Horse Race Handicapping College - Thoroughbred Horse Racing - Types of Wagers.

Thoroughbred Horse Racing - Types of Wagers.

It does not matter how good your horse handicapping is, it is imperative that you use a good and consistent wagering strategy if you want to maximize your profits at horse racing.

Although wagering on thoroughbred horse racing is legal online and offline, does not imply that the best horse always wins and that you will profit from every race that you wager. The game is a 'horse race' and knowing the rules is only part of the game.

I agree, most people get into a common rut and seem to be fixated on a particular style of wagering, but to be a successful horse race handicapper, your wagering strategy should fit the situation.

I hate to disappoint you, but even if you have selected the best horse in a race, it will not always win. A poor start, getting boxed in, or going wide on a turn, are but only a few of the reasons that your 'selected' horse may get beat.

Let's say that you are thinking about betting $20 to WIN on a particular horse. Unless the horse is a 'short price', you might be better off betting $12 to WIN and $8 to PLACE. In a case like this, if the odds at post time are say 10-1, the WIN and PLACE wager may be a wiser bet to place, because of the value returned for a WIN or a PLACE. When the favorite does not finish 1st or 2nd , then the PLACE and SHOW prices can be very attractive.

So much the case, that the PLACE and or even the SHOW price can exceed the WIN payoff.

Another common wagering rut that some horse players get locked into: EXACTA players that want to always put a horse on top, and several in the 2nd spot. Naturally, if your choices are fairly evenly matched, then your best bet is to BOX them and not try to guess which one goes on top.

Have you ever seen this one? Wagering on an EXACTA Straight and do it with a large wager. Consider this - $25 Exacta 4-8. If you like the 4 and 8 enough to bet $25, how about playing it $20 Exacta 4-8 and $5 Exacta 8-4, just in case.

Another trap to avoid is playing 3 very short priced horses in a small field. The probable Exacta payoffs will, in most cases be very poor. This is one race that you would want to pass, unless you really like one of the 'Long Shots'.

The Trifecta can be an excellent wager and the source of many of your wins if wagered properly and you seek value in your horse race handicapping. In this case, Slotting can be your friend and prevent you from spending too much of your bankroll on any given race.

Bottom Line: Just because there is a horse race, does not mean that you have to place a wager.

Above all...do not wager with money that you can not afford to lose and do not wager more than 5% of your bankroll on any given race.

Fact: Only 2% of all horse race handicappers actually make money wagering.

I would like to define successful horse racing handicapping as the horse handicapper that always has money available to wager on the race that has a potential for large payoffs.

Visit http://www.HorseRaceHandicappingCollege.com for more information.