying tournaments mostly held in ’11) is that all contestants at qualifying tournaments must have paid a one-time annual membership fee of $45 in order to be eligible to compete at the NHC.
Included in the annual fee is free participation in a number of online NHC qualifying tournaments offering berths in the NHC, as well as other benefits that will be announced prior to the signup period.
Contestants may opt not to purchase the $45 annual membership, but they would then be competing in qualifying tournaments for purse money only.
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Posted by: Joe, Chicago, IL on September 04, 2010 at 12:20 PM
Poker has a $60-million tournament, and it takes us 12 years to get to $2-million. How pathetic? The best part is - this plan won't work! Read the details - they want fans to pay $45 just for the right to play in a tournament. But, $45 sounds reasonable, right? Yes, except that's not how anything works that you want to grow! Does Apple charge $10 the first time you use the App store? These guys at the NTRA are so out of touch on how things work...
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