Crash Course

[onegoodday]

Hey everyone,Im new to this board and i just wanted to first off say hello to everyone. But the reason I made an account here was because this summer I plan to start my handicapping adventure that will surely last a lifetime. I have bet on horses before in the past but not seriously,sort of a pick a random horse and hope it pays off.After watching the Breeders Cup this year i simply became extremely interested in the sport. Something about that race, all the pagentry and tradition simply hooked me!So I live in San Diego and as I'm sure all of you know Del Mar starts in a few weeks,so this is where my handicapping career will begin.I just have a few questions and any additional help some of you vets could give me would be more then appreciated.:ThmbUp: Sorry if some of my questions are naive.

-Since becoming involved in following horse racing I have been doing some reading, I am currently finishing Handicapping 101 by Brad Free are there any books you would reccomend?

-Past performances, I understand what there purpose but where is the best place to buy them from?How many should i buy?etc...

-How many races will you guys bet? Do you guys bet every race in a day or do you skip some?

-This may be the worst question of them all but I dont know, and I simply need a answer to the question. Ive watched TVG and ive seen some of their analysis pick 3 tickets,and they pick multiple horses in each leg and the prices are sometimes 24$,60$,etc. So if their 24$ticket wins do they get the payout of the pick 3?Sorry if this question is a bit blury.

-And lastly basic advice for someone just starting out? Anything else I should know or become familiar with?

Thank you very much for any help you guys provide!I one day hope to be knoweldgable enough to help someone in my situation!:ThmbUp:

-

[aaron]

First thing to do is not pay any attention to the TVG picks. They are not betting their money,so their picks are meaningless.

[Stillriledup]

Hey everyone,Im new to this board and i just wanted to first off say hello to everyone. But the reason I made an account here was because this summer I plan to start my handicapping adventure that will surely last a lifetime. I have bet on horses before in the past but not seriously,sort of a pick a random horse and hope it pays off.After watching the Breeders Cup this year i simply became extremely interested in the sport. Something about that race, all the pagentry and tradition simply hooked me!So I live in San Diego and as I'm sure all of you know Del Mar starts in a few weeks,so this is where my handicapping career will begin.I just have a few questions and any additional help some of you vets could give me would be more then appreciated.:ThmbUp: Sorry if some of my questions are naive.

-Since becoming involved in following horse racing I have been doing some reading, I am currently finishing Handicapping 101 by Brad Free are there any books you would reccomend?



-Past performances, I understand what there purpose but where is the best place to buy them from?How many should i buy?etc...

-How many races will you guys bet? Do you guys bet every race in a day or do you skip some?

-This may be the worst question of them all but I dont know, and I simply need a answer to the question. Ive watched TVG and ive seen some of their analysis pick 3 tickets,and they pick multiple horses in each leg and the prices are sometimes 24$,60$,etc. So if their 24$ticket wins do they get the payout of the pick 3?Sorry if this question is a bit blury.

-And lastly basic advice for someone just starting out? Anything else I should know or become familiar with?

Thank you very much for any help you guys provide!I one day hope to be knoweldgable enough to help someone in my situation!:ThmbUp:

-

I would say get your DMR pp's online at DRF.com. They usually have some sort of deal that's a buck per card, you can print them out and save money on racing forms.

You would be advised to skip many races, especially since you're just starting out.

Yes, all the TVG analysts pick anythings are a 1 dollar base, so even if their ticket costs 60 bucks, they only have 1 dollar on the winning combo.

Go slow in the beginning. Since you're really interested in the 'game' you want to really learn about horses. My advice would be to watch the races with binoculars, watch the horses gallop out at the end, watch them come back to be unsaddled. Learn about each horse as an 'athlete' and go from there.

This is a game where the premise is this. Horses are athletes and some athletes have more talent than others, your job is to determine exactly how much talent each racehorse has and what their strengths and weaknesses are and go from there.

Many beginners might get caught up in handicapping the humans, many people will bet a certain jock or trainer, but since you're in DMR and most jocks and trainers down there are more than capable, you would be advised to concentrate on the horses and their horsepower and avoid getting sucked into betting on (or against) humans.

If you're serious about winning, its a LONG process, you need to go slow and learn the game inside and out.

As far as books go, i would say in this internet age, there's a ton of info on line for free, read as much as you can, learn as much as you can.

I know its going to be hard to avoid betting, but if you really want to be serious about this, i would advise to go to DMR every day, watch every race carefully, make notes, practice handicapping and making mind bets and watch a couple weeks of racing before you start betting. There are some choice opportunities as the meet goes on, but if you burn out your mind and your money in the first 2 weeks, you won't be around to enjoy the end of the meet.

[LottaKash]

Hey Onegoodday,welcome to the board....:jump:

There is so much good information theses days, so I wouldn't know what to tell you about what is right for you.....Other players here can steer you to some excellent books for getting you properly grounded in the fundamentals of finding contenders to play....

My offering to you is simple.....As you read and learn, try to limit your play to what you already have learned.....Play only what you know....I think this is sound advice for a player on any level....Hey, if you're not sure about something you can find out for "free"....Play what you know....Some races you will know little or nothing about....So, watch and learn....Still, in other races you will notice things (hopefully winning things) that you have learned about previously, and then you can play.....

In the beginning you will play more races than you probably need to, but for all or most of us that is how it was when we were starting out....Gambling is fun even when you lose, at least in the beginning when you have allowed for the losses.....An old gambler, I think he was called "Nick the Greek", once said, "the next best thing to gambling and winning, was gambling and losing"....Most of us have been there, gambling, and too many times at that....Bring enough to play at least a couple of bucks on each race, and don't borrow or go into hock just for the adventure of the gamble.....When you are betting what you can afford to lose, and maybe win a race or so, then you will be comfy, and hopefully, in time you will learn and build up your confidence enough, so that you are always having a good time, and can afford the loss.....That is the bottom line for me....When it is not fun, I take a break and come back when my mind is right....

Good Luck, and let me add this, you have to come to a treasure chest of "good" (truthful & insighful) information here.....Feel free to ask questions, and you will have many questions, but, most of here have been in your shoes at one time or another, and we understand what you are trying to learn and that is "winning"....If you don't ask, you will only be guessing......Early on in my handicapping life, when I was with much more advanced players, I was always too vain to ask more questions, as if "they" hadn't noticed that I didn't know squat...haha...

best,

[Irish Boy]

The first thing I would do is follow my picks religiously. The second thing I would do is book all my picks through me. Obviously I can't follow this strategy because I'd just be betting against myself, but I recommend it for everyone else.

[onegoodday]

Thanks so much for all the help guys,Im sure there is years worth of knowledge in this sport. Rome wasn't built in a day right? In regards about my pick 3 question i realize that, I never used their picks i was just unfamiliar with how the pick 3 system worked, my question was if you have a 60 dollar parlay ticket and in that ticket you picked the 3 right horses is that going to give you the lucrative pick 3 payout?Thank you very much for the warm welcome and this information is greatly appreciated.

[onegoodday]

Also would it be bad to practice at another track before Del Mar opens?What i mean is as someone suggested earlier about making alot of mental bets and learning about the horses as athletes, if i were to do this at Hollywood Park would this help me in learning the game?Or is everything so different track to track to where it wouldnt have much of an impact.

[Capper Al]

Welcome to the board.


You picked an excellent first book. You might want to read Andy Beyer's Picking Winners as a second book. It explains speed figures, it's funny at times, it's old but still relevant, and one of the must read classics. I would also go on eBay and buy a paper and pencil system or two for under $20 each. Avoid buying angle (niche play) methods. The vendor will usually confirm if it is an angle play method or not. These are generally not profitable, but they'll give you ideas on how to put handicapping methods together when the time comes. Bet for fun for the first few years. It takes a long time to bet the ponies.

[raybo]

Thanks so much for all the help guys,Im sure there is years worth of knowledge in this sport. Rome wasn't built in a day right? In regards about my pick 3 question i realize that, I never used their picks i was just unfamiliar with how the pick 3 system worked, my question was if you have a 60 dollar parlay ticket and in that ticket you picked the 3 right horses is that going to give you the lucrative pick 3 payout?Thank you very much for the warm welcome and this information is greatly appreciated.

A "parlay" means that you bet in 1 race, and if you win, you bet all or a portion of your winnings on another race, if you win that one you bet all, or a portion of those winnings on another race, etc., etc..

The "Pick 3" is a "discrete" bet. In other words, before the start of the 1st race of the "Pick 3", you create your "Pick 3" ticket, selecting a horse, or horses, in each of the 3 races in that "Pick 3". Once you have created the ticket, and bought the ticket, or placed the wager online, then you just sit back and see if you have the 3 winners of the 3 races, on your "Pick 3" ticket. If you have all 3, then you win the payout for that "Pick 3" (it depends on the size of that "Pick 3" pool and the number of winning tickets that were bought, and the track "takeout", as to what the payout will be for each winning ticket).

[raybo]

Once you have learned to read and understand the past performances, go here, to my free handicapping website and Excel workbooks:

Handicapping spreadsheet - Free!! (http://alldataexcel.weebly.com/)

And here, for Doug's free handicapping software:

TRC Handicapping Software - Free!! (http://www.paceadvantage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=85065)

[Spiderman]

Onegoodday,

During the weekdays, observe by viewing past performances and watching the races. The weekend races, particularly on Saturday, have the better grade of horse and you can develop instinct as to how to formulate your opinion.

The best choice for past performance data is brisnet. But, you may want to try the drf format for your own comparison.

I love Del Mar, but will be limiting play because of the high takeout. Good luck.

[raybo]

Onegoodday,

During the weekdays, observe by viewing past performances and watching the races. The weekend races, particularly on Saturday, have the better grade of horse and you can develop instinct as to how to formulate your opinion.

The best choice for past performance data is brisnet. But, you may want to try the drf format for your own comparison.

I love Del Mar, but will be limiting play because of the high takeout. Good luck.

Yeah, I agree, when you're first starting out, Brisnet data is about the best value out there. Once you start wagering real money, if you bet through an ADW that promotes Brisnet PPs, the PPs are free if you wager on only 1 race on the card.

Both of AllData's free workbooks, as well as Doug's free software, use Brisnet data files ($1 per track per day).

[onegoodday]

Also when you guys first started wagering,did you jump right into the exotic bets?Or did you keep it vanilla with win place and show type wagers?

[Tic-Tac]

#1- please manage your money i feel and many will argue that horse racing is the most addicting form of gambling by far... There's always a race , tons of tracks.. And big prices flashing everywhere so money mgmt is huuuge ...

#2- do not do not call fix when your horse gets nosed or a bad trip because that will effect your handicapping for every wire job against us we dont remember the 1 we won

Goodluck

[Capper Al]

I'm going to start a thread, "Most Likely Mistakes Made by Beginners", for you.

[jasperson]

Get a copy of this book and read cover to cover. I highly recommend this book because it short and covers most everthing a beginning handicapper needs to Know.:ThmbUp:

[bduke]

I’m also in the early stages of getting more proficient in my handicapping, so I use the “fly on the wall” technique & read what’s posted on the board. The members here are both knowledgeable & generous, they've saved me from some dead end roads, I'd have traveled down without them.

Here are a few spots I found that helped me on my pursuit, while working with a tight budget.

I hope someone else might add to this list as I’m sure there are many more.

These links are to free resources except for the P.P.s.:

“ http://www.publichandicapper.com/index.html “

This is where I found the cheapest DRF P.P.s, in 100 card packages, there are two choices (the Formulator P.P.s includes Steve Crist’s Ticket Maker) & other P.P. deals, they also run a handicapping contest with prizes, plus...

Equibase is a (the?) major source for horse racing records. I go to:

“ http://www.equibase.com/static/chart/pdf/index.html?SAP=TN. “

For full charts from every race card in North America.

This allows me get more background on the runners.

Equibase also has a “Stable” feature which allows you to track activities of horses you have selected, from workouts to race entries, with updates sent to your inbox.

“ http://www.fetchbook.info/signup.jsp “:
This is a great place I found for books. Just put your preferences for price, condition & type (hard cover, paperback etc.). They will email you when they find something matching your criteria.

Several of the folks I follow have already posted to this thread, so it seems you're well on your way.

See you in the pools,

Brent

[Capper Al]

Looking back at my racing development, there isn't an over night way to getting profitable. I write my own software, and probably as the saying goes in our business, re-invented the wheel. I would recommend the following for the quickest method to getting on board with the game:


Read Brad's Free 'Handicapping 101'.
Go on eBay and find yourself a simple system to buy for $20 or less. Avoid systems that use angles or are tote-board methods. The vendors should be able to give this information.
Play with the system you purchased and modify it to gain experience.
Read Quirin's 'Winning at the Races' and start to understand complex systems.
Read BRIS' library. ( http://www.bris.com/cgi-bin/static.cgi?page=libraryRead ). Read everything about handicapping at least once.
Purchase a software application (big bucks) that has a forum and will answer your questions by email. Play with it and keep records on what works and doesn't work for you.

[jhilden]

When I started out, I only concentrated on one track at a time. Yes, reading many of the books recommended, understanding some methodologies/systems, and even getting involved with a software program and it's support group will help you. But, no matter what approach you decide to follow, TAKE NOTES!

Logging your handicapping and wager selection process, track notes, and post race review will be worth it's weight in gold.

[Rapid Grey]

When I started out, I only concentrated on one track at a time. Yes, reading many of the books recommended, understanding some methodologies/systems, and even getting involved with a software program and it's support group will help you. But, no matter what approach you decide to follow, TAKE NOTES!

Logging your handicapping and wager selection process, track notes, and post race review will be worth it's weight in gold.

Good points! Become a student of the game as a friend of mine use to say.

I would add to review each day's races for future reference. DRF offers free pdf charts that you can save to your computer or print out. Review what type of horses were winnning that day, dirt, poly or turf races can all have bias that factored into who won and who lost. If you have time watch replays of the races as well.