Picking Horse Racing Winners Without Using a Program, a Few Tips
Serious horse racing handicapping, picking winners at the horse track, that is, takes work and skill and usually a good source of information like a program.
But that being said, it is possible to pick winners without a program. Let’s be clear on one thing, though, there is a difference between just picking winners and making a long range profit. On any given day at the race track you can probably find someone who is ahead for the day and who isn’t using a program.
Some people just bet their lucky number or pick a horse based on its name. Then there are the ones who only bet the favorite. Those people look at the tote board and see who the crowd favors and then bet on that horse to win. Of all systems to pick winners for the novice, this one probably produces the most winners, although over the long run, it is still a losing system.
But luck plays an important part in gambling and there are people who go every day and some of them win just because that is their lucky day. I have had days when I worked very hard at handicapping a program and after much work, chose some bets that I thought were sound bets. But the racing gods or whoever it is that doled out the luck on that day decided it wasn’t my turn to win (oh alright, I’ll admit it, I didn’t do such a hot job of picking winners that day).
While watching my horses get soundly beaten there was someone standing right beside me cheering and laughing and bragging about his or her big wins without even handicapping (it seems they always stand beside me when they win). On those days there is nothing to do but congratulate them on their luck and realize that your day will come and in the long run, good handicapping always pays off.
Now if you happen to be one of those people that does not want to spend hours poring over a program but would like to pick a few winners, here are a few good tips and trust me, they are worth every cent you are paying for them.
1. If you are depending upon luck or divine intervention, then by all means go with your hunches. Sometimes a hunch is really your subconscious mind telling you something that you missed consciously. When using intuition rather than intelligence, hunches are your best bet.
2. Look at the horses. If one horse looks better to you than the rest, perhaps it is because it is really healthier or has more muscles. Who knows, maybe somewhere back in your family tree there was a great horse man or woman and you have inherited the gene. Bet the pretty horse that looks good.
3. Try to stick with reasonably priced horses. About 80% of the races are won by the top five horses in the betting. If you only bet on horses who are going off at 30-1, the odds are really against you, unless… (refer to tip 1.)
4. Have a positive attitude. Believe it or not, studies done in casinos have found that people who gamble with the attitude or expectation that they are going to win have a slightly better chance of winning. That only makes sense, doesn’t it? If you start out planning to lose then you may subconsciously choose horses that are going to win just to make your prediction come true.
5. Bet within your budget. If you are just out to have fun, then stick within your budget. There is nothing fun about losing more than you can afford to lose.
Well that’s it unless you want to use a real system. There are some systems that don’t require you to use a program. Even True Handicapping a very good system has a section that teaches you how to know which horse has the inside money on it and that is a good indicator of a horse with a good chance to win. With that system you can find horses that are good bets even without a program, but if you decide to use the whole system, you will have to buy a program.
The most consistent horse racing systems have to have the basics and a handicapper must understand the basics. I have been around horse racing for 50 years including as an owner. Without the basics the rest is not going to do any good. If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to Whats a Willie and get the truth.
Bill Peterson is a former horse race owner and professional handicapper. He comes from a horse race handicapping family and as he puts it, “Horse Racing is in my blood.” To see all Bill’s horse racing material go to Bill’s handicapping store .
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