Minnesota Man wins $10,000 Breeders' Cup Classic bet, VIP trip to Keeneland

Press Release

Eugene “Geno” Korska turned 10 $15 win-place bets into an opportunity to wager $10,000 on the Breeders’ Cup Classic by winning the TwinSpires.com Big Bet Battle Royale.

In addition to the $721.50 Korksa won on his bets on designated Breeders’ Cup prep races placed via TwinSpires.com on October 3-4, the veteran postal worker also won a $1,000 travel stipend to attend the World Championships October 30-31 at Keeneland in Lexington plus a $10,000 win bet on the Classic.

Korska, 51, has been playing the races since Canterbury Park opened in 1985 in his native Minnesota, and he said he won’t do anything differently from a handicapping standpoint to prepare for his Classic bet.

“My first call after the results was to my 78-year-old mom,” Korska said. “She told me, ‘Don’t change anything; that’s how you got to this point.’ It’s good advice; I’m handicapping and playing the race just like it’s another Saturday at the track. I’m always looking for the horse that I think is sitting on a big race. There appear to be several contenders, and the [odds] won’t sway me.”

As of right now, Korska says those “several contenders” are Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, the champion mare Beholder, American Pharoah’s foil in the Travers Keen Ice, and Tonalist, the horse who last year upset California Chrome’s Triple Crown bid in the Belmont Stakes.

The top 20 finishers in the Royale receive a framed photo of American Pharoah winning the Kentucky Derby along with a $2 win ticket from Belmont Park on the day he won the Belmont Stakes and Triple Crown. There were additional cash prizes totaling $4,000 for the 2^nd through 10^th positions.

“As the official account wagering site of the Breeders’ Cup, we were thrilled to offer this big money contest to our players linking key Breeders’ Cup prep races with the biggest race of all, the Breeders’ Cup Classic,” TwinSpires.com Director of Communications Ed DeRosa said.

TwinSpires.com is the official wagering site of the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks, Breeders’ Cup, and the Churchill Downs Inc. family of tracks. Players who wager with TwinSpires.com receive free handicapping information from the official data source of the Kentucky Derby, Brisnet.com. To open an account, visit TwinSpires.com, call 1-877-SPIRES-1 (1-877-774-7371), or download our app from the Apple/iTunes Store.