ITM Horseplayers Tour Newsletter - July 4th, 2025
Week 5 - Win a BCBC Seat!!!
PTF here and I am officially back in the New York Groove.
That’s about to be the Upstate New York Groove as after the Liberty game tonight, the Ice Cream Man and I are headed to the Spaaaaaaaa. Excited to celebrate the 4th up there with two of my favorite things – racing and barbecue. I’ve even got the Captain America shirt all ready to go.
I just finished recording our first In the Money Horseplayer Tour update show of the season, which comes complete with a look at the all-stakes Late Pick Four at Saratoga on Friday’s card. You can listen to the full show here or check out the second part on video here.
I did a horse-by-horse writeup of Friday’s Belmont Derby for At the Races. John Gaspar, who joined me for the update, also has a show of his own out that you don’t want to miss – an interview with Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge Champion and ITM regular Marshall Gramm.
Big congratulations to last week’s playoff qualifiers Sean O’Malley, Robin Buser, Ciaran Thornton, and especially now two-time qualifier (and former Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge champion) Rick Broth. They join the strong list of ‘cappers and gamblers for these playoffs, which begin on October 3. The champ of the playoffs will receive a $10,000 entry into the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge at no additional cost! But don’t forget — playing in these weekly contests can also earn you a spot into a designated BCBC qualifier for that weekend!
And ESPECIALLY DON’T FORGET: all of the proceeds from these contests go to helping these athletes we love to watch and bet in competition through a pair of aftercare charities, the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga. It’s an opportunity for everybody to win, and it only costs $20 to enter!
ENTER THIS WEEK’S CONTEST
You’ll also find below additional content for this week’s contest from Dean Keppler for Los Alamitos Thoroughbred analysis and Eric Solomon for Monmouth Park analysis.
Don’t forget to subscribe to the Substack too, if you somehow haven’t already, so that you don’t miss these newsletters along with our regular weekly Players’ Newsletter, which drops later this afternoon.
Happy Fourth and MYWAYP,
PTF
Pick & Pray®
FRIDAY FEATURED (HP): BCBC - *P&P* In the Money HorsePlayers Tour Feeder to 7/5 (SAT) BCBC Qualifier - Benefits TAA and THS
ENTER THIS WEEK’S CONTEST
Entry fee: $20
Entries close: 3:52 p.m. (EDT)
PRIZES: One entry per every 10 entries will win the designated entry fee into a BCBC Qualifier (check title/awarded section for date). Entries won will be automatically entered into the designated BCBC Qualifier.
Top 4 finishers earn entry into the In the Money HorsePlayers Tour Playoffs.
Attheraces.com - Horse-by-horse guide: Belmont Derby
Peter Fornatale looks at each of the eight runners on Friday and gives his selection, along with an exotic play. The Belmont Derby is Race 9 on the card at Saratoga on Friday, which is the 6th event in this week’s Horseplayers Tour contest.
Inthemoneypodcast.com - Los Alamitos Race Course (Friday-7/4/2025) By Dean Keppler
ITM handicapper Dean Keppler provides race-by-race analysis of the Friday card at Los Alamitos Thoroughbred. Races 5, 6, 7 & 8 are featured in this week’s Horseplayers Tour contest.
Inthemoneypodcast.com - Monmouth Park Full Card Analysis – Friday, July 4th, 2025 – By Eric Solomon
ITM handicapper Eric Solomon provides race-by-race analysis of the Friday card at Monmouth Park. Race 5, 6, 7 & 8 are featured in this week’s Horseplayers Tour contest.
Players’ Podcast - In the Money Horseplayers’ Tour Update/FRIDAY Saratoga Picks
After a quick reflection on Thorpedo Anna's rebound victory in the 2025 Fleur De Lis Stakes at Churchill Downs, PTF and JK shift their attention to the July 4th Racing Festival at Saratoga, which features several stakes that will be a part of this week's Horseplayers Tour contest. PTF and JK provide analysis of the 2025 Manila Stakes, the 2025 Belmont Derby Invitational, the 2025 Suburban Stakes and the 2025 Harvey Pack Stakes. These races are the 4th, 6th, 8th & 10th events in this week’s contest.
Breeders’ Cup - Horseplayers Tour Leaderboard
View the winners from each week in the ITM Horseplayers Tour contest.
And the Contest Winner Was….with John Gaspar
Recent BCBC Qualifier John Gaspar sits down with ITM Founding Partner and BCBC Champion Marshall Gramm to discuss his recent contest success on Saturday, 6/28, with a win in the Monmouth contest and a 2nd in the Twinspires Stephen Foster Betting Challenge.
HorsePlayers - Winning Starts Here
HorsePlayers, a partnership between the Breeders' Cup and National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), is the Official Online Qualifying Site of the Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge (BCBC) and the National Horseplayers Championship (NHC). The site is powered by HorseTourneys, a leading online contest site.
Players with an existing HorseTourneys account do not need to create a new account on HorsePlayers. Simply login with your HorseTourneys information on HorsePlayers and you will have access to your account. Similarly, if you sign up on HorsePlayers you’ll be able to use your HorsePlayers account to play on the HorseTourneys website.
