Adams, Waterstone take legs of Hambletonian GC Handicapping Contest

(April 16, 2017) –   With the final legs of the Matchmaker and Levy pacing series being contested on April 14 and 15, Russ Adams and Gordon Waterstone scored their first victories of the season in the Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge by taking down individual contest cards.  With the help of their victories, Adams moved up from fifth to third while Waterstone jumped from ninth to fourth place in the standings. 

Despite a lackluster week, Matt Rose remains in front with a total of 242.63 points while Rusty Nash remains in second with 224 points on the ledger.  The previously mentioned Adams (196.14 pts) and Waterstone (136.14) round out the top four.    

In the overall net-profit competition, Rose’s $54.30 net profit is tops with Nash’s $51.10 good for second.  While Ray Garnett fell to fifth place, he stands in third place based on a net profit of $11.10. 

Adams was the star of the weekend, scoring a trifecta Saturday night by tabbing all three winners of the Levy tilts (McWicked, $4.30; Bit Of A Legend N, $4.40; Somewhere In LA, $4.10) to earn a net profit of $11.60 for the night.  Waterstone topped Friday by picking the second division winner Regil Elektra ($5.50), and having his first split selection Hidden Land finish second to earn a net profit of $6.00 (no show wagering in either of the two divisions).

The standings through the first ten legs are:

Pos	HiddHandicapper	Total Points Earned	Legs Won
1st	Matt Rose	242.63	3
2nd	Rusty Nash	224.00	3
3rd	Russ Adams	196.14	1
4th	Gordon Waterstone	136.13	1
5th	Ray Garnett	135.27	1
6th	Bryan Owen	134.14	1
7th	Steve Horoky	115.63	0
8th	Megan Maccario	113.14	0
9th	Adam Friedland	88.77	0
10th	Dennis O’Hara	87.14	0
11th	Jay Hochstetler	84.13	0
12th	Ray Cotolo	78.00	0
13th	Michael Carter	76.27	0
14th	Sally Hinckley	71.50	0
15th	Anne Stepien	68.00	0
16th	Terry Wilson	56.13	0

Next Up:  After the first five weeks at the Old Hiltop, the Challenge does take a detour to British Columbia for two special additions, Fraser Downs’ Kenny Linton Memorial (4/21) and the Penny Bath Memorial (4/22), the only two non-restricted stakes races of the entire year in this Western Canadian Province.  In addition to these two tilts, the Matchmaker and Levy Series finals and consolations will be contested at Yonkers Raceway Saturday night.  After the Yonkers finals, there will be a week off before the Grand Circuit begins traveling in earnest, starting at Freehold Raceway and the Meadowlands.

The 2017 Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge is sponsored by Adam Friedland, DRF Harness, Green Acquisition Corporation, The Hambletonian Society, Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Northfield Park, Ontario Harness Horse Association, Red Shores Charlottetown/Summerside, Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs, Wellbourne Farms, and WEG Entertainment.  The contest is administered by HANA Harness, the harness racing division of HANA, the Horseplayers Association of North America.  Fans may follow the challenge by visiting the contest site at http;//hanaharnesscontest.blogspot.com. 

Rose, Nash Repeat in Hambletonian GC Handicapping Challenge Legs

 (April 9, 2017) –  In a quiet week of the Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge, Matt Rose and Rusty Nash each once won a leg of the challenge at Yonkers Raceway this week (4/7 and 8), leaving the top of the standings virtually unchanged.  Rose remains in front with 228.63 points, 18.63 points ahead of Nash’s 210 points.  The race for the show spot remains tight with Ray Garnett ahead of Bryan Owen by a mere 1.13 points. 

    

In the overall net-profit competition, Rose’s $60.20 profit is a mere $1.90 ahead of Nash’s $58.30.  Ray Garnett sits in the show spot with a net profit of $23.60, $0.60 ahead of Ray Cotolo’s $23.00.

The standings through the first eight legs are;

Pos	Handicapper	Total Points Earned	Legs Won
1st	Matt Rose	228.63	3
2nd	Rusty Nash	210.00	3
3rd	Ray Garnett	121.13	1
4th	Bryan Owen	120.00	1
5th	Russ Adams	119.00	0
6th	Steve Horoky	111.63	0
7th	Megan Maccario	83.00	0
8th	Ray Cotolo	74.00	0
9th	Gordon Waterstone	69.13	0
10th	Dennis O’Hara	68.00	0
11th	Sally Hinckley	67.50	0
12th	Anne Stepien	64.00	0
13th	Adam Friedland	61.63	0
14th	Jay Hochstetler	47.13	0
15th	Terry Wilson	47.13	0
16th	Michael Carter	47.13	0

Next Up:  The Challenge continues this week at Yonkers Raceway on Friday, April 14 and Saturday, April 15 for the final preliminary legs of the Matchmaker and Levy Memorial Series.  The following week, the Challenge takes a detour to Fraser Downs for the Kenny Linton Memorial (4/21) and the Penny Bath Memorial (4/22), the only two non-restricted stakes races for three year old pacers in British Columbia as well as the Matchmaker and Levy Series finales at Yonkers.

The 2017 Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge is sponsored by Adam Friedland, DRF Harness, Green Acquisition Corporation, The Hambletonian Society, Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Northfield Park, Ontario Harness Horse Association, Red Shores Charlottetown/Summerside, Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs, Wellbourne Farms, and WEG Entertainment.  The contest is administered by HANA Harness, the harness racing division of HANA, the Horseplayers Association of North America.  Fans may follow the challenge by visiting the contest site at http;//hanaharnesscontest.blogspot.com.  

Nash, Owen Victorious in Hambletonian GC Handicapping Challenge Legs

(April 2, 2017) –  While in the early stages, the race is tightening in the Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge as Rusty Nash and Bryan Owen each won a leg of the challenge at Yonkers Raceway this week, reducing front runner Matt Rose’s lead (165.5 points) to 12.5 points.  With his win on Friday (3/31) night, Owen (108 pts) leapfrogged from 12th place to 4th while Nash’s (153 pts) Saturday (4/1) night victory allowed him to move up one place to 2nd.  Ray Garnett (111 pts) dropped into the show spot, 3 points ahead of Owen.   

Owen managed to beat three other handicappers Friday evening who had two out of three winners thanks to finishing second in race 6.  Owen’s wins were Bedroomconfessions ($3.80) in first division of the Matchmaker and Shesjustadelight N ($4.70) in the third tilt.

While Steve Horoky had three out of four Levy elimination winners (Soto, 1^st division, $10.00; Missile J, 2^nd div, $2.70; Keystone Velocity, 3^rd div, $3.10) Saturday evening, Nash managed to take top honors by selecting the 1^st and 3^rd division winners along with the second place finish of Great Vintage in the second split; allowing him to win the night with a net profit of $8.30 versus Horoky’s $7.80.

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In the overall net-profit competition, Nash ($54.50) remains on top, leading Rose ($53.00) by $1.50. Ray Garnett sits in the show spot with a net profit of $29.50 as Ray Cotolo fills out the superfecta with a net profit of $16.70.

The standings after the first six legs are:

  

Pos	Handicapper	Total Points Earned	Legs Won
1st	Matt Rose	165.5	2
2nd	Rusty Nash	153.0	2
3rd	Ray Garnett	111.0	1
4th	Bryan Owen	108.0	1
5th	Steve Horoky	91.5	0
6th	Russ Adams	82.0	0
7th	Dennis O’Hara	64.0	0
8th	Sally Hinckley	63.5	0
9th	Ray Cotolo	61.0	0
10th	Gordon Waterstone	59.0	0
11th	Megan Maccario	56.0	0
12th	Anne Stepien	55.0	0
13th	Adam Friedland	51.5	0
14th	Jay Hochstetler	42.0	0
15th	Terry Wilson	42.0	0
16th	Michael Carter	42.0	0

Next Up:  The Challenge continues this week at Yonkers Raceway on Friday, April 7 and Saturday, April 8 for the fourth legs of the Matchmaker and Levy Memorial Series.  The Challenge remains at Yonkers Raceway until the conclusion of the two series on April 22.

The 2017 Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge is sponsored by Adam Friedland, DRF Harness, Green Acquisition Corporation, The Hambletonian Society, Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Northfield Park, Ontario Harness Horse Association, Red Shores Charlottetown/Summerside, Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs, Wellbourne Farms, and WEG Entertainment.  The contest is administered by HANA Harness, the harness racing division of HANA, the Horseplayers Association of North America.  Fans may follow the challenge by visiting the contest site at http;//hanaharnesscontest.blogspot.com.