ESPN

Best Buy Sam Holtz Group Photo

09 Apr: 12-Year-Old College Basketball Whiz Kid Sam Holtz Doesn’t Go Home Empty Handed

Sam Holtz, the 12-year-old from Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, made national headlines this week when he tied for first out of 11.57 million entries in the ESPN Tournament Challenge.

One of the potential prizes for those in the top 1 percent of brackets entered (about 115,700 other entries) included a $20,000 Best Buy gift card.

Sam used his dad Butch’s email address, but rules stated a Tournament Challenge contestant had to be at least 18 years old to win.

Because he wasn’t eligible to win the overall prize, Best Buy then reached out to the Holtz family and offered a $1,000 gift card to celebrate Sam’s college basketball prowess.