How to use Horse Racing Comments Effectively
The daily racing form clockers time hundreds of workouts each day. When they notice a horse working very well they note it and pass it on to the handicapper. You will find these in additional workout sheets at the bottom of the workout list. Comments on workouts when used correctly can dramatically improve your win ration in horse racing. Some days there will be 100 workouts and no comments so when they do you should use this info to your advantage.
The farther the workout the more impressive the comment.
Bad workout comments will have phrases like “not much” or “tired after 3/8 in 35 2/5” which means the horse slowed down enough for the clocker to notate. So it shows early speeds then quits. These horses get bet a lot and should be thrown out as they show up early but do not finish well. “Needs More” is another bad comment where clockers don’t think much at all of the horse and should be thrown out. Now most of the time they just will not comment on a horse and not go threw the effort to stay something bad.
Here are some examples of comments. If its not negative its all positive to a certain degree as they took the time and saw something that made them comment. Remember most workouts receive no comments.
Example of okay comments:
“Easy blowout”
“Had a useful work”
“went nicely”
“is showing some progress”
Example of good comments:
“Worked well out of the gate”
“Easy breeze from the gate”
“Went well”
“On the improve”
“flashed early speed”
“looks ready”
Great comments to look for:
“is ready for top effort”
“was very impressive”
“Broke very well from the gate”
“Sharp Blowout”
“Easily with best”
“best of others”
If you just bet on horses that received a workout comment you would not be doing that bad. Roughly 17% of the horses that workout actually receive some sort of comment. If you did a $20 win bet on every comment during one period you would have received $2090 while betting $1140 profit of $950.
By following the comments of workouts by clock watchers you can spot a play that flies under the radar and a horse comes out for an upset. I had tow solid comments on a maiden race with back to back good workouts of an up and coming horse. It paid $72.05 winning by a head. Last race it was just too nervous but it got that straightened out and let me capitalize on it.
If you use workouts and comments effectively you will win at the track!
Knowing which comments and tracks to trust
A comment is a bonus that the handicapper gets and the horse is rewarded for looking sharp during a workout. Be careful that some clockers are not recording correctly. With any strategy or analysis your doing always keep your eyes open. At Calder race track many of the same horses were getting the same comments every time they worked out. It appears they were just duplicating comments. This is laziness and does not appear to happen often but beware.
Too Many comments
In Delaware they appear to post too many comments for there workouts. As powerful as comments are to workouts its important to know what tracks and back the validity of the clockers comments. We noticed that most of all comments made at the Delaware track were made by bullet workouts so if he worked his best time then must be good. Important note is a comment should be something the horse absolutely earned. Calder and Delaware are just too generous.
Working great but did not receive a comment
If you are settled in handicapping a good track and while doing your homework on workouts you see a great workout but no comment by it. Its usually best to stay away from this horse. This is where a lot of the betting public will jump on the horse but if your smart you will be careful with this because this reveals an all out workout. We don’t want to play these horses.
Source “Workouts and Maidens” by Vincent M Reo can be purchased at www.amazon.com
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