Your most profitable track?

[JJMartin]

My approach has been to try to develop a single method that would work across as many tracks as possible. The only track that seems to remain profitable (+ROI) no matter how I twist it is Arlington Park. When I try to harmonize the other tracks across successive years, they don't remain consistent, except AP. Has anyone else had this experience with AP?

To be a bit more specific, the results are based on claiming,dirt both sprint and route no turf, flat win bet. Tracks looked at: AP,WO,MNR,MTH,LAD,DEL,PRX and BEL.

[Maximillion]

My approach has been to try to develop a single method that would work across as many tracks as possible. The only track that seems to remain profitable (+ROI) no matter how I twist it is Arlington Park. When I try to harmonize the other tracks across successive years, they don't remain consistent, except AP. Has anyone else had this experience with AP?

To be a bit more specific, the results are based on claiming,dirt both sprint and route no turf, flat win bet. Tracks looked at: AP,WO,MNR,MTH,LAD,DEL,PRX and BEL.

Thats interesting....

My best this year have been NYRA (surprisingly,because im mainly a "claimer" player as well..no turf) Oaklawn and Monmouth.

Worst have been Woodbine and Ellis has been real bad thus far.

[Fingal]

I suppose I'd look at it differently. Instead of trying for a method that would span all tracks, I'd try to come up with one that would work for a particular circuit.

One for S California, one for Kentucky, New York & so on.

[proximity]

my best track this year has been penn national, which i'm beating dick mitchell style with the 1.20+ roi,...... but i think a better question is what is your worst track or is there a track/ circuit that consistently gives you trouble no matter what you do?

and my worst track/circuit is the louisiana night tracks evd and ded. i actually did "beat" delta this year, although it was basically luck as my win percentage was horrible. and of course that horrible win percentage carried over to evd without the occasional $30 winner. some nights i swear these races are fixed or possibly the race times are being reported incorrectly?

[grant miller]

I did graet at hawthore this winter-spring, my best r.o.i. was buffalo harness , I love bel -saratoga but, get my butt kicked!

[BMustang]

For eons Mountaineer was my most profitable track.

Lots of bad favorites, and lots of live 5-1 or better shots. Only having two Pick-3s a night allowed me to put a bit of extra cash in the two seperate multi-race challenges, and I always seemed to pull down a nice profit.

However, over the past year the 5-1 good things have disappeared and been replaced by $4 horses, often in all three legs of the bet.

Not sure what has transpired there, but smaller fields and heavier favorites are now the norm and Mountaineer isn't the Golden Goose that it once was.

[Track Collector]

Looking at my to-date wagering records, my 2 best/worst tracks with regard to money made or lost are:

Best --> Fairmount Park
Delta Downs

Worst --> Aqueduct
Parx

The above can be a little bit misleading, as quite a few different wager types are involved at each different track. If memory serves me correctly, the title of #1 performing track with Fairmount Park is due largely to one very nice paying trifecta. If one just looks at the most money won without further investigation, one might be led to the wrong conclusion that I should be spending more money at Fairmount than I currently do.

As to my wagering approach, I'm one of those who look for handicapping characteristics that work at a wide range of tracks vs. one track or circuit. This "universal" approach has the benefit of a little more reliability due to the larger number of races which make up my study sample. I do end up tossing a few of the very worst performing tracks though.

For those who specialize in a single track or circuit, I have no doubt that this can be a successful approach for those who spend the time and effort to learn all the finer details.

[BlueChip@DRF]

My Most Profitable Track 2000-2003: Santa Anita (Julie Krone/quinellas)
My Most Profitable Track 2004-present: Belmont Park (trainers/apprentices/track nuances)

The Worst Track for me to handicap (Major): Woodbine - I just cannot get the hang of that track; Keeneland comes in a close 2nd.
The Worst Track for me to handicap (Minor): any track running on a Tuesday night

[Red Knave]

Best : Woodbine, Hawthorne (Fall), Kentucky Downs (wish it was a longer meet).

Worst : Keeneland, DelMar

[Immanuel Kant]

best and worst: changes with the years....but I do know one thing

WORST: Week 1 and 2 of Saratoga 2012...I am getting my ass handed to me!

[rubicon55]

best and worst: changes with the years....but I do know one thing

WORST: Week 1 and 2 of Saratoga 2012...I am getting my ass handed to me!

I agree IMO, the recent fields have been very competetive. It seem my methods or conventional capping needs a bit more or more patience on my part to hit with better frequency. I guess I will wait till everyone has at least one race under their belt.

[Dave Schwartz]

Without a doubt: All of the NYRA tracks.

[Mr G]

WORST: Week 1 and 2 of Saratoga 2012...I am getting my ass handed to me!

Likewise....the first couple of weeks at Saratoga has been my worst start ever in over 40 years of wagering.......

I concentrate on the Big A, Belmont and then Saratoga and for some reason I never really feel Saratoga like I do the other two downstate tracks.

As much as I love living here on beautiful eastern Long Island I am giving real serious thought to selling my home and spending what time I have left on this earth in southern Florida.....

I grew up here on eastern long island but spent most of my adult life since my 20's to late 40's living in south florida...

The greyhounds were always profitable to me...much more then the horses....it took me a few years to really "get" greyhound racing but once I did, it was constantly profitable year in--year out....

Instead of going into a big long boring story I will just say that I would wager on early speed dogs who liked to run inside...I would wait until a speedball was on the rail and also that the dog next to him, the 2 dog, liked to run wide....that way the chances of the speedball 1 dog surving the crucial first turn, where so many crashes took place often knocking the best dogs out of the race, allowed the 1 dog to keep on trucking...pick a good speedball on the rail who can go the distance and key him or her in exacta's and tri's and/or even super's....takes a lot of discipline to wait for such a set-up but I learned decades ago if you are going to survive financially in this wagering business you must have patience and discipline...

So I'm looking right now for a place around the Palm Beach Kennel Club which is my old hunting grounds and also in my opinion the best place to not only play the dogs but also to play the horses with their very complete simulcasting program.....

I'm at the age that snow is a drag and I can't tolerate seeing my property taxes rise every single year while my home value decreases.....not to mention services decrease while taxes rise....as much as I love the east end and all the water, farms and vinyards the high cost of living here, combined with the yearly increase in property taxes are now making it almost impossible for many to live here any longer...unless you're rich ..Think HAMPTONS....

Florida is once again starting to look more and more appealing.....yes, hurricanes truly suck but at least you have plenty of warning to prepare or even high tail it out of town.

Not to mention Long Island is so over-due for a major strike IMO...

Gee, I think I just talked myself into putting that "House For Sale " sign in my front yard. :)

[BetPTC]

Keeneland

[deathandgravity]

Best: AQU inner dirt & Woodbine -Thoroughbred
Worst: DMR & SAR - love playing them, but never have a + ROI

[classhandicapper]

Saratoga has typically been my best track because of the higher quality racing and probably because of the larger amounts of less sophisticated money in the pools, but so far I'm slightly in the hole.

[jdhanover]

Oddly (or maybe not so) I have done best this year at a few 'lesser' tracks. But the better tracks are crunching me.

[bob60566]

Without a doubt Mountineer over last five years.

Mac :)

[pele polo]

Without a doubt Mountineer over last five years.

Mac :)


I becoming more and more a Mountaineer regular..... and thats really "oddly enough". I like how they still have some discipline if their wagering offerings...

Still follow NYRA and SoCal, and most if not all of the big stakes and stakes horses.... but Nyra has killed me.

[hugh]

Golden Gate.
Just box Baze with my other choice in exacta boxes. When Baze comes in second they pay alright. Usually bet the most on sundays when the dollar beer softens the pools.
I'm trying to play other tracks... learning bits and pieces along the way but GG remains my focus.

[Maximillion]

Golden Gate.
Just box Baze with my other choice in exacta boxes. When Baze comes in second they pay alright. Usually bet the most on sundays when the dollar beer softens the pools.
I'm trying to play other tracks... learning bits and pieces along the way but GG remains my focus.

Ive always wanted to get more involved with this track.....but every time I look,every race seems to have 6-7 horse fields(like the river downs/thistledowns of the west as far as field size)...is there a time of year the field size increases?

[lamboguy]

I like ASD, NNORTHLANDS, HASINGS, CHARLESTOWN, DELTA, LOS AL, FAIRPLEX. in that order!

[pele polo]

I like ASD, NNORTHLANDS, HASINGS, CHARLESTOWN, DELTA, LOS AL, FAIRPLEX. in that order!

Stop playin !!!

[bob60566]

I like ASD, NNORTHLANDS, HASINGS, CHARLESTOWN, DELTA, LOS AL, FAIRPLEX. in that order!

Hastings how can you bet into those small fields . This track was given two year extension last week but 2014 will be gone unless they amalgamate with Fraser Downs..
Three tracks in Canada Woodbine then Northlands/ Hastings same horses both tracks from the west coast same as Socal. ASD and Md can supplemt.
Start on west coast in April then move to Northlands and return to Hastings in the late fall

Mac :)

[proximity]

late one friday night while i was at poker (and not jinxing the plays by watching the races) i had a couple nice wins at hastings to give me a good lead. hopefully i can hang on for the year. the western track i'm really struggling with is emerald. i'm handicapping the emerald races..... but not getting ANY plays. i guess that's better than my evd donations, but it would be nice to have at least a couple emd bets for the year. :rolleyes:

[fast4522]

I have done well at Saratoga, Del Mar, Arlington and Monmouth.

I do not play the tracks just like my dad did or I would lose my shirt. In this game one has to cherry pick the races that he plays. Anyone who thinks that he or she can play the next race and the one after that, and the one after that is a fool. The races will be there tomorrow and you have to learn to pick your fights in order to live and fight another day. The quality of the stock is very important to the extent that some small venues are not worth playing.

[thaskalos]

I don't find that my "success" or "failure" can be attributed to individual tracks...and I suspect that the same can be said about most of the players out there.

We have certain races that we understand better than others...and as long as we stick to those races, we get better results than we would if we jump into every race that we see.

I look for certain types of races...even if they are to be found at different racetracks.

[cj's dad]

Woodbine. I know, the takeout is high, but as my good friend Tom said "the takeout doesn't matter if you're losing.

Worst ? Monmouth

[Tom]

Woodbine has been very very good to me, too!

[RaceBookJoe]

Saratoga for some reason is always my best, off to a great start this year again..last year was just ok. I seem to do better with the higher class tracks.

[lamboguy]

Stop playin !!!those canadien tracks have lower signal fees than NYRA, they pay top rebates, and they pay the dime. if you are trying to make money, i don't know what more you can ask for.

[appistappis]

This year, by far......suffolk downs. ....been killing it

[pondman]

Golden Gate.
Just box Baze with my other choice in exacta boxes. When Baze comes in second they pay alright.other .

GG is a gold mine, but I completely avoid betting R. Baze.

All tracks are different.

Gold mines: GG, Hol, SA, SR, PLN, CD, TUP, EMD, GRP

Profitable: FL, DEL

For ethical reasons, I avoid any track in Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

Don't like the level of maidens (not enough or problem) at: Delmar or Sar.
Track I don't know why anyone would play: Fairplex

[castaway01]

For years, maybe even a decade, it was Delaware Park. This year I did very well at Sunland. Wish I could explain why.

[Shemp Howard]

All time? Dover Downs flats.:eek:

[phattty]

All time? Dover Downs flats.:eek:


those 3 furlong dashes were a thing of beauty

used to leave Jersey...go to laurel or pimlico...after nice meal at Swiss Inn straight shot down 13 to Dover then back home and do it all over again next day

jan--feb---march used to be a bitch in the 70's

[raybo]

Best tracks, historically: DeD, EvD, OP
Worst: Any NYRA

[JackS]

It's been my opinion for a long time that mid-level and below (tracks) are the best bet. High class NY and SoCal draw too much money from the sophisticated and well heeled hence, too many underlays. The exceptions are the Triple crown and BC which attracts virtually every body.
The other exception would be any track in which a player is profitable including NY and Cal.

[raybo]

It's been my opinion for a long time that mid-level and below (tracks) are the best bet. High class NY and SoCal draw too much money from the sophisticated and well heeled hence, too many underlays. The exceptions are the Triple crown and BC which attracts virtually every body.
The other exception would be any track in which a player is profitable including NY and Cal.

I tend to agree. I suppose if someone has a high win rate, in races where the odds allow dutching 2 or 3 horses, one could probably do well at tracks with historically low average win payouts. I know that my hit rate at Belmont, with 2 or 3 win contenders, is quite high but without dutching them I show about a .91 ROI, on flat bet wagering.

Some of the lower class tracks, even with smaller pools, have higher average win payouts, and many have several boxcar payouts per day/week. But, you have to be a pretty good handicapper and know these tracks well in order to hit a high enough number of winners in order to show a flat bet profit. My flat bet ROI at DeD and OP last meet was over 1.5 on both, with OP getting 1.67, even with a 2 week losing streak in the last few weeks of the meet.

A program like Dave's dutch method would probably do well at almost any track, but few players have a method that combines both good contenders and a well put together dutching method like that. I watched the video of his last seminar, New Pace and Renegade Handicapper, and was quite impressed with the consistency of that method, showing profit even with so many lower priced winners. Well done! His HSH software scares the crap out of me though, just watching him navigate through it overwhelms me.

[Waquoit]

I've been having my best Saratoga ever. I'm a weekend guy and I've hit the late P4 4 out of the last 5 times I've played it only spending between $9. and $16. dollars. I'm leaning toward early pace, with high recent speed number (at the dist.) with an extra look at those who have had a good race at the Spa in the past. Basic stuff I know, but it's working out.

[CincyHorseplayer]

Best-Gulfstream,Fair Grounds turf,Keeneland turf,Arlington turf,Beulah,Oaklawn,Belmont,Saratoga,River Downs(occasionally just because I'm there),Hawthorne.

Worst-Tampa,Turfway,Aqueduct inner,California poly,Thistledown.

[jefftune]

I pretty much concentrate on tracks that I have historically been successful at. Having a good year so far.

PID - my home track
SAR - I focus on Saratoga every year, doing well this year!
Meadows harness - my fave track, been betting it since the early 90's when their telecast was on my local cable, and to my surprise I could bet the races over the phone!

-Jeff Tune
www.angelfire.com/pa/tune (http://www.angelfire.com/pa/tune)

[Stillriledup]

I'm approximately 20 percent (blended) better than the public at every track i don't actually play!

[1st time lasix]

Surprised no one has said "wherever Jamie Ness or Midwest stable enters":bang:

[Stillriledup]

Surprised no one has said "wherever Jamie Ness or Midwest stable enters":bang:

LOL yep, you would think that all you have to do is bet Ness Ness Ness no matter what, ya know, if you have money on your mind and can never get enough. :D

[gm10]

It's been my opinion for a long time that mid-level and below (tracks) are the best bet. High class NY and SoCal draw too much money from the sophisticated and well heeled hence, too many underlays. The exceptions are the Triple crown and BC which attracts virtually every body.
The other exception would be any track in which a player is profitable including NY and Cal.

I like SoCal for two reasons, because they have the synthetic tracks which remain easier to beat than dirt tracks, and their Pick 6 pools can be huge. I agree about mid-level and below being best for betting, in general anyway. NYRA tracks aren't for me either.

My all time favorite is Great Lakes Downs. The stuff that happened there ... amazing. It was on TV here during the early days of Betfair, you could often get 40/1 on a perfectly legitimate contender just because it wasn't being ridden by TJ Houghton.

[CincyHorseplayer]

I like SoCal for two reasons, because they have the synthetic tracks which remain easier to beat than dirt tracks, and their Pick 6 pools can be huge. I agree about mid-level and below being best for betting, in general anyway. NYRA tracks aren't for me either.

My all time favorite is Great Lakes Downs. The stuff that happened there ... amazing. It was on TV here during the early days of Betfair, you could often get 40/1 on a perfectly legitimate contender just because it wasn't being ridden by TJ Houghton.

Does that place still exist(GLD)?I remember betting that in the summer after River Downs was done and thinking there was a lottery to be hit in every other race.The prices you could get were insane!Fun stuff.