Horse betting is one of the most popular forms of gambling in the whole world. However, unlike other sports such as football and basketball, where the majority of the fans watch the sport just for passion and excitement, most horseracing fans also bet on the races. In fact, you can say that horseracing wouldn’t be complete without the bettors.
If you’re reading this article, you must be looking for punting strategies from pros that you can use the next time you’re at a horseracing event. You’re in luck, as we have some strategies shared with us by professional punters that you can use in the future.
Like any form of sports betting, horseracing has many variables that you have to consider. Every punter’s aim should be to create a set of strategies to use those factors in every variable possible, and apply them in all possible scenarios, to give themselves a chance to pick the right horse.
With that in mind, here are some strategies from professional punters to maximise profitability, that you might fancy using yourself.
Distance and Going
If you send out Usain Bolt with Mo Farah in a 10,000 meters race, of course, the result would be quite obvious. Similarly, if you let them race for a 100m sprint, Usain Bolt would win. This also applies to horse racing.
Some horses are stayers that can run better on long distances because of their stamina, while other horses are sprinters who can run faster over short distances. The point here is that a horse, that has maintained a winning streak in the same distance, would generally always be the best bet.
If the owner decides to transfer to a shorter or longer stretch, the result would often be mixed. The advice here is to always back the horses that are consistent campaigners over the same distance. However, you also have to consider the going, which can affect the horses’ performance. Of course, it depends on the horse, since some prefer a quicker going to maximise their speed, and some prefer a mud-soaked grind.
Point Horse Racing Strategy
If you want to give yourself a better chance of picking the winning horse, this strategy is a good way to do that. This is a strategy where you use a pointing system for the front runners. This would also help you keep an eye out for the horses that are in their best forms. This is how it works:
Once you determine the front runners, you need to score them based on their last three races. You will give a horse 5 points for a win, 3 points for every 2nd place, 2 points for 3rd, and a point for 4th. There are additional points as well.
â—Ź 2 pts if it has won over the course
â—Ź 3 pts for winning over distance
â—Ź 4 pts for both course and distance
â—Ź 2 points if it has been beaten by the favourite
â—Ź 3 points if it is in the first 3 of betting
The total number you can give a horse in this strategy is 24 points. Once you add them all up, you can then do cross-referencing and add points based on their odds. The horse with the most points should be the most likely winner of the race.
Dutching Betting Strategy
Dutching is quite a complex method of giving yourself a guaranteed win. It involves an equation of sizing-up the probability of different outcomes that are shared with the favourites. You weigh them down by looking for different odds at different bookmakers, and place bets on your chosen favourites that will make you unlikely to lose, but win when one of your horses wins, albeit with little profit.
In short, this is a method for you to give yourself an almost 100% chance to win but, as with every other strategy, it’s not foolproof. So how does it work? Let’s say that you’re indulging in some Kentucky Derby betting, and have chosen two favourites in a race: Crown Walk and Blitz Hoof. You can start by looking for different odds in different bookies. So, for example, Bookie#1 has odds of 2.1 for Crown Walk, and Bookie#2 has 1.8 for Blitz Hoof. Then you have to determine if both will be an Under-round or Over-round based on a simple equation.
1/odds for CW with Bookie#1 x 100 + 1/odds for BH for Bookie#2 x 100
That would be:
(1/2.1×100) + (1/1.8×100)=n
47.6% + 55.5%= 103.1%
The total is above 100%, which gives you a loss of 3.1% on your overall bet. Unfortunately, Dutching wouldn’t work in these odds, so you have to find another bookmaker. Let’s say you still go with Bookie#1 for CW, but now you go for Bookie#3 for BH with odds of 1.95.
(1/2.1×100)+(1/1.95×100)=n
47.6% + 51.3% = 98.9%
With these numbers, you would be guaranteed a 1.1% profit. So, if you bet on CW for £100 and £107.69 on BH, you would be guaranteed a £2.31 profit. This may not seem much, but it’s a guaranteed win.
Final Thoughts
There are many more punting strategies you can find online, but the three we talk about here are some of the most popular and best strategies out there. However, to correctly use these strategies, you need to study upcoming races. You also need to have access to a lot of bookies online, so that you’ll know the horses’ odds and find their best values.
