| There are several ways that people approach | | | | rate of return. The way this is achieved is to know |
| handicapping a horse race. Some people look for the | | | | about how often a horse with the handicapping |
| best horse and bet it to win or play it as the key horse | | | | factors you have identified will win a race. |
| in exotic bets like trifectas and exactas. Other people | | | | If you can pick the winner of certain races one out of |
| also compare the runners but instead of settling on | | | | three times, then you know that you need at least 2-1 |
| one horse as the best, and therefore the best bet, | | | | odds to break even. That means that no matter how |
| they assign reasonable odds to each of the | | | | much you may like a horse in a race, if it is going off at |
| contenders and wait to see if they can get those | | | | less than 2-1, you must pass the bet. The key to |
| odds. | | | | successful handicapping therefore is to be able to pick |
| The second method is by far the most successful, not | | | | a horse as a contender and then assign fair odds for |
| because it has a higher strike rate, but because it is | | | | the horse. |
| based on the one goal of horse racing handicapping, | | | | You must not only be a good horse picker, but also a |
| profit. Too often we get caught up in the search for | | | | good wager shopper. On top of all that, you must also |
| good horses and lose sight of the fact that good | | | | be patient and disciplined. Never lose sight of your goal |
| horses do not make you a successful handicapper. | | | | and never let your enthusiasm for a horse blind you to |
| Good wagers are the key to being a successful | | | | the fact that the best horse often loses, but if you |
| handicapper because the goal is to make a profit. | | | | demand fair value for you bets, in the end you will be a |
| Therefore, a wager must have appositive expected | | | | winner. |