Handicapping at Big M

Mark Landau of Montville, NJ, captured the Meadowlands' 2006 National Harness Handicapping Championship qualifying tournament on Jan. 28, with a final bankroll of $1,916, which netted him a $13,300 first prize in the handicapping tournament.



Landau and runner-up James Sidor of Bloomfield, NJ, both advanced to the second annual National Harness Handicapping Championship, which will be contested on April 22 at the Meadowlands.



The sport's only national tournament for harness handicappers, the National Harness Handicapping Championship features a $50,000 (guaranteed) first prize.



Contestants in the National Harness Handicapping Championship qualifying tournament were required to bet 10 Meadowlands lives races, with a $20 minimum and $100 maximum per race. Wagers were win, place or win-place combination, and could only be made on one horse per race.



Landau got off to a promising start in the contest with a $20 win bet on Perfect Panderosa in the first race. The Virgil Morgan trainee was sent off at 7-1 and paid $16.40. While his next three picks did not pan out, he benefited from a stroke of good luck in the seventh race when his selection, Marced Card, inherited a win by disqualification. Landau bet $20 to win on Marced Card, who was placed first in the $80,000 Complex Final after the apparent winner, Seeyouinmydreams, was disqualified for interference in the stretch. Sent off at 25-2, Marced Card paid $27 to win, and added $270 to Landau's bankroll.



Landau's next wager proved pivotal: he made a $100 win bet on Allnightcardgame in the eighth race. Another 7-1 shot, Allnightcardgame returned $17.60, which netted Landau $880 and boosted his bankroll to $1,314.



"The reason I had $100 on the winner of the eighth race was because my good friend, Richard Levy -- we've done three contests together -- reminded me that I needed to be aggressive if I wanted to win the contest," Landau said. "He knew that I had won two races already, but you have to get aggressive to win. He was also responsible for me entering this time around, calling me until I said yes and even going to the bank to get the cashier's check for both of us to enter."



Landau's selections in the 11th and 12th races secured the win for him. In the 11th race he bet $100 to win on Southwind Alden, a 5-1 shot who paid $12.60 for the team of trainer Rick Bilach and owner Richard Annunziata.



"That trainer-owner combination has been hot this year," Landau said about his selection.



He bet $20 to win on his 12th race pick, Putasmileon, a 9-1 Richard Banca trainee who returned $21.20, and his final $100 win bet on Whatabuster in the 13th was unsuccessful, but his lead was substantial enough to give him his victory.



"I'm a value handicapper with a good eye for trip handicapping, who tries to add recent competition to the picture," Landau said about his strategy. "Saturday was a freaky, great night for me."



A 53-year-old Wall Street bond trader, Landau grew up in Queens and first began attending the races at Yonkers and Roosevelt Raceway. He has been visiting the Meadowlands since the track opened in 1976, and entered his first tournament at the Meadowlands two years ago. This was his first tournament win. (Meadowlands press release)

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