|
|
Cote wins AmericaTab Handicapping Open Ronald Cote of Middletown, Delaware, picked up the $60,000 prize for winning AmericaTab's second annual Handicapping Open, the world's richest online handicapping contest. "Fantastic," said Cote when asked to describe his feelings following the finals on August 5. Cote finished with a return on investment (ROI) of $114.70. Gordon Arenz of Bend, Oregon, finished second with an ROI of $101.50. The ROI was computed with mythical dollars and based on $2 win and $2 place wagers. Arenz was awarded $17,000 for second place in the finals. After his win, Cote said he relied on Ultimate Race Summaries from Brisnet.com as a prime source of handicapping the races. "Every time I play a contest, I get the Ultimate Race Summary from BRIS," Cote explained. "It helps break down the races for me. I use the Prime Power Rating, the Class Ratings and the Late Pace figures." Throughout the day he was changing his selections for a strategy based on his standings at the time. He picked up $26 for Original Spin's (Distorted Humor) runner-up finish in the Test S. (G1) at Saratoga. There were 15 pre-selected races on the finals card and Original Spin catapulted Cote to a comfortable position in the standings. However, Cote didn't feel good about his chances to win until Red Zipper (City Zip) captured the 10TH race at Saratoga and paid a total of $21.20 for win and place. Red Zipper's race was the 11th event on the finals card. "The Race Summary put me on my final winner, Red Zipper, in the 10TH race at Saratoga," Cote explained. "He was ranked in the top two in the field on the Current Class, Speed Last Race and Back Speed categories. I couldn't have done it without the Brisnet.com information." Cote qualified the maximum number of two tickets for the finals and concentrated on the leading ticket in which he eventually won. He shifted to Red Zipper shortly before the race because he felt strongly about his chances. From there on out he concentrated on chalk horses and picked up $5 with Live Fast (Machiavellian) in the 7TH race at Del Mar, the last event in the finals. "This tournament was so much fun, yet also nerve wracking," said Cote, who added that he will use a portion of his winnings to buy a new computer. "Having two entries was real helpful. Last year I made it into the Championship but only had one entry. This year my goal was to qualify twice and have a better chance in the finals. It paid off." More than $103,000 was distributed in the finals, with payouts to the top 30 finishers. A total of $257,550 was paid out through the 43 weeks of qualifiers and the final Saturday. The AmericaTab Handicapping Open returns 100 percent of the entry fee money to the players. Three quarterly winners were awarded trips to Oaklawn Park for the Racing Festival of the South; Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby (G1); and the upcoming Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar. The top five players from each week qualified for the finals. The inaugural AmericaTab Handicapping Open Championship was contested on Saturday, August 6, 2005, with veteran horseplayer Dennis Tiernan taking home the lucrative $60,000 grand prize.
 Send this article to a friend
|
|
