King of the Breeders Cup ($2 variety)

To quote Andy Beyer, "I am king of the world." In other words, I had a tremendous Breeders Cup Day. Moreover, I adhered to my own restrictive wagering guidelines in the process. But, this time, I actually found betting opportunities by handicapping.

Not only did I take down the Classic exacta, I scored a $10 win bet on Raven's Pass. The selections were made from their European Beyer figures (adjusted by -12). Both horses ran (turf) figures comparable to Curlin's 111.

In the second race at Santa Anita, a simple $2 win and place bet on Desert Code returned $106. At Belmont, one of two Monster Move horses ran second at 63-1 yielding $43 to place, $13.60 to show and a $334 exacta with the favorite. Not bad for a starting bank of $40. Add it up.

I wonder how the experts did? Get ready for the polytrack surface assault and excuses!

One complaint. NYRA's internet wagering operation apparently wasn't up to the challenge of handling the extremely large volume of the world series of thoroughbred racing. It was a frustrating technological mess. C'mon NYRA get your act together!

Thank God, the live operators are still around. Go, girls–and guys.

Breeders Cup 2008: On automatic

For those of you who missed it,here--with edits--is a reprint of my Breeders Cup strategy--and why.

In 30+ years of playing the game, I have found a few absolute truths:

1. The most impossible races to handicap are the worst horses in the world.
2. The second most impossible races to handicap are the best horses in the world.

Don't listen to me. After all the seminars, the forums, the analysis and the hype just look at the results of the professionals--and, their list of excuses.

On the two Breeders' Days, I will look for value in the surrounding cards. I will play the Cup Races, casually and enjoy them. I plan to exacta box 27 in all the races and make a few win bets on second favorites.

It's and easy game and an easy day.

Re-energized

Thoroughbred handicapping is a never ending story. Fact is, the more you know the less you know.

Some things which should be obvious are not. For instance, every time you make a wager, you are asserting--on paper (of the green variety)-- that you know something that will return a profit. Just how many times a day are you really so smart?

The challenge? Limit wagers to races where you have a genuine, provable opinion. In a game with so many variables, it's tough. But I am convinced this is key to success.

For the last few months, I have suspended betting to reacquaint myself with basic handicapping. An evaluation of my wagers showed that I was overlooking 'easy money' in pursuit of longer shots. I guess it's understandable because I am so excited about the longshot system I am promoting. However, human beings can walk and talk at the same time, so I had to prove it. Stay tuned. I'm on my way back.