Final Gambit (pink cap) tries to catch Sovereignty but no one could. (Jenny Doyle/Past The Wire)
And $67,000 Bankroll In Inaugural Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge Tournament
Churchill Downs Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Exiting Race 11 at Churchill Downs on May 3, Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge (KDBC) horseplayer Frank Mustari had 101 contestants ahead of him on the official leaderboard containing 173 entries. With only half of his $3,500 starting bankroll remaining in the TwinSpires contest, and one final race swiftly nearing in the Kentucky Derby, Mustari must go all in.
Using his remaining $1,750, Mustari indeed placed everything in the pot with bold selections holding value. In horse racing, value often translates to larger risk. The betting moves he plotted were surgical slips of exotic wagers in exactas and trifectas.
Mustari hit by keying Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty (7.98-1) over runner-up Journalism (3.42-1) in all of his wagers, and he nailed the trifecta by including Baeza (13.86-1) in the third slot. When Sovereignty rallied from well back in the pack to prevail, so did Mustari, who soared to the top of the KDBC leaderboard. Not only claiming the winning cash prize of $103,800, he also raked in his tournament bankroll winnings worth an additional $67,158.80, for a grand total of $170,958.80.
Frank Mustari kindly expressed what it means for TwinSpires to offer these opportunities to horseplayers: “TwinSpires has quickly become a major player in the contest world. Darin (Zoccali of TwinSpires) has listened to the players’ needs and provided us with many great new wagering options for both big and small players…We appreciate what Darin and TwinSpires have done for contest players!!!”
Frank Mustari’s winning bets in Race 12 to obtain the KDBC victory:
- Exacta 18 with 8 for $1,000
- Exacta 18 with 8 for $10
- Trifecta 18 with 8 with 3, 9, 14, 21 for $400
- Trifecta 18 with 8 with 3, 9, 14, 21 for $340
2025 Prize Payouts for Top 10 KDBC Tournament Horseplayers
| 1 | Frank | Mustari | $103,800.00 |
| 2 | David | R. | $51,900.00 |
| 3 | Douglas | B. | $25,950.00 |
| 4 | Jonathon | K. | $19,462.50 |
| 5 | Patrick | S. | $14,272.50 |
| 6 | Henry | K. | $12,975.00 |
| 7 | Dylan | D. | $10,380.00 |
| 8 | Nicholas | S. | $9,082.50 |
| 9 | Peter | S. | $6,487.50 |
| 10 | Kathryn | G. | $5,190.00 |
KDBC Leaderboard, Player Bet History, Bankroll Totals & Results: https://www.twinspires.com/bet/tournaments/109/details
The number of KDBC entries exceeded the goal, demonstrating the robust tourney community in horse racing.
TwinSpires Tournaments manager Jeremy Jones shared: “We set a lofty goal of getting 167 entries to cover the $250,000 guaranteed prize pool when we started this journey with only seven months’ lead-up, but we surpassed that goal with 173 total entries.
“We saw a massive influx of new players trying to win seats during Derby Week, and the Oaks Day contest had 140 entries. Next year, we will look to add a cash element to the Oaks Day contest to draw in even more interest.”
Patrick S. won two KDBC entries from an $800 qualifier tournament and a $320 feeder contest. That path delivered a cash prize of $14,272.50 for his fifth-place finish. Not forgetting Patrick’s final bankroll of $41,308, he earned a final bag totaling over $55,000.
Sixth-place finisher Henry K. turned a $50 feeder into more than $50,000 with a $37,394.40 final bankroll and $12,975 tournament prize. Henry began his KDBC quest by joining a KDBC feeder event. Upon conclusion, the feeder contest fell a single entry short of offering a KDBC qualifier seat. When TwinSpires offered Henry options, he chose not the $350 cash prize, but a $50 reward option to cover a KDBC qualifier seat. And then he arrived at a proper KDBC seat from his qualifier success.
Ninth-placer Peter S. won his KDBC entry through a $160 feeder competition. The total return on his investment? A resulting bankroll of $30,209.96 plus a prize of $6,487.50. Spinning $160 into over $36,000.
TwinSpires tournaments’ first hosting of the Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge illustrates how lower buy-in feeder tournaments can return big tournament winnings. Playing into a tournament can provide a more cost-effective means when compared with costs of a same day buy-in. But buy-ins can pay too.
Several small money cash tournaments to help bettors improve tournament handicapping skills ahead of entering big money contests will be available. Tournament offerings will continue to grow, and players can view the latest updates to the tournament calendar on the TwinSpires Tournaments platform.
Jones shares what’s next on the tournaments roadmap for TwinSpires: “Our next big contest will be the Stephen Foster Betting Challenge at the end of June, and we will have plenty of feeders and qualifiers leading up to that event as well. We will continue to find good spots to put other large cash tournaments for players throughout the year with so much excellent content that CDI tracks provide.”
About the Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge Tournament
The official betting tournament of the Kentucky Derby, the Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge (KDBC), lives on TwinSpires.com and offered a guaranteed prize pool of a quarter-million dollars for 2025.
The KDBC’s $250,000 guaranteed prize pool awaited horseplayers of all levels as tournament faithful followed the Road to the Kentucky Derby.
The first official KDBC Qualifier Tournament took place on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024 featuring the opening day card of the Fall Meet at Churchill Downs. One KDBC seat was guaranteed. In addition, one Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge (BCBC) seat was also guaranteed as a part of the qualifier event. A series of feeder tournaments took place prior to this qualifier, beginning on Saturday, Oct. 12.
The nearly seven-month journey culminated on Saturday, May 3, 2025 with the action-packed Kentucky Derby Day program at Churchill Downs. The schedule included 24 KDBC qualifier events, with each qualifier supported by at least eight feeder tournaments.
Feeders varied to accommodate a range of player types, as tournament feeders are designed to help “feed” players into qualifier events and ultimately seats in the KDBC main event.
The relationship between feeders and qualifiers allows TwinSpires to support a range of horseplayer participation options. Varied entry costs, tournament types, and prize pool offerings are designed to attract a wide spectrum of horseplayers.
Be sure to register for these exciting opportunities at TwinSpires.com/bet/tournaments and find more information on upcoming feeder events.
$250,000 Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge Live Bankroll Cash Tournament on May 3, 2025
- $5,000 Total Buy-In
- $3,500 to Bankroll
- $1,500 to Prize Pool
- Maximum of two (2) entries per person.
- Players must wager all $3,500 of their bankroll across all specified races at Churchill Downs.
- The following wager types will count as contest wagers: Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Trifecta, Daily Double.
- 100% of Prize Pool is paid out as Prizes.
- Online Registration will begin at 9:00AM ET on Friday, October 4, 2024.
- Entries will be accepted up until 11:00AM ET, post time of the first race at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
