Starting Price Pitfalls
Horse racing betting feeds on the gullibility of casual spectators. There is a natural tendency to try your luck, using all kinds of irrational ways of picking winners. This kind of thinking often influences a Starting Price (SP). It is another matter when the field has a clear favorite, for most of the people will be right in predicting the winner, but most horse racing is highly competitive if we go by the fraction of a head which separates fame from ignominy! Picking horses for places is even more difficult, especially if you are new to the sport of horse racing.
Horse racing is a regal and not a plebian sport, though people follow it in large numbers with rapt attention. It favors punters privileged with knowledge and systems, and does not spare the masses who listen to rumors and to unaccountable thoughts within their own minds! Winning in horse racing betting requires you to go against the crowd. This does not mean that you back losers. However, your bet must be based on sound reasoning, and it should involve some insight which most others do not have. There is no harm in horse racing betting based on short odds alone, but it can only give you a psychological satisfaction of having won, without making your wallet too much more crowded with bank notes!
How can you bet against the public, going against the trend of the S.P.? There is no quick fix for such an enviable position but the following 3 actions will get you there:
Specialize in a horse: you can only do this by spending time at the stables, and by watching a thoroughbred put through his or her paces. Video replays of races also helps, as does close observation of the interaction between horse and rider before the start of a race. Over time, you will know when a horse has the makings of a champion, a day on which it is likely to make an especially good or bad showing, and its relative strengths and weaknesses versus a known field.
Know your track: those in to horse racing betting know the effects of surfaces, wind, rain, and the position and nature of the starting gate on race outcomes. There are race tracks which test stamina, while others are built for sprinters. There are ones with cruel bends, and others which depend on the exact moment of a final break for the straight. Watching on a video screen can be fun if you are fond of new places, but success in horse racing betting means that you have to be a pro when it comes to the track.
Wait to strike: it is a convention to impress everyone by making it to the bookmakers for every race, but there is no law that makes you bet every time. Conserve your cash and wait for long odds on a horse which you think has an excellent chance of winning or at least taking a place.
So forget all the baloney about luck because horse racing is only slightly a matter of chance, especially if it is pari-mutuel based, above board, and conducted by professional Stewards. There is a method to the madness, but you have to study hard to uncover profitable and hidden secrets!
