Things no one tells you

[Dave Schwartz]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

I have a friend who says that he loves the game. He uses an expensive, sophisticated handicapping software which accurately handicaps the race in mere seconds. And yet, he keeps talking to me about getting "burned out" while playing this game, and about how much he hates the "drudgery" of regular horse-betting. And here I am betting almost every day with only the PPs and a $9 Walgreens calculator...and the word "burned out" has never come out of my mouth.

I guess I'll never understand some of these 'hi-tech' players...

In my 3 decades of selling software I've seen a handful of players who, when they started beating the game, actually quit betting horses.

Note that I did not say that they quit GAMBLING.
Only that they stopped betting horses.


Never understood this until I watched this video a few months back.

Seems that when you get paid for something, it takes the fun out of it.

BTW, this has NOTHING to do with anger.
No idea where that came from.

NEUROSCIENTIST: You will NEVER LACK Motivation Again

[AndyC]

Originally Posted by 46zilzal

ALL that information is in the database

From being a photo finish cameraman for over 10 years, I found that the rank and file OVER VALUE trouble with this inane belief that having trouble one time will make it a positive run the next...THERE IS NO EVIDENCE of that

MOST individuals have no access to paddock inspection and from being with two experienced trainers looking at that, I found their observation, though accurate, not worth much

What database are you referring to? There is so much more to watching replays than looking for horses in trouble. You are correct when you say trouble horses are over valued in general. So why do you assume that a replay analyzer is looking only for trouble horses?



Good players need to find information that separates them from other players. To think that you will somehow have an edge handicapping with just publicly available information is ridiculous.


Does your database factor in the tides at Del Mar and how they affect the track?

[classhandicapper]

It's time consuming but not extremely difficult to create a computerized analysis of race results that looks at the running styles of the horses in a race, the flow of the race based how the speed did and how far back the top few finishers came from, the odds of the horses, and pace figures. All that data is available for a price and can be loaded into a database for analysis.

But even with all that, there's nothing like watching the race to see the head-on, who was urged, when, how wide they were when urged, how they finished etc..

[classhandicapper]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

In my 3 decades of selling software I've seen a handful of players who, when they started beating the game, actually quit betting horses.

Could that be an intellectual challenge thing?

Someone like that may never have loved racing or thought the reward was way too small given the amount of work. So once they proved to themselves they "could" win and satisfied their ego, it not longer made sense to work that hard. So they put their energy into something more lucrative instead.

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

Could that be an intellectual challenge thing?

Someone like that may never have loved racing or thought the reward was way too small given the amount of work. So once they proved to themselves they "could" win and satisfied their ego, it not longer made sense to work that hard. So they put their energy into something more lucrative instead.

It's a dopamine release craving that the video pointed out....I knew poker pros in Vegas who went to the crap table for this very reason....It made them feel alive and invigorated.

[AndyC]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

It's time consuming but not extremely difficult to create a computerized analysis of race results that looks at the running styles of the horses in a race, the flow of the race based how the speed did and how far back the top few finishers came from, the odds of the horses, and pace figures. All that data is available for a price and can be loaded into a database for analysis.

But even with all that, there's nothing like watching the race to see the head-on, who was urged, when, how wide they were when urged, how they finished etc..

I can think of several other things that I look for. You have to be very comfortable with data provided for your analysis. Race analysis (and the data provided) is only as good as the ability of the analyzer.

[AndyC]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

Could that be an intellectual challenge thing?

Someone like that may never have loved racing or thought the reward was way too small given the amount of work. So once they proved to themselves they "could" win and satisfied their ego, it not longer made sense to work that hard. So they put their energy into something more lucrative instead.

Totally agree. It is a job. People retire from jobs they love (or hate) all the time. If you can't walk away from race betting when your life priorities change perhaps it's not the love of the game but the addiction of the game that is controlling.

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

In my 3 decades of selling software I've seen a handful of players who, when they started beating the game, actually quit betting horses.

Note that I did not say that they quit GAMBLING.
Only that they stopped betting horses.


Never understood this until I watched this video a few months back.

Seems that when you get paid for something, it takes the fun out of it.

BTW, this has NOTHING to do with anger.
No idea where that came from.

NEUROSCIENTIST: You will NEVER LACK Motivation Again

The problem with these "scientists" is that they can find enough proof to support BOTH sides of a given argument. For instance...this man here says that a future "reward" that we promise ourselves after completing a difficult task actually takes away our enjoyment for the task because the emphasis is placed upon the reward, and not the task. But I just finished a book by another noted psychologist (Brett Steenbarger)...and he endorses "future rewards", because they provide the necessary "motivation" for completing the difficult task.

Steenbarger even states a case where, in order to "motivate" himself to lose weight...he bought himself an expensive wardrobe of smaller-sized clothes, figuring that there would then be an added incentive to lose the weight...since he didn't want the expensive new clothes to go to waste. It's hard to know whom to believe when sound arguments can be made for both sides of a given issue.

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by AndyC

Totally agree. It is a job. People retire from jobs they love (or hate) all the time. If you can't walk away from race betting when your life priorities change perhaps it's not the love of the game but the addiction of the game that is controlling.

The problem that I have is when a "professional horseplayer", who calls the racetrack his "personal ATM", quits the game so he can go get himself another job, which doesn't allow him the "personal freedom" that the gambling life allows. Like when Dick Mitchell quit the game so he could return to teaching math.

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

The problem that I have is when a "professional horseplayer", who calls the racetrack his "personal ATM", quits the game so he can go get himself another job, which doesn't allow him the "personal freedom" that the gambling life allows. Like when Dick Mitchell quit the game so he could return to teaching math.

Sorry, but the horses run at scheduled times of the day...No freedom there, just a myth.

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by ReplayRandall

Sorry, but the horses run at scheduled times of the day...No freedom there, just a myth.

More nonsense from the Q-Anon man.

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

More nonsense from the Q-Anon man.

I didn't just mindlessly drift back to PA like you did, I'm back for a reason....You'll find out.

[thaskalos]

Okay, Randall...you go get yourself a regular job, and I'll stay home and bet the horses every day. And we'll see which one of us has more "personal freedom".

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by ReplayRandall

I didn't just mindlessly drift back to PA like you did, I'm back for a reason....You'll find out.

Oh, no. Not another "reason".

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

Okay, Randall...you go get yourself a regular job, and I'll stay home and bet the horses every day. And we'll see which one of us has more "personal freedom".

Still working at the grocery store?....Of course you are, while I bet the horses full time...Fact.