Re:Don't bet on the most likely winner
by IgorPartola on Monday July 06, 2020 @09:35AM
(#23747689)
Horse racing has some really interesting mechanics not present here. The top three bets are win, place, and show. Win means the horse game in first. Place means it came in second OR first. And show means third OR second OR first. So one popular bet is to put money on the favorite to place or show. Even if an underdog wins the race, you still make some money. I don’t know of where else you have such mechanics.
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Even more interesting is the Exacta and Trifecta bets, where you bet on order.
I worked with a pretty hardcore handicapper. He would plan for certain races for weeks and look at training and other factors. Basically, he'd cover the Saratoga meet and pair favorites a longshots and come out ahead enough to stay ahead. You could tell how well he did by the toys purchased in the Fall. Good year, a truck, bad year a laptop.