Picks and plays for Sunday tournaments at Churchill Downs

The Sunday card at Churchill Downs is the focus of two tournaments on TwinSpires.com.

$50 Churchill Downs Challenge

The $50 Churchill Downs Challenge awards cash prizes. Bet your $35 bankroll across at least five races at Churchill Downs to climb the leaderboard. If there are 25 entries, the winner will earn $281.25 and the runner-up $93.75. If there are 50 entries, the top five finishers will earn cash prizes, including a $450 pot to the winner.

$160 Churchill Downs Feeder to 5/18 Churchill Downs SFBC Qualifier

Bet your $80 bankroll across at least five races at Churchill Downs (minimum $8 per race) to climb the standings in this feeder tournament. Instead of cash prizes, players will compete for seats in the May 18 $400 Churchill Downs SFBC (Stephen Foster Betting Challenge) Qualifier tournament. Every five entries in Sunday’s feeder contest will trigger the awarding of another seat.

Selections for Churchill Downs tournaments

The first two races on the Sunday card contain small fields: five horses in Race 1 and six horses in Race 2. At first glance, they seem like subpar opportunities to climb tournament leaderboards. But perhaps we can predict the exact outcomes and build our bankrolls even with chalky outcomes.

Race 1 is a $50,000 claimer for horses who have never won two races. The six-furlong dirt dash is led by #2 Trust Issues (7-5), who pressed a quick pace before tiring to finish sixth in a six-furlong allowance at Keeneland last month. Trust Issues boasts sharp Brisnet Speed ratings on the whole and hasn’t missed the trifecta in four starts over the Churchill Downs main track, most notably wiring a maiden special weight and finishing third in an allowance. Dropping down in class and returning to Churchill should send Trust Issues to the winner’s circle under hot jockey Luis Saez.

Let’s bet Trust Issues on top of a cold exacta. For second place, we’ll oppose #3 Chance (9-5), who ran well below his best when returning from a lengthy layoff in his 2025 debut. Instead, we’ll use #1 Summonyourcourage (5-2), winner of a $50,000 maiden claimer dashing six furlongs at Churchill last fall.

We also recommend singling Trust Issues to start a double bet. Feel free to vary the bet amounts depending on the tournament you’re playing:

• Race 1: $5 Exacta: 2 with 1
• Race 1: $10 Double: 2 with 1

Race 2 is a 1 1/8-mile dirt allowance for fillies and mares. There’s barely any pace in the field, which should suit #1 Save Time (6-5). Although she was last seen rallying from last place to finish third in a 1 1/16-mile allowance at Keeneland, Save Time endured a troubled start that day and doesn’t have to be a deep closer. Three starts back, she won a one-mile maiden special weight at Gulfstream Park after settling no more than three lengths off the pace. A slow tempo on Sunday should allow Save Time to race more forwardly.

We’ll single Save Time to conclude our double bet, then add a cold exacta using #2 Foreseen (2-1) for second place.

• Race 2: $10 Exacta: 1 with 2

Good luck!