For an exciting sport, horse racing can’t be beat. There is just something about a stallion galloping down the rail at 40 miles an hour that gets people jumping to their feet. Of course, it also gets people to put money on the line. When this happens though, these people often don’t take enough time to conduct any research. A well-placed bet is usually the result of digging through some data. Here are some tips to get you started on the right track.
Make the form your main source of information and gain an understanding of how it works. While the many abbreviations found on it can confuse a novice better, it’s really not that complicated. A “T” marking tells you that this horse once won a race at this track, but a race of a different length. “D” lets you know that the horse has won at this same distance, but on a different track. “C” means the horse has won at this distance and on this track. “B” refers to a “beaten favorite”, “H” signals that the horse is on his own territory, and “W or M” indicates that this horse does well on wet tracks. This is a plus if the sky is cloudy.
As a starting point, look to the horse’s recent history and go with winners. While controversy rages on regarding what is the most important influencing factor, many very good punters will tell you that they look first to a horse that has won in its last race and then go from there.
The papers have ratings on each horse; the horse with the best chance of winning is given a 100, and the others all follow behind depending on their likelihood of crossing the line first. Of course, these numbers aren’t set in stone,100 horses don’t finish first all of the time. You’re better off using this as a tool rather than the end all and be all of your decision making.
A favorite only wins 1 out of 3 times, keep that in mind.
Trainers use equipment such as eye blinkers, lugging bits, and nose rolls to control the horse or correct problems it has been having. Take note of any mention in the comments of changes, such as taking off or putting on blinkers. These might indicate a change in chances of winning.
Horses that have recently dropped in class may be good bets, in the absence of other negative factors. On a racing form, look for either an arrow up or down, or “U” or “D” next to the horse’s name to know whether or not it is moving class.
Track conditions are a big factor in predicting winners. Fast, slow, dead, and heavy describe the moisture on a track, with fast being a dry hard track and heavy being a wet track. These words also correspond to a numeric scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the driest and 10 being the wettest. If a horse is a recent winner but has not won in wet conditions, it may not be a good bet. Tracks have their personalities and idiosyncrasies, and you may find it easier to win on some tracks than on others. This is normal, and most veteran punters will tell you that they have tracks they love and tracks they hate. Avoid the ones you hate.
As race day approaches, odds on a horse will change. Keep an eye on the odds for sure, but do not make bets based solely on them.
A firmer is a horse whose odds have moved in its favor, and a blower is one for which the odds have worsened. While these are good things to pay attention to, do not be so foolish as to think that all firmers are winners and all blowers are losers.
Above all, remember that horse prices are the product of many opinions. Your opinion should be based on your interpretation of all of the information available to you, but it very likely will differ from the quoted price. That is ok. This is how to find value-look for the horse on which you and the market do not agree, and go with it.
Tags: Gambling