As summer racing in New York returns to Saratoga, it is time to shift gears in our approach to handicapping. One secret that I have learned about betting horse races at the “Spa” is that you have to look for high odds to compensate for the lack of consistency.
Like its West Coast counterpart, Del Mar, Saratoga Race Track is difficult to figure out because of the many variables. For one thing, there are many shippers and many trainers. Horses coming from so many different tracks to compete at the legendary New York track can create nightmares for handicappers who are trying to compare the merits of each entry. Sometimes it just can not be done. This is why each track has earned the nickname, “The graveyard of favorites.”
The horse that ships in with high speed figures may run like a classless old plug and another entry that looks like it will be lucky to make it around the oval without oxygen can surprise and run like Seabiscuit. Is it the climate or the surface? Maybe it is the ghosts of past handicappers and champions, but whatever the case may be, caution is needed when expectations of form are raised. Expect the unexpected, if you can figure out how to do that.
One thing that does hold up at Saratoga is the old maxim, “Horses for courses.” Fourstardave was a prime example of that. He was nicknamed “The Sultan of Saratoga,” because he won at least one race a year there from 1987 to 1994. In fact there is now a graded stakes race there that bears his name.
My advice, the secrets I would like to share with you are, demand a fair price and lay off favorites. Also, look for jockeys and trainers who have fared well in the past at that track. The same is true of horses who have raced there before. Finally, wait a week or so and see who is hot and who is not. It seems that every year finds a new trainer or jockey that suddenly takes off at the Spa. For that reason, I never bet a favorite during the first 10 days there and only bet them after that if they have proven their mettle there before.
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 http://williewins.homestead.com/truecb.html 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 http://williewins.homestead.com/handicappingstore.html Bill’s handicapping store.
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