Paul Halloran of Lynn, Massachusetts, topped a record field of 292 players and took down first prize of $73,000 in the Grade One Gamble, Keeneland’s signature handicapping contest held Saturday, April 15. Halloran crushed the late daily double with a $10,000 wager on odds-on favorite In Italian (GB) in the Jenny Wiley (G1) and 5-2 favorite Tarabi in the last race to yield winnings of $59,900 and a final bankroll of $60,105.

The Grade One Gamble attracted players from across the U.S. and Canada, who participated at Keeneland and on XpressBet, TVG, 4NJBets, NYRABets and HPI. The buy-in of $3,500 included $2,500 in live bankroll bet on Keeneland’s Saturday card.

Halloran writes for The Saratoga Special, which is produced during the meet at Saratoga Race Course in New York, and his journey to Lexington was primarily to work on a book project about Cody Dorman, namesake of 2022 Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1) winner Cody’s Wish. After visiting with the Dorman family, Halloran went to Keeneland with a friend, Howard Kravets, cohost of the HHH Racing Podcast. Halloran decided the morning of the Grade One Gamble to enter the contest.

Drew Coatney of Columbus, Ohio, followed his massive win in the 2022 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge at Keeneland with a second-place showing in the Grade One Gamble. Coatney wagered his entire bankroll on the final race and caught a $10,000 win payoff on Tarabi that yielded $37,300.

Halloran and Coatney, along with third-place finisher Michael Somich, Marshall Gramm (fourth), Brent Kelly (fifth) and Paul Matties (sixth), each won $10,000 berths in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge at Santa Anita and berths in the 2024 NTRA National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas. In addition, the next four winners – Rockwood Edwards, Joseph Carnavale, George Chute and Augie Quirch – will join the top six in Las Vegas for the NHC.