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by Jeanette Gilbert photo by Ashley Neuhof
SPLIT ROCK JUMPING TOUR
$1.5 Million
Ante Up Grand Prix
T
he start of a new decade, the year 2020 naturally calls for big things to happen. One very exciting – and totally new – event coming our way in 2020 is the $1,500,000 “Ante Up” Grand Prix, the brainchild of Derek Braun, founder of the Split Rock Jumping Tour, and hosted at international show jumper Karl Cook’s beautiful Pomponio Ranch. “The main purpose of the ‘Ante Up’ Grand Prix is to introduce a completely new dynamic to show jumping that currently does not exist at the highest level,” Braun said of his new event. Set to take place on April 7th, this 1.50–1.60m winning round class will be held in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Fifteen invited riders are set to compete and the event will be broadcast live on NBC for the world to see. HIGH-S TAKES SHOW JUMPING The odds of winning are high, but so are the stakes. Each rider will need to “ante up” the $125,000 entry fee for a chance to win the massive payouts awarded to first through third place finishers. If riders pay the fee themselves, they receive 100% of their earnings: $1,000,000 for first (the highest payout in the world, rivaling the CP International Grand Prix which pays out $1,000,000 CAD to the leading rider), $350,000 for second and $150,000 for third. If riders choose to let a sponsor pay they will then get 25% of the purse, with 75% going to the sponsor. Riders and sponsors outside of the top three get nothing aside from the sting of a major loss.
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· winter 19/20
To be one of the lucky fifteen, riders must submit their names for consideration. From there, invitations will be extended to the top five American riders on the Longines World Ranking List, the top five foreign riders on the Longines World Ranking List and five “wild card” riders to be chosen by the Organizing Committee.This list should be impressive and we cannot wait to see which riders will take the gamble! The format, a “winning round” class, where the top five will come back for the second round regardless of their score from the first round, is made for television. The top five riders will return in reverse order based on their score and time from the first round. “This format lends itself perfectly to a television broadcast,” said Braun, “it will fit nicely into a one-and-a-half hour time slot, which will be nationally televised live. This will build excitement, raise awareness for the sport, and draw a new, expanded viewership base beyond anything we’ve ever had before in American show jumping.” We expect the showjumping world – and hopefully several new fans of the sport – to focus on Rancho Santa Fe on April 7th, watching as riders “go big or go home” at this exciting new event, the first ever show jumping Grand Prix to be live broadcast in the U.S. To learn more, visit splitrockjumpingtour.com.
