Paul Calia, a retired former disability manager for Social Security from Kansas City, Mo., won the top prize of $800,000 at the National Horseplayers Championship last weekend in Las Vegas while also finishing fourth with a second entry that pushed his earnings to nearly $1 million. Calia amassed the contest’s top winning score of $362.50 from 53 mythical bets placed on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, $32.20 better than the second-highest score. His second entry amassed $305.50, earning him an additional $150,000 in prize earnings. Calia is the first winner of the contest who also had a second entry finish in the top 10. “I started a little slow on Friday, thought I handicapped okay with some seconds and thirds,” Calia said, in a release distributed by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, which administers the tournament. “But Saturday I was pretty hot and pretty much hit every longshot. It’s hard to put into words how many winners I picked on Saturday.” :: Take your handicapping to the next level and play with FREE DRF Past Performances - Formulator or Classic.  For the win, Calia also received a free berth to the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, a live-money tournament that requires a $10,000 buy-in, plus an exemption to next year’s NHC. Because Calia was the leader at the end of play on Saturday, which awarded him with another berth in the BCBC, he was given $10,000 in cash. Calia will also be presented with the Horseplayer of the Year Award at next year’s Eclipse Awards ceremony. According to the NTRA, the National Horseplayers Championship was the first tournament that Calia had won outright. Players can qualify for the NHC through a variety of live and on-line tournaments held throughout the previous 12 months, including by finishing in the top positions of the qualifiers. Calia was competing in the NHC for the second time. The NHC this year required players to make $2 mythical win and place bets on 53 races held throughout the three-day tournament. Players who reached the final table on Sunday were required to make the bets on 23 mandatory races over the three days, while selecting another 30 races from eligible tracks. The second-place finisher was Francis Boustany from Lafayette, La., who earned $250,000. The third-place prize went to Gary Fenton of Sherman Oaks, Calif. Steven Wells, from Fordville, N.D., placed in the top 10 with two entries, at seventh and ninth, and took home a total of $150,000. This year’s NHC had 779 entries from more than 620 players. The total prize money for this year’s tournament was $3.1 million. The top 78 finishers received prize money this year. In addition, all players receive a four-day stay at the NHC host, the Horseshoe Las Vegas, plus travel reimbursements. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.