Horse Racing Handicapping Tip Number 2 for Horses First or Second Off the Claim

Claiming races are the bread and butter races for many trainers and owners in horse racing.  Handicapping claiming races can be very profitable if you are looking for good priced winners and profitable bets.  Just as many trainers and owners make a living off claiming races, so do many professional handicappers.  There are several reasons for this.

One reason that the pros can make money betting on claiming races is because there are some predictable outcomes based on past experience.  For instance, knowing that a trainer is good at claiming then winning with a horse in its first race for that barn can produce some good bets.  That doesn’t mean that you should just automatically bet a horse when it runs its first race for that conditioner, though.  Making money betting on horses, and claiming races in particular, isn’t that easy.

The people who follow claiming races keep good notes on horses.  They look at the horses in the saddling ring before each claiming race and note the horse’s appearance.  They also note whether the horse is running with a tongue tie.  That is one bit of information tracks don’t supply, but that simple piece of equipment can make a big difference in a horse’s performance.

How important can note taking be?  Let’s say you decide to follow claiming races at your local track and you have notes on a horse that ran two weeks ago, was claimed from that race and is starting for a new trainer, that is what a real pro would do and there is nothing to stop you from doing the same thing.

So you go and look the horse over in the saddling ring and you compare its appearance to your notes.  You may find that the horse looks better, perhaps its coat is shinier and it appears on the muscle, prancing on its “toes,” so to speak.  If you know that trainer is capable of winning first out, and his or her go to jockey is in the irons, you may have found a good bet.  Any equipment changes may also help, including the tongue tie that the crowd will not be aware of.

On the other hand, the horse may not appear any different or perhaps, it looks even worse.  Now you know that this is one horse to pass by, even if this particular trainer is  known for winning first or second time out.  He or she obviously failed to get the animal to respond to whatever methods he or she usually uses to turn a horse around.

The nice part of this situation for you is that the crowd will only look at the notes of the public handicapper or their program and see that the trainer has a high success rate with first time claims.  They will drive the price down on the horse and you can then find a nice overlay in the pools.  That is how a serious horse player can make money off claiming races if he or she is willing to do the work.  While horseracing handicapping isn’t easy, if you do the work and keep good notes, you may eke out a profit from your bets, but you will have to work for it.