News & Barn notes
Jonathon Kinchen Of Fox Sports’ America’s Day At The Races Tops Field Of 326 To Win $2,000 Pick Your Prize Handicapping Challenge
June 05, 2025
Even the weather couldn’t hold back Monmouth Park’s $2,000 Pick Your Prize Handicapping Challenge this year.
Despite days of rain in the lead-up to the May 31 event – resulting in off-the-turf conditions – and a strong thunderstorm mid-day, Monmouth’s signature handicapping event attracted 326 entries.
At the conclusion of Monmouth Park’s Race 11 finale, it was Fox Sports’ America’s Day at the Races analyst and In The Money Players Podcast co-host Jonathon Kinchen atop the leaderboard.
Playing on-site at Monmouth, Kinchen ended with a tournament-topping total of $9,232.90. By finishing first, Kinchen automatically received $18,450 in cash. As part of Pick Your Prize’s unique and unparalleled prize structure, Kinchen also received two prize selections from a prize board that included 25 seats to the National Horseplayers Championship (NHC), nine seats to the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge (BCBC) and eight cash prizes ranging from $9,800 to $4,000.
With his two selections, Kinchen picked a BCBC seat and $9,800. All told, Kinchen walked away with his $9,232.90 bankroll, $28,250 in additional cash prizes, and a seat in the 2025 BCBC.
Contest runner-up David Nelson, playing through Xpressbet, finished with a bankroll of $8,725. With his two prize selections, Nelson picked (NHC + $6,000) and $8,500 – in addition to his second-place cash prize of $10,250
In total, the top 8 finishers received two prize board selections. Finishers 9 through 34 received one.
All Pick Your Prize players had to bet a minimum of five Monmouth Park races. The minimum bet for those races was $200. Pools available for contest play were win, place, show, exacta and daily double. Contest players participated on-site or online through Xpressbet, TVG and HPI.
Monmouth Park’s next live-money handicapping contest is an on-site-only $400 tournament on Saturday, June 28. That contest awards two NHC seats plus eight seats to the $1,000 Haskell Challenge on Saturday, July 19.
For those looking for more immediate contest action, Monmouth Park has partnered with Horsetourneys.com for a $1 (yes, $1) online handicapping for the Saturday, June 14 NYRA Bets Haskell Preview Day card. The Top 5 finishers in that Horsetourneys.com contest will receive a seat in the $1,000 Haskell Challenge.
For information on future Monmouth Park contests, please contact Brian Skirka at bskirka@monmouthpark.com.
$2,000 Pick Your Prize Official Contest Results & Prizes
| Position | DisplayName | AccountBalance | Location | Prize |
| 1 | Jonathon Kinchen | $9,232.90 | Monmouth Park | $18,450 + BCBC+ $9,800 |
| 2 | David Nelson | $8,725.00 | Xpressbet | $10,250 + (NHC+$6,000) + $8,500 |
| 3 | Sal Digangi | $8,194.40 | Xpressbet | $6,150 + (NHC +$4,000) + BCBC |
| 4 | Joseph Costello | $7,176.50 | Xpressbet | $4,100 + (NHC + $3,000) + BCBC |
| 5 | Charles Thompson | $6,347.50 | Xpressbet | $2,300 + (NHC +$2,000) + BCBC |
| 6 | Jill Matzat | $5,972.50 | Monmouth Park | BCBC + $8,000 |
| 7 | Tim Hughes | $5,550.00 | TVG | NHC + BCBC |
| 8 | Kenneth King | $5,408.00 | Xpressbet | BCBC + $7,000 |
| 9 | Wendy Long | $5,393.80 | HPI | NHC |
| 10 | Lou Filoso | $4,960.00 | Monmouth Park | BCBC |
| 10 | Justin Horowitz | $4,960.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 12 | Jill Matzat | $4,855.00 | Monmouth Park | $6,500 |
| 13 | Chris Olsson | $4,670.00 | Monmouth Park | BCBC |
| 14 | Phil Matzat | $4,535.80 | Monmouth Park | $5,500 |
| 15 | Chris Bertolucci | $4,382.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 16 | Nick Noce | $4,290.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 17 | Lucas VanZandt | $4,030.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 18 | Mark Streiff | $4,000.00 | TVG | $4,500 |
| 19 | Brendan Fay | $3,895.85 | Monmouth Park | NHC |
| 20 | Thomas Labordo | $3,845.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 21 | Jim Tipps | $3,821.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 22 | Jeff Bussan | $3,654.50 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 23 | Edward Deicke | $3,400.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 24 | Jerald Segall | $3,228.90 | Xpressbet | $4,000 |
| 25 | Anthony Fortunato | $3,195.00 | Monmouth Park | NHC |
| 26 | Linda Rodriguez | $3,160.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 27 | Richard Nilsen | $3,155.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 28 | Kevin Willett | $3,130.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 29 | George Henning | $3,035.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 30 | Jeff Pesot | $2,983.00 | Monmouth Park | NHC |
| 31 | Peter Smeding | $2,930.00 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 32 | Roger Cettina | $2,924.00 | Monmouth Park | NHC |
| 33 | Chris Larmey | $2,923.20 | Xpressbet | NHC |
| 34 | Chris Olsson | $2,860.00 | Monmouth Park | NHC |