Sylvester wins first half of NHC Tour

Rhonda Sylvester, a 50-year-old former American Airlines employee from North

Little Rock, Arkansas, rode the strength of two tournament victories, plus

third- and fifth-place finishes in two other tournaments, to capture the top

prize of $15,000 for topping the first-half leader board of the 2012 Daily

Racing Form National Handicapping Championship Tour. The Tour's first half

concluded on July 31, with the second half of the Tour year running from August

1-December 31.

A total of $50,000 was paid to the top 10 first-half finishers, ranging from

Sylvester's top prize of $15,000, to $1,000 to the 10th place finisher. Another

$50,000 will be awarded to the top 10 finishers in the Tour's second-half

standings. And an additional $150,000 will be paid on a graduated scale to the

cumulative top 20 finishers throughout the entire contest year. The full-year

2012 NHC Tour leader will receive $75,000. The total NHC Tour prize structure of

at least $265,000 (first-half plus second-half plus overall monies, plus

multiple-win bonuses) is more than double last year's then-record NHC Tour

payout of $125,000.

By virtue of her first-half success, the retired Sylvester is one of 166

competitors who have already qualified for the the January 25-26, 2013, Daily

Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship presented by Sovereign

Stable and Treasure Island. To be held for the second consecutive year at

Treasure Island Las Vegas, next January's NHC Finals will offer a total purse of

at least $1.5 million, with first-place worth a guaranteed minimum of $750,000.

This is Rhonda's first year as an NHC Tour member, though her husband Mike

Sylvester, a major in the Pulaski (Ark.) County Sheriff's Department, has

participated for the last several years. Rhonda and Mike frequently traveled

together to tournaments and when Mike qualified last year for the NHC Finals at

Treasure Island, that taste of the NHC excitement last January helped convince

Rhonda to give it a go herself this year.

"I've been very lucky and, being relatively new, have definitely been

learning a lot as I go along," Rhonda said. "I've gone with Mike to many

tournaments, but now that I'm participating, I realize it's a lot more

high-stress than I used to think."

With the first-half crown safely secured, Rhonda now looks forward to the

second-half of the Tour year and the prospect of a $75,000 prize if she can

secure the full-year Tour lead.

"I think we're up to the challenge," said Rhonda, speaking from Wynn Las

Vegas, while participating in yet another NHC qualifying event. "I may get worn

down a little from all of the traveling, but as long as I'm still in contention,

we'll give it everything we have."

Mark McGuire of Newbury Park, California, finished second during the first

half and received bonus money of $10,000. Mark Streiff ($7,250), Christopher

Larmey ($5,000) and Edmund Teicht ($4,000) rounded out the first-half top five.

Sylvester, McGuire and Streiff also received an additional $5,000 each for

capitalizing on a new NHC Tour bonus provision that pays an extra $5,000 to

anyone who finishes first in more than one qualifying tournament. A player may

earn up to three such bonuses during the Tour year.

The NHC Tour is a yearlong bonus series offering additional prize money and

qualifying berths to the DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship. Tour

members receive NHC Tour points for top finishes in NHC qualifying events held

during the year.

Membership in the 2012 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour is open to adults 21 years

of age or older and requires a one-time membership fee of $50. Membership in the

2012 Daily Racing Form NHC Tour is mandatory in order for top finishers of

sanctioned NHC qualifying events to be eligible to compete in the January 2013

NHC Finals in Las Vegas. The NHC Tour membership must be in place prior to the

start of any given qualifying tournament in order for one to qualify for the NHC

Finals at that qualifying tournament. 

In addition to potential prize money and berths in the NHC, benefits for NHC

Tour members include automatic enrollment in the Horseplayers' Coalition. The

Coalition seeks legislative and regulatory solutions to tax and business issues

that impact pari-mutuel racetracks and their customers and provides grass roots

support for the NTRA's lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill. Tour members also are

automatically eligible to participate in NTRA Advantage, offering preferred

pricing on products and services from leading suppliers, including John Deere,

Sherwin-Williams, UPS and OfficeMax.

In just its 14th year, the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping

Championship is the most important tournament of the year for horseplayers and

is the culmination of a year-long series of NTRA-sanctioned local tournaments

conducted by racetracks, casino race books, off-track betting facilities and

horse racing and handicapping websites, each of which sends its top qualifiers

to the national finals. There is no option to "buy in" to the NHC Finals -- all

competitors must have earned the right to compete.

Each year, the NHC winner joins other human and equine champions as an

honoree at the Eclipse Awards. In addition to the founding title sponsor, the

NHC is presented by Treasure Island Las Vegas and Sovereign Stable. The 13 NHC

Champions since the event's inception, in chronological order, are Steven

Walker, Judy Wagner, Herman Miller, Steve Wolfson Jr., Kent Meyer, Jamie

Michelson, Ron Rippey, Stanley Bavlish, Richard Goodall, John Conte, Brian

Troop, John Doyle and Michael Beychok.

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