Did You Have a Winning Year in 2019?

[ReplayRandall]

It's that time again to stare in the mirror and fess up, asking yourself, "How did I do in 2019?" Personally, I ran into a chalk avalanche every time I was ready to make a score, thus having one of my worst years in quite awhile. On top of that, I got banned from PA....My bad. Anyway, that's over and done with, so how did you actually do in 2019?

[lamboguy]

lost on horses, but made some good political bets. looking forward to this years elections. many surprises coming.

[biggestal99]

2019 net positive.

Won on the x

Lost on pm betting

Gotta stop betting pm. It’s the one mistake I make every year.

Allan

[JerryBoyle]

Turned around 2018 and had a profitable 2019. Lost money Jan to March, stopped betting and retooled some stuff for 6 months and picked back up starting Oct to win through the rest of the year. 2020 off to a good start fingers crossed...

[therover]

I did....only because of my bet on Country House in the Derby.

As a $20 win bettor, I took a shot (sloppy track and it's the Derby, anything can happen) and bet $50WP on it. Got lucky.

Treaded water the rest of the year.

[groupie doll]

Losing year for 2019...

2009, 2015, and 2016 are my winning years while 2012, 2013 and 2019 have been losing years. Every other year back to 2006 when I started keeping track I've broken even. I like breaking even... means I play for free and never have to make an online deposit.
Winning is good too, but I never win enough to make any sort of life-changing difference so I'd rather even steven.

[BarchCapper]

In my first year back playing the races since 2005, I lost. The ROI on actual wagers was -18%. That's my poll answer.

Taking advantage of promos from the ADWs reduced the dollar loss to a very acceptable amount of "tuition" for re-learning the game.

In terms of the people I've gotten to meet and interact with this year and the enjoyment I received from attending live racing and watching and listening to the abundance of racing coverage from all media sources - I definitely feel like a winner!

[CaptainObvious]

Hit the force out p6 at GPW in Nov. to get me over the Mendoza line. First winning yr since 2015.

[FantasticDan]

All my betting is looking for big overlays. Essentially chasing long-shots.

I'll have a very nice day occasionally, but most of the time it is relentless, soul-sucking losing streaks.

So no, I did not have a winning 2019. :p

[Dave Schwartz]

LOL Not by much for me.

[thaskalos]

At the start of 2019 I owned a bakery...and now I don't even have a loaf of bread.

[Zman179]

This game is nothing more than an expensive hobby for me. I used to do well, but not any more. I don’t know where it all went wrong.

[BettinBilly]

Just about broke even. If my horses had bigger noses, I would have been way up. I suspect many Horseplayers would say that.

[Elkchester Road]

Had a losing year to the tune of -8.8%, of which I can attribute most to betting too many turf races (I am not very good at deciphering turf races). I did make some inroads on the negative number by abandoning Place betting in favor of Exacta backwheels from October to the end of the year.

I am done with turf racing!!! :bang::D

[therover]

I am done with turf racing!!! :bang::D

I hear ya !

Every turf race I bet, either my horse is the front runner that gets caught or the closer who can't get up.

For the most part, my wheel house are 2 turn route races, low to mid straight claimers on dirt. I am trying to stick to them for the most part. My ROI is pretty good on them.

[Tom]

Do you count money from my Go Fund Me page?

I started the year out going to the track in my $5,000 Hyundai.
By December, I was going in a $250,000 bus!:cool:

[Mulerider]

I have only been handicapping seriously since 2014 (as a small bettor), and I've lost less each year.

Alas, that's just enough progress to encourage me to continue this madness.

[Elkchester Road]

Do you count money from my Go Fund Me page?

I started the year out going to the track in my $5,000 Hyundai.
By December, I was going in a $250,000 bus!:cool:
:lol::D

[Bennie]

I had a winning year last year but I had to use a $4000 piece of a rainbow to climb out of the hole.

[clicknow]

2019 was terrible for me --- the KY Derby pulled me out otherwise I'd be very behind because it was first year I really wagered at Saratoga. Won't be playing there anymore, not my track.

........but 2020 is looking killer good so far..but only playing oaklawn pretty exclusively.

[Afleet]

2019 I was a winner thanks to a $30k+ day. Not good so far this year, playing Oaklawn 90% of the time. Keep missing the pick 5 and betting poorly, being in the wrong pools. Not betting enough to win while betting too much in high take pools like the trifecta

[ultracapper]

2nd losing year in a row, but........actually rallied a little in the autumn and it has carried forward into the winter.

I went about 18 months up until Sept '19 where I just couldn't get out of my own way.

[taxicab]

Lost(about 11k).
Couldn't finish off a proper ticket to save my life.
Nobody's fault but mine.......I spent next to zero time on the pp's.
Laziness does not payoff in handicapping.....:rip:

[ReplayRandall]

Looks like the stats in 2019 are almost a carbon copy of 2018, with 2015 as an outlier in the win hole:

View Poll Results: Did You Have a Winning Year in 2019
I had a winning 2019.................28 27.72%
I came close to even in 2019.......12 11.88%
I had a losing year in 2019..........52 51.49%
I don't want to know how I did.....9 8.91%
Voters: 101

Here are the poll results, at the same juncture, for the last 4 years:

View Poll Results: Did You Have a Winning Year in 2018
I had a winning 2018.................27 27.00%
I came close to even in 2018.......12 12.00%
I had a losing year in 2018..........53 53.00%
I don't want to know how I did.....8 8.00%
Voters: 100

No Poll in 2017- Absent

View Poll Results: Did You Have a Winning Year in 2016
I had a winning 2016.................33 29.46%
I came close to even in 2016.......12 10.71%
I had a losing year in 2016..........63 56.25%
I don't want to know how I did.....4 3.57%
Voters: 112

View Poll Results: Did You Have a Winning Year in 2015
I had a winning 2015.................32 32.32%
I came close to even in 2015.......11 11.11%
I had a losing year in 2015..........50 50.51%
I don't want to know how I did.....6 6.06%
Voters: 99

View Poll Results: How did you do in 2014 ?
I had a winning 2014 !!!.............29 27.36%
I was close to even in 2014.........10 9.43%
I had a losing year in 2014..........61 57.55%
I don't want to know how I did.....6 5.66%
Voters: 106.

[thaskalos]

I neglected to vote in the poll. Add one more vote to the "I don't keep records because I don't want to know how I did" department.

[ReplayRandall]

I neglected to vote in the poll. Add one more vote to the "I don't keep records because I don't want to know how I did" department.
Poll is still open for another 3 weeks....Just showing a snapshot from other years at same juncture.

[castaway01]

I think if we administered some truth serum to the responders, the 27% would be those who think they won because they don't keep records and don't want to know how they actually did.

[biggestal99]

I think if we administered some truth serum to the responders, the 27% would be those who think they won because they don't keep records and don't want to know how they actually did.

Lol. Betfair keeps accurate records of my exchange bets.

I know I won in 2019 because my betfair records tell me that I did.

Allan

[The_Turf_Monster]

The difference between a winning year and breaking even was basically Country House in the derby. I really only play turf sprints if I'm not playing the horizontals, and bettors have gotten much better at them over the last decade. You used to be able to find some nice overlays in big fields, but they're not there anymore

[thaskalos]

I think if we administered some truth serum to the responders, the 27% would be those who think they won because they don't keep records and don't want to know how they actually did.

No doubt! Too bad the truth serum -- and the "winners" -- are no-where to be found.

[Tom]

To be fair, are you including in the "cost" your data files, your ink and paper if you print out, transportation to the track, admission, program, if applicable?

[ultracapper]

You have to include those expenses because they are real. It's money out of pocket.

[biggestal99]

To be fair, are you including in the "cost" your data files, your ink and paper if you print out, transportation to the track, admission, program, if applicable?

So Tom should I cost my yearly trip (costly) to the BC against my winnings and I cost my time too. I made less than two bucks an hour with racing whereas my going rate at work is well above that. Of course I put a LOT of time into racing these days whereas work is 40 and done. I easily put in 40 plus a week with racing. It’s my 45 year passion.

Allan

[biggestal99]

So Tom should I cost my yearly trip (costly) to the BC against my winnings and I cost my time too. I made less than two bucks an hour with racing whereas my going rate at work is well above that. Of course I put a LOT of time into racing these days whereas work is 40 and done. I easily put in 40 plus a week with racing. It’s my 45 year passion.

Allan

If you take those to things in account I lost well over 50,000
If you take money lost in time and my bc trip.

If the question was did you make a profit wagering last year. And that answer is yes. This is why answered yes.

But if the question is how much did you lose by not working at your occupation but time spent on racing yikes.

That’s a boatload of money.

There are much better ways to make money, if that was the object.

Allan

[clicknow]

I don’t know where it all went wrong.

That was my day today at Oaklawn. Looking at my picks, it's almost as if I pulled up PPs from another race track, and mistakenly used it to handicap the Oaklawn races today.

YES.....THAT BAD.

[JerryBoyle]

I'd only include those expenses if you're betting for reasons other than entertainment. If betting is purely for entertainment, you'd be spending that money on something else if it weren't horses.

It makes a good point though. If I include my server and data costs, I profited very slightly. Include my time and I'm definitely in the hole. I also have yet to reach the point in total profit that covers all of my costs (servers/data/time) since I've started by in 2016...tough game..

[thaskalos]

That was my day today at Oaklawn. Looking at my picks, it's almost as if I pulled up PPs from another race track, and mistakenly used it to handicap the Oaklawn races today.

YES.....THAT BAD.

This happens to me on a regular basis when I try to tackle Oaklawn. I love the racing quality and the field sizes...but it's a betting experience that I can no longer afford...financially, or psychologically.

[Tom]

So Tom should I cost my yearly trip (costly) to the BC against my winnings and I cost my time too. I made less than two bucks an hour with racing whereas my going rate at work is well above that. Of course I put a LOT of time into racing these days whereas work is 40 and done. I easily put in 40 plus a week with racing. It’s my 45 year passion.

Allan

Then you are not making money you feeding a hobby, and there is nothing wrong with that. Probably costing you less than if you played golf. But a lot of people think they are great handicappers if they go to the track with $100 and come home with $110. Just suggesting you not lie to yourself. I myself count the cost of data files, other racing information I would not normally buy (like Par times but not books, which I would read for pleasure). I don't count my time because I would just be wasting it on something else if I weren't handicapping.

The fundamental of the game is that you have a clear idea of what your goal is and many people do not have one. I once told Dick Schmidt in a seminar that my goal was to make enough on the races to pay for the racing forms. Later, it was to make enough to pay my car payments.

[thaskalos]

Then you are not making money you feeding a hobby, and there is nothing wrong with that. Probably costing you less than if you played golf. But a lot of people think they are great handicappers if they go to the track with $100 and come home with $110. Just suggesting you not lie to yourself. I myself count the cost of data files, other racing information I would not normally buy (like Par times but not books, which I would read for pleasure). I don't count my time because I would just be wasting it on something else if I weren't handicapping.

The fundamental of the game is that you have a clear idea of what your goal is and many people do not have one. I once told Dick Schmidt in a seminar that my goal was to make enough on the races to pay for the racing forms. Later, it was to make enough to pay my car payments.

My goal once was to make enough to cover my mortgage payment. Now...I pray that I don't LOSE my mortgage payment...and start receiving those threatening letters from the mortgage company.

[ReplayRandall]

My goal once was to make enough to cover my mortgage payment. Now...I pray that I don't LOSE my mortgage payment...and start receiving those threatening letters from the mortgage company.
You've still got a mortgage payment? At your age? Does your bookie own your Vegas condo too, and does he let you stay for free because he feels sorry for you?...:kiss:

[thaskalos]

You've still got a mortgage payment? At your age? Does your bookie own your Vegas condo too, and does he let you stay for free because he feels sorry for you?...:kiss:

Yes...I still have a mortgage. But only until 2037. :ThmbUp:

[Mulerider]

Yes...I still have a mortgage. But only until 2037. :ThmbUp:

Add an extra 10 bucks to principal each month. Then you can have it retired in 2035 and be a free man. :ThmbUp:

[biggestal99]

Then you are not making money you feeding a hobby, and there is nothing wrong with that. Probably costing you less than if you played golf. But a lot of people think they are great handicappers if they go to the track with $100 and come home with $110. Just suggesting you not lie to yourself. I myself count the cost of data files, other racing information I would not normally buy (like Par times but not books, which I would read for pleasure). I don't count my time because I would just be wasting it on something else if I weren't handicapping.

The fundamental of the game is that you have a clear idea of what your goal is and many people do not have one. I once told Dick Schmidt in a seminar that my goal was to make enough on the races to pay for the racing forms. Later, it was to make enough to pay my car payments.

That is a 10% ROI. I am not a professional gambler.
I go to betfair and look at my wagering. X deposited. X withdrawn.
If x withdrawn is greater. Then I won. If not I lost. That’s the bottom line.

So the wagering part I won.

The costs to generate those profits I still won.

But my yearly trip to the bc, Saratoga and Monmouth and my time invested to generate the profits makes it a loss.

I understand that.

Allan

[v j stauffer]

2019 was a winning year. Only played two live tournaments. Finished 3rd in the Stephen Foster tourney at CD and 30th in the BCBC. In the big one I ended Friday with $4000. Ran it up to $27,500 after Belvoir Bay and OM ran 1-2 in the turf sprint but couldn't make anything stick after that. Ended up with $18,500. Since I spent the summer as a jocks agent I didn't play day to day very much at all. When I'm hustling I tend to not make many bets because I already have a rooting interest in most races. Hoping to expand my tournament play in 2020. Will again try to qualify for the NHC. Didn't last year. Hope you all have a great year.

[v j stauffer]

This happens to me on a regular basis when I try to tackle Oaklawn. I love the racing quality and the field sizes...but it's a betting experience that I can no longer afford...financially, or psychologically.

Don't give up on Oaklawn. Yes it can be advanced studies. Humbling to be sure. But it only takes a couple good days and you can hit the mother load. I'm just now starting to see the ball there. 2nd half of the meet is going to be very good I think.

[Tom]

First days of the meet had a strong bias - look for horses who were hindered by it. Not 100%, but I think it was strong inside and a few have come back at bingo payoffs off a bad race.
I always wait 4 weeks to start playing, to let the track settle in and see what is going to be the normal. This week I should start betting there, after I finish my charts work.

[LemonSoupKid]

I was 0-fer on my attempts at (big, p5 and p6) multirace wagers last year. Sadly, haven't hit a big one since the pick 6 Travers Day in 2017.

Does anyone know the next mandatory at Gulfstream? :popcorn:

[capitalman]

I had a losing year gambling overall. This was the 1st year of legalized sports betting & I lost on horses, but won back 15% of my horse racing loses on NFL games. I only bet 7 NFL games all year & won 5 of them. I am a big Bills fan & I have a really good feel how they'll do since I follow them every day. I bet 5 of their games & beat the spread on 4 of them. 2 of the 5 games I bet the money line on the underdog: I bet the Bills to win at Pittsburgh & I bet the Jets to beat the Bills in the season finale since I knew the Bills were going to rest most of their starters. Some of my fellow Bills fans said I shouldn't be betting against my team, but the season finale was a huge Jets advantage & I thought it was the right thing to bet the Jets. I also bet the Bills win total over before the season started & bet them to make the playoffs because I knew they had a creampuff schedule.
Sometimes I think I'd be better off just sticking with betting football, although I did have a winning Saratoga meet, mainly because I hit an Empire Six on the 1st mandatory payoff day.