Tips for Picking a Winning Race Horse
When you go out to gamble on something new, having good tips to help
back you up is a good way to lose less and win more. Here are some tips to help you back a winner when you
go out to bet on your first horse race.
1. Be Selective This is probably the basis of all your
betting. While you may feel you can pick the majority or all of the races, unless you are psychic you cannot.
Instead, pick and choose which races you are most likely to win with the following tips and be willing to put
you money down on those few rather than spreading yourself thin with small bets all over.
2. Look at the History Pick horses that have run on the
same course recently, have placed in their last few races, and have won over distance or over the course.
Horses have an excellent memory so if their last race was at the same course they are likely to do better. If
they have steadily placed in their last few races then they have a solid record and you can chance betting on
them. But be careful! If a horse won the last time out it but doesn't have a solid placing record this could be
a fluke and not a horse you want to waste your money betting on. A long shot once is a long shot
twice.
3. Turf or Dirt Know the horse and how they were bred and
trained. Few horses can run on both dirt and turf, so knowing both the genetic make up of your horse and how
they were trained will tell you how well they'll do on a particular track. It is also important to note the
state of the track. In both cases, some horses prefer wet and others dry and will run better accordingly. If
you have a turf runner that prefers dry turf running on wet dirt, they will do far worse than someone to likes
wet turf and even worse than a horse that loves dirt and will most definitely lose to a horse that likes wet
dirt. However, some horses that like wet tracks may take well to turf, so know your horse.
4. Medication and Layoffs A layoff is a time away from the
track and if a horse is just returning from a layoff chances are they won't do well. Horses generally need at
least one race to get back into the groove and depending on how long they've been away they may need more than
one.
Medication affects a horses performance both positively and negatively. Often
it will increase their performance but some medications will do just the opposite. Bute is one of these and a
horse running on it either runs exceptionally well or not at all. However, most horses that run with medication
and are running off their medication will do poorly and are a poor bet to make. If a horse is usually on
medication then you will only want to bet when their medication is on.
5. Change of Jockey or Trainer Trainer changes will cause
changes over time. A new routine can affect how the horse runs simply because they are learning new techniques.
New jockey's have minimal effect but the effect they do have can be important. Give a good jockey a bad horse
and little will likely be done, but give a good jockey a good horse and you're likely to do very well.
Likewise, however, give a bad jockey a good horse and you may still do well because the horse may know the
track or be fast enough to overcome a poor rider. Remember that a jockey is only as good as his horse. A good
jockey may get more out of the horse but they will only get their best and their best may not always be enough
to win.
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