Horse Handicapping Systems: What they are and How to Use them A handicapped horserace is one that will allow horses of varying levels of ability to compete in the same race.
Weights are used to even the field and how much a particular horse will carry is dependent on its official rating.
The idea is, that if a race is handicapped correctly, all horses running in that particular race will have an equal chance of winning (if they are running at top form).
The official rating (OR) is awarded if one of the following occurs: Once a horse obtains an OR it is now eligible to participate in a handicapped race.
How much weight a horse will carry in a particular race depends on what the rating of the other horses are in the same race.
While in theory any horse in a handicapped race has an equal chance to win as other horses in the same race, in practice there are several factors that are relevant to a horses finishing first.
There are numerous handicapping systems out there, some are personal methods used by individuals while others are complicated techniques that have been honed by professionals for years.
No matter what the system used it is important to remember that none of them are 100% accurate and even the best can only produce positive results only a third of the time.
Here are some of the traditional horserace handicapping indicators and how they can affect an individuals betting: Traditional Handicapping- The basic factors: Lineage Basically, it is who the horses sire and mare were.
Wining horses are put often put out to stud in the hopes that their offspring might inherit their parents traits.
Usage: of very little value in determining the outcome of a particular race.
This type of information is more useful to owners and trainers rather than betters.
Age How old is the horse? Is it an old veteran or a young 2 year old out for the first time? Usage: Minor information.
Of value only if the horse is reaching the end of its racing career.
Record How many races has the horse participated in and what is its winning percentage.
Usage: Moderately useful information.
It gives the individual a loose idea of what the horse is capable of doing.
It also can indicate what the owner is trying to do with the horse.
Owner Who owns the horse? How many other horses does this particular owner have in their stables? How experienced are they in the field of horseracing? Usage: Important information.
If this horse is the owners star performer it can greatly affect how that horse is being run.
Is the horse being tuned up for a later big race? If so then they might be out simply for the exercise rather than the win.
Tendencies What are this horses tendencies? Is it a front runner? Does it like to come on at the end? Does it have guts or is it a lazy strider? Is the horse a mudder or a fair weather horse? Usage: Extremely important information.
A horses tendencies play a very important part in the type of race the horse is currently in.
A front runner will do better in shorter races, a mudder fairs well on a wet or soft track, etc.
Track Conditions The current conditions at the track.
Usage: One of the most important factors in handicapping a race.
Is it a windy day? Rainy? What is the condition of the tracks surface? Sloppy? Hard? Firm? Each of these can play a significant roll in how a particular race will be run.
There are several other factors that professional handicapper use, but remember this: No matter what you may hear, the horse that is the favorite only wins approximately 1/3 of the time.
That means that 2/3 of the time a horse wins that was NOT handicapped to win.