Finding a good remote bet and cashing in a big winning ticket is a great thrill in horse racing. Searching for the elusive high-odds winner is like detective work. He’s looking for clues that a horse that doesn’t look great on paper will somehow beat the odds and make it to the winner’s circle. The clues he looks for are often found in past performances or even staring him in the face as he watches the horses warm up.
Sometimes coaches try to hide the fact that something has changed and the runner will now perform much better than in his most recent races. Watching the horse warm up, you may notice that it looks good, strides long, glides easily rather than showing signs of stiffness or lameness. Their fur may shine and there may even be some spots below the surface that shine.
The key to spotting an improvement, of course, is knowing what the horse looked like when he last warmed up. For that part of the process you need good grades. It is easier to take notes and follow a group of horses than to handicap each race and try to guess if a horse is improving or failing. Too many people try to limit all races and end up missing out on a lot.
In past performances, you’ll find hints about a horse that could win on a long shot. Sometimes you can spot an unusually good workout that is much better than the rest. Now here is an excellent handicap angle. If the horse has a gear change and shows good recent training, it may mean that the trainer tried the gear change during training and had positive results. It can also mean that the horse will run a much better race than before.
Another good angle is a horse coming back from a break and also has a change of rider. If he has had one, two or even three races and now the trainer’s favorite jockey is taking the mount, it is possible that the trainer and jockey will discover that the horse is now ready to win and will seek victory in this race. It may be that the other races were simply for conditioning purposes.
Many long shots hit the post and perform poorly, living up to the low expectations of bettors. Most of them have nothing going for them and there are no clues to follow. Find the horse with an exchange and you’ll often find a good long odds bet.