Rules

ELIGIBILITY:

Players must be 21 years of age or older in order to play.

As this is an Internet-based contest website, entries will only be accepted through the online entry and selection form. No faxed, mailed, electronically mailed or telephone entries are allowed.

Accounts are limited to residents of North America.

Residents of the state of Michigan, and Washington are not eligible to hold accounts. Residents of the states of Hawaii, Montana, and Nevada are not eligible to withdraw funds from account balances. However, those players may participate in contests for the purposes of pursuing entry to on-site events through qualifying contests (such as the NHC and HPWS).

Canadian residents are restricted from playing in tournaments including content from Woodbine Entertainment Group per compliance rules.

CANCEL/REFUND and TRANSFER POLICY:

By purchasing an entry at HorseTourneys and agreeing to the Official Rules, players acknowledge that a tournament operator, by the nature of the business structure, must adhere to a strict policy with regards to cancellations and refunds. Once a contest begins, entries are added to the prize pool for each contest and may NEVER be retracted for any reason, regardless of if selections are actually made for an entry. Each player is entirely responsible for ensuring that selections are made successfully and on-time. HorseTourneys provides the opportunity for players to cancel entries up until TWO HOURS prior to the start time of a contest.

CANCELLATIONS: Players may cancel a purchased entry for any contest up until TWO HOURS before the closing time of the contest. Cancelling an entry is subject to a 10 percent cancel fee (i.e., 90 percent of the entry fee purchased will be returned to your account balance). Please note that this is necessary to prevent manipulation of contest pools and protect the integrity of the contests, but has been provided for player convenience. If a cancellation is necessary due to a legitimate error or in purchasing, players may email Customer Support for consideration of a refund of this cancel fee. Cancellation activity will be closely monitored, and abuse of the cancellation privilege will result in the revoking of player accounts.

Aside from this cancel policy, there are no refunds permitted for purchased entries for ANY reason.

Transfers of entries from one player to another player are also not permitted. However, players may request the transfer of all or a portion of their account balances to another registered player, pursuant to approval by site administrators.

WITHDRAWAL POLICIES:

All withdrawals are subject to review and approval by site administrators.

Players MUST have played funds that have been deposited into accounts in contests at HorseTourneys and may not request to withdraw those funds before the balance of the deposit has ultimately been played in contests. Contest cancellations for any reason are not exceptions to this policy. Any winnings from play may be immediately withdrawn, factoring in the remaining balance of a player's most recent deposit(s).

Updated taxpayer information is required before a player's first withdrawal will be accepted. If you have not submitted your taxpayer information, you must do so through one of the available submission options. Withdrawal amounts in excess of $600 in a calendar year (net of entry fees, i.e., the total amount won) will be subject to a single 1099-MISC filing with the IRS for the applicable tax year.

Players may withdraw at any time. Players are allowed three (3) free withdrawals in any 30-day rolling period; any withdrawal requests within a 30-day period in excess of three (3) are subject to a $5 handling fee per instance. The handling fee is automatically included in your withdrawal if applicable.

CONTEST PLAY/SELECTIONS:

MAKING SELECTIONS (PICKS)

Typical contests will have 8-15 individual race events. Mythical $2 Win/Place wagers ($2 to Win and $2 to Place) will be made on the horse a player selects in each race. Only one horse may be selected per race. If a player's horse wins, the player collects on both the Win and Place wagers. If a player's horse finishes in a Place position, the player collects only on the Place wager. All wagers and payouts from races are mythical and will be used as a score only.

Payouts will be reported according to the payout results from the United States tote system.

Players will select horses by name and official program number. As with real wagering, coupled entries serve as one betting interest for the purposes of contest play. Selections may be made as early as the day prior to the contest, as soon as the contest selection process is opened.

A PRIMARY selection MUST be designated. A player's ALTERNATE selection will be assigned ONLY in the event of a scratch of a player's PRIMARY selection. If a player does not make a PRIMARY selection, NO SELECTION will be considered to have been played.

In the event of a scratch of a player's primary selection, the Alternate pick becomes the active selection. If the Alternate selection is also scratched, the player will be assigned the post-time favorite.

SURVIVOR CONTESTS:

In SURIVOR format contests, players select one horse or entry per race. If the selection finishes in a position receiving a mutuel payout (typically Win/Place/Show, but can be Win/Place or Win only depending on field size) the player will receive one "point" and will remain alive in the competition.

Important notes regarding SURVIVOR contests:

Points are awarded for each correct selection in CONSECUTIVE races (in race order according to the contest schedule). Because races can sometimes run and be scored out of scheduled race order, it is important to note that points may be awarded and displayed on the leaderboard for races that finish out of consecutive order (for instance, if the 5th race is scored before the 4th race). Ultimately, prizes are awarded based on the number of successful CONSECUTIVE selections, and the scoring system will update accordingly once all consecutive races have been scored.
If the field size of any race is reduced to where only Win and Place or Win only are/is paid out through the pari-mutuel pools, only horses that receive those payouts will be considered "in the money" selections for the purposes of this contest and this contest format.

There are NO TIEBREAKERS applied in SURVIVOR contests. Players with the most number of correct selections at the conclusion of the contest win or share the prizes designated.

A full 12-race schedule must be completed in order to award a Survivor Jackpot prize pool. If the number of completed races in the Survivor Jackpot schedule is less than 12, the carryover will automatically carry to the following Survivor Jackpot schedule.

EXACTA BOX CONTESTS:

In the EXACTA BOX format, players select three (3) horses per race. Scores are accrued based on the $1 Exacta mutuel payout. Note specifics on this format:

Players must select three horses (entries) per race. A mythical 3-horse exacta box is played.
Players MAY select an ALTERNATE for each of their three horse/entry selections. However, selecting Alternates is only optional and not required. An Alternate is only applied in the event of a scratch of the corresponding PRIMARY selection. Like normal tourneys, the post-time favorite (PTF) will replace a scratched horse if no alternate has been selected, or if both the Primary AND Alternate has been scratched.
Please note that it is possible to be left with duplicate horses in Exacta Box selections due to the assignment of alternates or post-time favorites as a result of scratches. Players are responsible for making changes to selections in real time to avoid duplicate picks.
Scoring is based on the $1 Exacta mutuel payout. There are no payout caps.
If the field size or other circumstances results in no Exacta wagering (and thus no Exacta mutuel payout), no score will be recorded for that race. Similar to the guidelines for race cancellations, at least 70 percent of the tourney races must be scored to constitute an official contest (see cancellation policy).
There are NO TIEBREAKERS in the Exacta Box Format. Ties in any final prize positions will receive an equal share of the designated prizes for those positions.

ALL-OPTIONAL FORMAT:

If a contest is operating under the ALL-OPTIONAL format, the following stipulations apply:

If a selection is scratched prior to a race, then the player's alternate selection will be used or he/she will be assigned the post-time favorite if no alternate selection is selected. If a player wishes to save the play for later, he/she must go in and cancel the selection before off time. If a horse is declared a NON-STARTER after the race (e.g., unfair start, et al.), any players with that selection (either as a Primary, Alternate or Post Time Favorite) will have that selection voided. The pick will be available for future play.
If an individual race event is declared a NO CONTEST, any selections made for that event will be voided and will be available for future play.
If individual races events are CANCELLED, any selections made for those events will be voided and will be made available for future play. The 70 percent rule regarding race cancellations still applies.

If any circumstances arise on the final race of the schedule that would normally result in the voiding of a selection, those selections will instead be treated as a late scratch, with assignment of either the ALTERNATE or POST-TIME FAVORITE.

Players must be aware and acknowledge that circumstances may arise that result in a player having more selections remaining than there are eligible races remaining. This potential is unavoidable as a matter of course under this format and the official rules strictly apply.

POINTS-BASED SCORING:

Under the points-based scoring system, players receive both pre-determined points values for a WIN, PLACE or SHOW placing, in addition to BONUS points based on the final payout of either the WIN or PLACE position.

The pre-determined points awarded are:

WIN: 100 points
PLACE: 50 points
SHOW: 30 points

Players receive only one value per WIN/PLACE/SHOW selection (for instance, a WIN selection receives only 100 points, not a combination of Win/Place/Show points).

The BONUS points are determined by the final WIN or PLACE pari-mutuel payout of the correct selection. Bonus points awarded:

WIN BONUS POINTS (based on final WIN payout):
any up to $4.00: 0 points
$4.01 to $6.00: 0 points
$6.01 to $8.00: 24 points
$8.01 to $10.00: 36 points
$10.01 to $14.00: 48 points
$14.01 to $20.00: 60 points
$20.01 to $32.00: 84 points
$32.01 and up: 96 points

PLACE BONUS POINTS (based on final PLACE payout):
any to $3.00: 0 points
$3.01 to $4.00: 9 points
$4.01 to $5.00: 12 points
$5.01 to $7.00: 18 points
$7.01 to $9.00: 24 points
$9.01 to $12.00: 30 points
$12.01 to $15.00: 42 points
$15.01 and up: 48 points

Bonus points are also only awarded for either the WIN or PLACE selection. Points are combined on per race basis, with a total running point total displayed on the leaderboard. Note standard tiebreakers remain in the event of ties under this POINTS-BASED format.

PAYOUT CAPS

HORSE RACING CONTESTS: There is a cap on both the Win and Place wagers. The maximum payout on a Win bet is $42 (20-1 odds) and the maximum payout on a Place bet is $22 (10-1 odds).

LATE SCRATCHES

In the event of a scratch, players will be assigned their Alternate pick, if one has been selected. If an Alternate pick also scratches or has not been chosen, the Primary horse will be replaced with the post-time favourite for that race. Selections WILL NOT RE-OPEN after closing due to a late scratch (i.e., at the gate). If a horse is declared a non-starter, that horse will be treated as a late scratch.

RACE/EVENT CANCELLATIONS

At least 70 percent of the race events that comprise a contest must be completed to constitute an official contest. If at least 70 percent of the individual race events in a particular contest have been completed, the contest will constitute a complete and official contest and will be scored according to the remaining events. If less than 70 percent of the contest events have been completed, the contest will be cancelled with entry fees refunded to all players.

If race cancellations PRIOR to a contest results in less than 70 percent of the original contest lineup remaining, contests administrators reserve the right to either (a) cancel the contest and refund entry fees; or, (b) time permitting, to replace the cancelled events with substitute events.

TOTE MALFUNCTIONS & DATA ERRORS

Unlike traditional parti-mutuel wagering (such as that conducted via wagering sites such as Xpressbet or TVG), tournament play at HorseTourneys does not physically run through the U.S. pari-mutuel tote system. Instead, tournament administration relies on third party tote and racing data that is supplied to us.

In rare instances, errors in tote signals received, or errors in racing data received or not received from third party sources may occur. Such instances may include, but are not limited to: (1) tote administrators "closing" a race earlier than gates-open; (2) incorrect scratch data received; (3) incorrect post-time favorite information; or (4) incorrect results or payout information.

While HorseTourneys site administrators make best efforts to identify and correct any known tote/data issues, circumstances beyond the control of site administrators may impact player logistics (such as being able to make selections up until gates open). In those circumstances, HorseTourneys will assess the impact of the tote/data error(s). Site administrators retain the right to make and implement decisions in the best interests of the integrity of the event, including voiding the results of one or more races, if necessary. All decisions by HorseTourneys administrators in the event of tote/data errors are final.

NOTICE TO PLAYERS: With the possibility of early race closes from tote data in particular, players should ALWAYS have a selection made for all races well ahead of time to avoid the possibility of missing picks. Only in cases whereby an overwhelming majority of players were unable to make selections well ahead of gates-open time (such as 10 minutes or longer) would the voiding of race results be considered.

TIEBREAKERS

Should there be a tie in earnings in any event, ties will be broken in accordance with the following procedures: (a) the entry(s) with the most number of winners selected will win the tie; if a tie still remains, then (b) the entry(s) selecting the horse with the highest mutuel WIN payout will win the tie; if a tie still remains, then (c) the entry(s) with the most number of PLACE horses selected will win the tie; if a tie still remains, then (d) the entry(s) with the highest mutuel PLACE payout will win the tie; if a tie still remains, then (e) the entry(s) with the most number of SHOW (third place finishers that did not Win or Place) horses selected will win the tie; if a tie still remains, then (f) the winning entry(s) will be determined by a random draw among eligible entries. Note that (f) random draw, may only come into play involving entries to on-track events or other prizes whose value cannot be divided. A playoff option between those players involved in the tie may be offered per management discretion.

If in FEEDER or REAL MONEY contests there are ties remaining after all tiebreakers (through tiebreaker (e), show positions) have been applied, the value of the prizes involved will be equally split among those players tied for the position(s).

For any contest, if all players end with zero at the conclusion of the contest, tiebreakers will not be applied and all players will be refunded the entry fee.

Tiebreakers are NOT applied in SURVIVOR format contests, or to EXACTA BOX format contests.

BREAKAGE:

Breakage refers to entries that are sold to a tournament, but that do not amount to enough entries to award an additional package or prize. For a complete explanation of breakage and parameters for awarding breakage, please go to Breakage Policy.

SELECTION DEADLINES

In contests utilizing the regular, live format (where selections may be changed race-by-race up until post), generally speaking, race selections will close for each contest event as the last half of the field is loading into the starting gate. HOWEVER, IT IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED that players submit all selections prior to the first race and then go back and edit as needed, at least 2-3 minutes prior to the anticipated gates open time of the race. Players should be aware of delays in transmission via internet streaming services or television feeds that may not represent the actual real time of races. The Participant is 100 percent responsible for ensuring that a contest wager has been accepted, regardless of the circumstances. Players should pay close attention to race schedules for all contests, as post times can change throughout the day due to delays or other circumstances.

In PICK & PRAY format contests, selections for ALL contest races will be locked once the first contest race in the schedule (in any chronological position) is closed. In PICK & PRAY events, players must have all selections made prior to the first contest race closing and may not edit selections throughout the tournament.

AUDIT PERIOD

For contests that involve qualifying spots to other contests (such as NHC or HPWS), there is a 48-hour audit period after the completion of each contest, for the purposes of allowing for changes in the unlikely event of scoring errors or other circumstances. While the leaderboard will display the final payout results immediately, these results will not be official until the audit period is over. Players that have earned qualifying spots or other prizes will be notified once the contest has been declared official.

In FEEDER or REAL MONEY events, the contests will be considered complete immediately following scoring the final contest event. Players have up to 24 hours following the completion of those events to alert tournament officials of possible scoring errors and request necessary adjustments.

EXCLUSIONS AND OWNERSHIP RULE

Employees of Bet Twice Consulting LLC are not eligible to compete in contests at HorseTourneys.com. Employees of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Boyd Gaming, Wynn or any other organization that offers qualifying contests at HorseTourneys to their respective events are not allowed to participate in qualifiers specific to those events. There are no restrictions regarding participation or horse selection as it relates to horse owners or for those individuals related to persons with ownership, training, or other interests in horses competing in contest races.

Canadian residents are restricted from playing in tournaments including content from Woodbine Entertainment Group per compliance rules.

OFFICIAL DECISIONS

Tournament officials retain the right to make any decisions, including the disqualification of players, that they deem appropriate regarding any circumstances. Official decisions by tournament officials are final.

COLLUSION/GROUP PLAY:

Any actions by individuals and/or groups of players that may be perceived as an effort to gain an advantage during contest play will be investigated by tournament officials and may result in immediate disqualification of those involved. HorseTourneys retains the right to disqualify any player for any reason that violates the integrity or Official Rules of the contest. All players must make selections independently, and coordination of selections among players is strictly prohibited.

Common examples of prohibited activity include, but are not limited to:

Coordination of contest selections among players participating in the same contest (e.g., entries exhibiting shared selections, matrices/keys, or other commonalities)
Use of additional/alternate accounts ("beards") in an attempt to increase the number of maximum entries participating in a contest
Related accounts participating in an event that carries a finite/small number of entries (such as Winner Take All events)

Family participation: While family members--both immediate and extended--are not prohibited from participating in the same events, generally speaking, no more than two (2) family members should participate in the same event to avoid potential collusionary issues. Family members must ensure that selections are made independently and not in coordination with other family members.

ACCOUNT SHARING

Sharing of account login information is strictly prohibited. Sharing of account information will result in one or more accounts being locked, which will require further verification. Please note that sharing activity will be monitored and investigated and could result in revocation of player accounts.

CONDITIONS

Players will select one betting interest from each of the designated contest races by selecting a bullet next to the entry/runner's name. Selections must be made prior to the contest deadlines as outlined above.
The official final order of finish and mutuel prices according to United States tote will determine the payoffs.
The Leaderboard will be updated on the website as soon as possible at the end of each designated contest event. It is the responsibility of the player to bring any alleged error, issue, or complaint to the attention of HorseTourneys.com by completing a Customer Support request and describing the alleged error, issue or complaint in detail. If HorseTourneys.com is not contacted within 24 hours of the end of the contest (48 hours for those contests involving qualifying spots to another event), HorseTourneys.com is not responsible for making adjustments to the official order of finish or granting prizes or entry fee credit.
ALL MONETARY VALUES STATED IN UNITED STATES DOLLARS (USD) unless otherwise noted.
All rules are subject to change.

DISCLAIMER AND RELEASE

Entrant agrees that none of HorseTourneys.com and their respective owners, directors, officers, representatives, agents, employees or affiliates (collectively, the "Released Parties") shall be liable for injury, loss, expense or damage of any kind resulting from Entrant's participation in this contest or from the acceptance or use of the prize money awarded.

None of the Released Parties will be responsible for any: (a) late, lost, garbled, misdirected, incomplete, or damaged entries; (b) any contest disruptions, injuries, losses or damages caused by events beyond the control of Sponsor; or (c) any printing or typographical errors in any materials associated with the contest. In no event will the Released Parties be responsible or liable for any damages or losses of any kind, including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential or punitive damages arising out of Entrant's access to and use of Sponsor's websites or the downloading from and/or printing material downloaded from those sites.

Links to this contest by other internet sites are provided as a service to horseracing and sports fans, and Sponsor is not responsible for the content that appears on the any of such sites. Sponsor will not be bound by and will not be liable for claims and/or guarantees made by other internet sites.

None of the Released Parties is in any way responsible or liable for any problems or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer on-line systems, servers, or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any e-mail or entry to be received by Sponsor on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any associated website, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to Entrant's or any other person's computer or peripheral equipment related to or resulting from participation or downloading of any materials from this website or in connection with this contest.

PERMITTED USE

You are not permitted to use this website other than for the private, non-commercial purposes of participating in online handicapping contests.

The use of automated systems or software to extract data from HorseTourneys.com for personal or commercial purposes, ("screen scraping") is strictly prohibited and will result in immediate and permanent account suspension.

INACTIVE ACCOUNTS

Any account without contest entry activity for 24 consecutive months will be classified as an Inactive Account. Players will be notified via email to their registered email account upon inactivation and will be subject to forfeiture of the balance in the account as an account termination fee. To request reinstatement of their account, players must apply via email to support@horsetourneys.com within 12 months of account being classified as Inactive.

CONTEST ADMINISTRATOR

The administrator of HorseTourneys.com is Bet Twice Consulting, LLC:

Bet Twice Consulting LLC
P.O. Box 1453
St. Petersburg, FL
33731

HorseTourneys.com maintains an affiliate partnership with Xpressbet, LLC. which is licensed through Oregon Racing Commission. The Oregon Racing Commission has audited and approved HorseTourneys.com to conduct handicapping contests.