BEST of the BETS

Picking horses is, in many ways, like picking stocks. Some people pick their stocks by ingesting every last piece of information that they can, while others go by nothing more than a gut feeling based on very little technical information. Picking horses can be done in similar fashion.

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In most cases, people who want to learn about the horses do so by looking at the programs. For casual bettors who might be visiting the track for one of the first times and have never actually seen the horses race before, a program can be their entryway into the race. It contains a lot of information, some of which might be overwhelming the first time you see it.

The good news is that there is usually a page somewhere in the program that gives a detailed explanation of everything that is found inside. Barring that, some track employee might be able to help, or another bettor. Here are some of the things that you’ll find on a program page that will be useful in your wagering exploits.
Race Results
The program will tell you how each horse did in its most recent races. There will also be little notations showing the horse’s results from the past year, the previous year, and the year before. Along the way, you will also be able to tell the horse’s positioning in each race and if there were any incidents that caused them some sort of problem as the race progressed.

Many people like to look at race results because they feel that some horses have a knack for getting across the line first. Others might show impressive efforts but always come up a bit short. As in any sport, there are certain intangibles that certain athletes possess that allow them to come out on top more times than not, and horses are no different.

Handlers
By handlers, we are talking about the people in charge of the horse. The three main groups of people involved in the sport of Thoroughbred racing are the jockeys, the trainers, and the owners. In the case of the first two, the program will include the statistics of these individuals in terms of their wins, places, and shows for however many horses they may have been involved with during that calendar year.

Trainers and jockeys are often integral to a horse’s success. You can bet that a horse who switches jockeys from one who is struggling to another who is doing well will receive increased betting attention. Owners don’t really affect the betting all too much, although some bettors may include that information in their calculations.