I am new to this board and have never used any form of speed figures. My handicapping was learned at my father's knee nearly 50 years ago and I'm not about to learn any new tricks at this point. That being said, I believe it's important to gain an understanding of how you folks think. A while back, NYRA commissioned a study that established that 5% of the bettors bet 95% of NYRA's handle. These "big" bettors, like most public handicappers today, rely on some form of figs or another. Thus, most of the money being bet is flowing in one direction. There can be no doubt, in my mind, that speed figures will get you to many a winner. After all, they are pointing to the fastest horses. This is nothing new --- I imagine the Romans figured that was a good idea. However, these winners are often underlays because of the proliferation of speed fig handicappers. This point was made clear in Beyer's book on trip handicapping. From my point of view, it is important to gain an understanding of your approach so I can find its weaknesses and bet the other way. A successful wager requires the balancing of a horse's probability of winning and the potential reward. Your approach will get you to winners, but the potential reward is, in my view, often lacking.



Post Edited (04-26-05 21:34)