After a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The BIG One will finally return to Laurel Park this year. The dates for the 2023 renewal are Saturday and Sunday, October 21 and 22.

The week before Derby was a profitable one for Dylan Donnelly.

Memorial Day is when Lone Star Park hosts its annual Lone Star Million Betting Challenge (pegged to the track’s Lone Star Million Day, of course) and Saturday is the day when you have your first opportunity to earn a $2,500 entry to the May 29 on-track contest.

Some of you may know Dave Tuley from his days writing for Daily Racing Form or ESPN.com. Others may be familiar with him owing to his current role at VSiN (Vegas Stats and Information Network). On Saturday, 2,370 players became acquainted with him in a less pleasant way.

If you’re a 2023 NHC Tour member, you absolutely will want to play on Saturday—and if you’re not, you may want to consider becoming a member.

When anyone saw Jim Settle’s name among their list of opponents on Saturday, it means they pretty much had to settle for second place.

David Wolff and Lucas Van Zandt took the first two legs of the 2023 Tourney Triple. The road to the third and final leg in the series—the $400,000 Guaranteed Spa & Surf Showdown here August 5-6—kicks off this weekend with qualifiers on Saturday and Sunday to the summertime event that test players’ mettle at Saratoga and Del Mar.

We all enjoy tournament play, but some of us seem to get an extra big charge out of the competition and camaraderie. One of those people is Lucas Van Zandt.

If there were such a thing as live, futures wagering on who the winner of the 2023 Players Championship would be, you might have gotten 2,000-1 on Lucas Van Zandt as Friday’s Day 1 neared its completion. 

Who will join the ranks of Riley Drexler and Dan Wilde and become the third-ever winner of the Players Championship? We’ll find out on Saturday night.