Tierman wins inaugural AmericaTab Handicapping Open

The inaugural AmericaTab Handicapping Open Championship was completed

Saturday and veteran horseplayer Dennis Tiernan took home the lucrative $60,000

grand prize. A four-time Las Vegas qualifier and a long-time AmericaTab member,

Tiernan staged a dramatic comeback to take down the title over runner-up Allen

Strahan.

With four races to go in the 15-race contest, Strahan had more than a $50

lead based on $2 Win and Place mutuels. Then, in the 4TH race at Del Mar,

Tiernan hit $44 winner My Dancen Diva. Strahan failed to cash and proceeded to

drop 30 cents out of first place, behind Tiernan. In the next-to-last race of the

tournament, Tiernan cashed for another $5 in winnings to extend and preserve his

lead. His final bankroll of $166.20 was $5.30 best, giving him the title of 2005

AmericaTab Handicapping Open Champion.

Runner-up Allen Strahan ($160.90) invested only $125 during the contest to

qualify for the finals. His return for placing second was worth $18,000. He was

followed by Patrick Gianforte ($145.50), David Sferra ($140.20), and Darrow

Jones ($137.80), rounding out the top five. With a 100 percent payout structure,

the top 30 finishers in the Open received cash prizes.

"For only a $25 entry fee our members could qualify for racing's most

lucrative online contest," said tournament director Rich Nilsen. "It took Dennis

Tiernan only $375 (15 weekly entries) to qualify for the championship. The top

two finishers invested only $500 combined and won over $80,000 in prize money."

The Championship event was guaranteed by AmericaTab back in January to be a

minimum of $100,000. With 221 finalists in the August 6 finals, it was racing's

richest online handicapping tournament.

During the 42 weeks of the AmericaTab Open, more than $164,210 was paid out

in weekly cash prizes. Each week 40 percent of the pool was carried over to the

Championship, which resulted in a total pool of $106,365 for the finals. Between

the weekly prizes and the finals, a grand total of $270,575 was paid out based

on the 100 percent payback structure.

The next AmericaTab Handicapping Open is expected to begin in early October.