Quote:
Originally Posted by highnote
"Blinkers Off" is another classic. The wisdom in the book probably has not been spread widely enough in the U.S. to have a great effect on the odds. In fact, it might never be. Fotias' angles are revolutionary, but he developed them on his own speed figures. Sadly, he passed away and no one can make speed figures like he could. He spent 12-16 hours per day making those figures. Some of his angles might work on some speed figures, but I have not been able to make them work on other's figures like I could on his. Turf Decline Line (R) for example is impossible to do with Beyer speed figures.
Fotias pushed the limits of speed figure handicapping. He was a terrific person and outstanding bettor. He was the last of his kind.
However, when it comes to mathematics of gambling Dr. Z is in a league of his own -- he actually wrote the GRG formula in "Beat the Racetrack".
It would be much easier for most young people to apply the knowledge from "Blinkers Off" simply because most people are not mathematically inclined. There is value in Fotias' ideas for people who are not mathematicians. I have read both books and both have value. If you don't get math then "Dr. Z's Beat The Racetrack" is probably of little value. But to say his system does not work anymore is just plain wrong.
It would be wrong to say Fotias' system doesn't work anymore because his speed figures are no longer available.
Depending on the person, perhaps neither system works as well as they once did. Or perhaps each system still works well but it depends on the individual? In my opinion, both books contain tremendous amounts of wisdom. It is up to each individual to determine which one works best for them.
My intention was just to let people know that "Dr. Z's Beat the Racetrack" has been reprinted. The reprint is a hardback book. It is half the price of buying a used copy. The math is timeless. The nature of the betting markets may have changed, but one thing we know about markets is that inefficiencies can exist. The sharp handicapper will find the inefficiency, late money or not, because if late money was such a big deal then people would stop betting. They don't.
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I think we'll have to politely agree to disagree on this one. IMO...when the wager depends entirely upon the spotting of "inefficiencies" in the mutuel pools, and the majority of the mutuel pool is comprised of money that is wagered AFTER any meaningful "investigative" calculations could possibly be made...then this is a "big deal" indeed.
People haven't stopped betting the lotto either. Can we draw a meaningful conclusion from THAT?
