The human ego being what it is, most of us like to think of ourselves as unique. The ones who really want to be thought of as unique, special, one of a kind, in other words, the rugged individual types, are often the long shot bettors at the track. Nothing says, "I'm taking the road less traveled," more than betting on a three legged horse with house maids knee. It is for this reason that those who like to assert their independence often lose their shirts.
Long shots are where the money is in horse racing, but just blindly betting on every runner who is going off at long odds is financial suicide. On the other hand, betting on a horse just because it is the favorite and has a lot of backers doesn't make good sense. The wise horse player knows there is a time to be a contrarian and a time to be a lemming, well not to the extent of jumping off a cliff, but at least to the point of being willing to bet on a horse even though others are betting on it, too.
What this all boils down to is that when you look at the odds on a horse you shouldn't be doing so to determine public opinion. Even though the odds board is a good indication of the public's faith in each runner, knowing what they think is only helpful when you realize that the crowd, as a rule, loses money on every race, even if the favorite wins.
The psychology of betting often reflects the nature of a person. For instance, some people will think of betting on a horse and then look at the tote board to check the odds. Person A's reaction to the horse being a favorite may be completely different than person B's reaction. Person A may be discouraged and not bet on the horse because he or she doesn't like to bet favorites and feel that he or she is being sheepish and going along with the crowd.
Person Be may look at the odds and, finding the horse is the public's choice, may feel that it is a good sign and therefore be willing to make the wager. Both people are missing the point. The purpose of checking the odds should be to see if the horse offers real value based on your estimate of the runner's chance of winning the race.
There is no problem with being one of the crowd and betting on a horse that is getting some support in the pools as long as the crowd you are joining is the one that looks for value in every bet and makes a profit in the long run. You won't be unique, but you will be part of a very small group of people, the ones who know that the real purpose of using the odds is to determine value, not probability.
If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to http://horse-racing-handicapping.co/ and get the truth about betting on horses and winning. Bill Peterson is a former race horse owner and professional handicapper. To see all Bill's horse racing material go to Horse Racing Handicapping, Bill's handicapping store.
