If you’re serious about tournament handicapping, the 2027 Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge should already be on your calendar.
TwinSpires has raised the stakes…literally. The third edition of the KDBC on Kentucky Derby day, May 1, 2027, features a guaranteed $400,000 prize pool, the largest in the tournament’s history after TwinSpires seeded an additional $50,000 into the pool. That’s real money, and the prize structure rewards players who bring their A-game to the biggest racing day of the year.
The format got smarter too. The minimum required races drops from seven to six, giving players more strategic flexibility in how they build their bankroll throughout the card.
Want an early shot at a seat?
The Kentucky Oaks Day Qualifier on April 30 offers a $1,000 buy-in with $25,000 in added cash, an excellent value entry point with meaningful prizes and lower field pressure than Derby day itself.
Don’t wait until 2027 to get started, the TwinSpires Tour is Beginning!
The TwinSpires Tour’s second season kicks off Friday, running four tournament sessions throughout the year with $5,000 in cash prizes each. The overall Tour champion walks away with $20,000 plus a Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge seat, and two players will earn seats to the Stephen Foster Betting Challenge.
Tournament handicapping rewards preparation, discipline, and consistency. TwinSpires has built the infrastructure. Now it’s your turn to show up.
Visit TwinSpires.com/tournaments to register and get started!
OVERVIEW
2028 KDBC Seat/2027 BCBC Seat/2028 NHC Seat + Cash – Guaranteed $400,000 Prize Pool – Includes $50,000 in added cash prizes by CDTIC
- $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 at least six (6) races at Churchill Downs ending with the Kentucky Derby Race. Any races occurring at Churchill Downs after the Kentucky Derby race are NOT eligible for this tournament.
- Players must wager at least $300 in a race to count towards minimum amount of wagered races.
- The eligible races are Races 1-12 at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 1.
- Players can wager as much as they want, including the winnings from their bankroll.
- The following wager types will count as contest wagers: Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Trifecta, Double.
- A Daily Double wager will count as a bet on one (1) contest race in the first leg of the Double.
- A player may not wager a Daily Double with the first leg as the Kentucky Derby since that is the last race eligible for this tournament.
- 100% of Prize Pool are paid out as Prizes with a guaranteed prize pool of $400,000 that includes both cash and and one (1) seat to the 2027 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, three (3) seats to the 2028 Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge, and two (2) seats to the 2028 National Horseplayers Championship.
- This prize pool also includes $50,000 in added cash from CDTIC.
- In order to be eligible to win a NHC Seat through the KDBC, the player must have an active NTRA membership (Join at Membership – NTRA) before the start of the tournament.
- Tournament wagers will not count toward promotions unless stated otherwise. Check the individual promotion for clarification.
- For any inquiries about the KDBC, please email [email protected].
- Online Registration will begin at 9:00AM ET on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.
- Entries will be accepted up until 11:30AM ET on Saturday, May 1, 2027.
TOURNAMENT DETAILS
- Players MUST wager all $3,500 of their bankroll across at least six (6) races and at least $300 per race at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 1, 2027 ending with the Kentucky Derby race.
- The following wager types will count as contest wagers: Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Trifecta, Double.
- All remaining funds including pari-mutuel winnings will be transferred to the players primary account following the conclusion of the contest.
- CDTIC will review and audit all unofficial results of the Tournament for a period of ten (10) days following the end of the Tournament on May 1, 2027, through and including May 11, 2027, or such other date as CDTIC may, in its discretion, deem appropriate (the “KDBC Review Period”). Any player may file a written complaint concerning any unofficial result(s) of the Tournament to Player Services at [email protected] during the first five (5) days of the KDBC Review Period, through and including May 6, 2027 (“Player Examination Period”). Any complaint received after the expiration of the Player Examination Period shall be disregarded. Upon the conclusion of the KDBC Review Period, the official results of the Tournament will be announced and the prizes will be awarded.
- In the event of a cancellation of the race card, CDTIC reserves the right to designate a substitute racetrack or cancel the tournament and issue refunds to all participants. In the event of a full tournament cancellation, refunds will be issued within 48 hours.
PRIZES
- Cash prizes will be awarded to a certain number of participants in the tournament based upon the amount of funds in their Tournament Bankroll at the conclusion of the tournament.
- The winner will get their choice of either a 2028 Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge Seat valued at approximately $5,000 or a 2027 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge Seat valued at approximately $10,000 or a 2028 National Horseplayers Championship seat with hotel accommodations and $500 travel credit valued at approximately $7,500. The second-place finisher will then get their choice and so on down to the sixth-place finisher.
- There are a total of three (3) KDBC seats, two (2) NHC seats, and one (1) BCBC seat available to choose from.
- Cash prizes will be awarded to the top 10 participants in the tournament based upon the amount of funds in their Tournament Bankroll at the conclusion of the tournament. Prizes will be awarded as the following percentages of the prize pool:
- 1st – 40% ($144,000 minimum)
- 2nd – 20%
- 3rd – 10%
- 4th – 7.5%
- 5th – 5.5%
- 6th – 5%
- 7th – 4%
- 8th – 3.5%
- 9th – 2.5%
- 10th – 2%