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The following are some general
guidelines followed by many pros which will give you a 'leg up' on
many other bettors (first four tips out of 11 basics):
1) When betting straight,
restrict your bets to win and show only.
2) As a general rule, bet
horses you like with odds of 5-1 or greater to win and odds of 5-1 or
less, to place.
3) Pay close attention to
horses' recent performances. Form handicapping has a lot of merit, and
you face your best chances with a horse in top condition.
4) Horses backed heavily by
touting services and computer handicappers may win more, but so many
bettors are placing their cash on them, they give poor value for the
money. Try to find the 'dark horse,' one that has a good shot at the
post but is not overly backed.
5) Be wary of the 'smart
money,' bets placed at the last minute by supposedly, those in the
know. There isn't much smart money at the tracks.
6) Go with your gut feelings.
If there's a horse you fancy, by all means bet on that horse. There's
no worse feeling than not doing what you felt you should have done,
and it working out - without you.
7) Pay special attention to
fast starters on slow courses. It is more difficult to maneuver on a
muddy, slow or heavy course, and these conditions will favor the horse
that takes the early lead.
8) Avoid horses moving up in
class. They may have looked good against lesser horses, but the move
to better competition may reveal different colors.
9) Avoid horses that have not
raced in the past four weeks. They may be recuperating from illness
and the owners are using the race as a tune-up. The winning
percentages of long-idled horses are way below average.
10) Bet only winners. If you
see a horse that has been around but never won a race, why figure that
today's race will be any different? Instead, choose a horse that has
some background of winning.
11) Bet only horses you feel
have a good chance of winning. If you had eliminated all the horses
you've bet in the past but have not really believed in, you would be
sitting with a much higher winning percentage. If you don't like a
horse, don't bet on it.
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