Basic Action: We’ve covered some basic betting angles thus far on #TheAction. This week, we take a closer look at how to uncover those angles by taking a deeper dive into the past performances (PPs). In any racing program, you’ll find several basic items printed near the name of each horse in the race: their odds, jockey, silk colors and patterns, owner, trainer, breeder, pedigree and age. Beneath the horse’s name, you will often find multiple horizontal lines with numbers and abbreviations - each line represents a previous race that a horse has run in, starting with its most recent race at the top.
Advanced Action: Take a look at the basic explainer in the video. These past performances were taken from the Daily Racing Form. Other popular PPs are produced by Equibase and Brisnet. Information varies depending on the types of PPs you use to study the races but a firm understanding of what each abbreviation and the numbers found within the PPs is essential for any serious horse player.
One tip to consider: Many people study the PPs by analyzing a horse’s most recent race (horizontal line at the top) and working down into previous races. It is often more prudent to start with the horse’s earlier races (horizontal lines of data at the bottom) and then working up to the horse’s most recent races. Doing your analysis bottom-up, will give you a better sense for the horse’s history, where they’ve been, who they’ve faced and why they’ve been entered to run in the current race. That additional context will help the player, once practiced enough, make a more well-rounded decision about the horse’s chances of winning.
