Handicapping Thoroughbreds for Profit using Pace Figures Gautier MS

Pace Handicapping: This method of handicapping requires a lot of patience and an affinity for math. A typical pace handicapper calculates the velocity of each horse at various points-of-call during their past few races. After crunching numbers by hand, calculator, or with sophisticated computer programs, s/he comes up with a few highly-precise figures (measured in feet-per-second) which tell the handicapper how fast a horse was moving at designated stages of the race.

Many experienced handicappers feel that this is the best way to analyze races. The point of any "handicapping system" is to gain an edge over other bettors. Some people are willing to work very hard to find an edge, while others prefer less-rigorous tactics. If you have just discovered handicapping, you should put off pace handicapping until a year or two from now. There are quite a few fundamentals to be learned before we can dive into advanced handicapping techniques.

Every single horseplayer that I know wants to win. I don’t know many horseplayers, however, that really know what to expect, or have a plan to accomplish whatever goal he or she may have. As the year begins, it is time to sit down and formulate a plan of attack for this racing year. You must set expectation in the context of reality.

Ask yourself the following questions. I can’t answer these for anyone, but honest answers can help each person learn what to expect for the coming year.

How much of a bankroll do you have to put towards gambling on horses? This is a very important question. How much money are you willing to put aside to wager on the races.

What expenses do you have that directly relate to wagering on horses? Some things to consider are past performances; subscription charts plans, books, breeding data, software, programs, gasoline, admissions, etc. Don’t include that shiny new laptop if you would have bought one anyway.