Tommy Massis of Toronto wins Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge

Edited press release:

The seventh Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge (BCBC) presented by West Point Thoroughbreds brought top horseplayers to  Keeneland Race Course and four satellite sites to compete in the biggest live money handicapping contest in the world.

Tommy Massis of Toronto outdistanced the BCBC field of 322 competitors to grab the Championship. Once again, the BCBC set a record in player participation with 222 players at Keeneland and another 100 entering the BCBC from satellite locations at Belmont Park, Del Mar, Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita Park. This represents a 12 percent increase in player participation from 2014. The cash prize pool was also a record at $805,000.

“I’m back to normal today, trying to maintain an even keel,” said Massis, 52, a longtime horseplayer who got started by playing the races at Woodbine. “I had qualified three of the last four years, so I got it right this time.”

Massis showed that he likes Keeneland, having earned a BCBC spot in a live tournament back in April. Returning to the Bluegrass last Friday, Massis built his starting bankroll of $7,500 into $90,682, and when combined with the $230,000 first-place prize, Massis total winnings were $320,682 in cash.  Massis also received a $25,000 interest in a West Point Thoroughbred horse and a seat to the DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship (NHC) in Las Vegas this January.

Massis’s biggest score came in Saturday’s Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1), where he accumulated $85,000 on the Found-Golden Horn exacta ($42.80).

Massis's total was comfortably ahead of second-place finisher David Kramer of Novi, MI, who had $71,735. Kramer won $165,000 in prize money for the runner-up spot and walked away with $236,735 in cash plus a $10,000 interest in a West Point Thoroughbred horse and a seat to the NHC. Coincidently, Both Massis and Kramer participated in the BCBC from Keeneland’s luxurious Green Room.  Finishing third was John Gamine of Three Way, Tenn., whose total of $42,755 earned him an additional $112,000 in prize money for a total of $154,755 for the weekend. 

Contest handle for all players in the BCBC at Keeneland, and the other four satellite locations, was nearly $4,225,000. 

“We are tremendously proud of the growth in prize money and the increased participation by players in this year’s Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, and thank West Point Thoroughbreds for their sponsorship,” said Tim Schram, BCBC Tournament Director. “With Keeneland as an excellent host, and with the addition of new satellite locations at Del Mar and Gulfstream, this event presented the best of the best for the horseplayers.”