Dave Nichols of Wayne, PA pounded a $200 double connecting 24-1 Surface to Air in the 9^th race to 9-5 favorite Poster in race 10 to cash for nearly $24,000, and won the premier cash tournament of the fall at Keeneland.  Dave began playing at Keeneland when his wife, Jen, called me a few years ago and arranged to give Dave an entry to the Keeneland tournament as a gift.  Guess that paid off this year with a $56,000 first prize, an NHC berth, and an entry into next month’s Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge at Del Mar.

Bob Traynor of Oceanside, CA narrowly missed catching Dave with a $1000 exacta in race 10 that yielded a payoff of $21,000.  That was good for a second place prize of $28,000 plus a BCBC and NHC spot.

Paul Shurman of Dix, NY hit a $150 double into the last race to cash for over $17K and finished in third place.  Paul was already double-qualified for the NHC, so he picked up $14,000 in prize money, a BCBC spot, and a free roll into a $3500 tournament at Keeneland in 2025.

In all, 6 BCBC and 10 NHC spots were awarded as follows:

BCBC: Dave Nichols; Bob Traynor; Paul Shurman; Ryan Petrunyak; Tony Zhou; and Dan Slattery

NHC: Dave Nichols; Bob Traynor; Ryan Petrunyak; Dan Slattery; Dan Riddell; Ken Seeman; Steven Wells; David Mullin; Frank McGoey; and Pete Acocella.