Some horse players try just betting some of the chalks. They do, after all, win about a third of the time and sometimes more than that, especially at the smaller venues. If you can weed out a few false favorites, horses that really aren't as good as they appear to the betting crowd, then you might eke out a small profit.
Bet enough money and you might turn your small profit into a big one, but beware, it isn't easy to make money betting on horse races, but it is easy to lose. The question is, "Is it ever a good idea to bet on favorites and if so, when?"
While there is always risk involved in betting on horse races there are days when favorites seem to do much better and may even return a profit. When there is a big race at a race track, meaning a graded stakes race with a large purse and lot's of hype, favorites may win more often and may even return a profit.
For instance, at Aqueduct on April 7th, 2012 the card featured the Wood Memorial, a Grade I race with 3 year olds who are trying to win enough money to be eligible for the Kentucky Derby. The Wood is one of the biggest races of the season for Aqueduct and the card had some very nice races with large purses and top quality horses.
Favorites were the flavor of the day winning seven out of 11 races for a win average well over 60%! A $2 win bet on each horse in all 11 races would have returned $34.10. That means that it was actually profitable to bet favorites on that day, but once again, beware because that is not the usual case at Aqueduct on any old Saturday.
Another big race was the Florida Derby held at Gulfstream Park the previous week. Once again, favorites ruled the day winning eight out of thirteen races and returning $35.40. In other words, once again, just betting on the favorite in each race resulted in a profit.
What accounts for this phenomenal upsurge in the percentage of winning favorites at race tracks where the norm is closer to 35% for favorites? Perhaps it's a better quality of horses in the races on those showcase days for the race tracks when they do their very best to card races that represent the best racing has to offer. Whatever the case may be, on days when the track is hosting a great race, watch the favorites closely, but as always, never bet more than you can afford to lose because horse racing is a fickle old game.
If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to http://williewins.homestead.com/true.html and get the truth about betting on horses and winning. Bill Peterson is a former race horse owner and professional handicapper. To see all Bill's horse racing material go to Horse Racing Handicapping, Bill's handicapping store.
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