HorseRacingNation.com NewsWire

1979 Belmont Stakes: When the Drought Began

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 20:26:44 GMT

June of 1979 seems along time ago as almost two-thirds of my life has taken place since then. As someone who was starting college later that fall in New York with a growing passion for horse racing and having an Aunt and an Uncle with varying degrees of interest in the sport, I went out to the Big Apple for Spectacular Bid's quest to follow in the footsteps of Seattle Slew and Affirmed, which would have made it three straight years with a Triple Crown winner.

Since I was not one of those weaned on racing by going to the track with my father (not a racing fan), my start following the sport of kings didn't take place until my teenage years with Affirmed's victory over Alydar on the first Saturday in May was the first Kentucky Derby I remember watching. It was around this time of my life when I read 'Picking Winners' by Andrew Beyer and 'Betting Thoroughbreds' by Steve Davidowitz...books which really had an significant impact on my growth in knowledge of the game from a betting perspective.

People like horse racing for different reasons. Many, like yours truly

Living In The Land Of The Not-So-Free

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 16:56:20 GMT

By Dave Gutfreund, DerbyWars.com

Two and a half years ago, my life was totally different when living in Teddington (just outside of London) and essentially being able to do what I wanted when it came to the world of gambling. There were traditional fixed-odds bookmakers, easy access to what are considered in the USA 'offshore books' such as Pinnacle, a type of wagering referred to as 'spread-betting', being able to play on-line poker on any site, as well as exchange wagering with Betfair being the undisputed king.

Also during that time period, I was attempting to set-up an on-line horse racing tournament site as there was no such vehicle in existence back then (as it turns out, a couple of blokes with whom I used to work have given that a go) and set-up a company to do just that. However, something happened. In October of 2009, my life changed drastically when on a trip back to Chicago, I met a wonderful young woman and a few months later my desire to be together led me to leave England.

For those who don't alread

You Can't Allow Yourself To Get Carried Away

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 07:19:19 GMT

It's hard for me to believe that it is already six years since I went to England to work for Racing World television. Seems like just yesterday. And of course, one of the first things I learned about there was a betting exchange called Betfair.

And as someone whose first career was spent as a trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and at the Chicago Board of Trade, I was instantly fascinated by this new way of playing the horses as well as other sports.

Having had a background in trading, plus a pretty big advantage over there on knowledge of American racing... it didn't take very long for me to get stuck in.

Because of those circumstances, along with getting otherwise unfathomable prices on certain horses, it didn't take long for my discipline to crack. And with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, there were two mistakes which I consistently made in my first few months across the pond.

Here they are: First of all, bankroll management. Having belief in your knowledge in general term

Laying Horses Is Not As Easy As It Appears

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 03:12:36 GMT

Based on my own reaction when I first learned about playing on a betting exchange, the reactions of people who I have spoken with personally over the years, and from the responses to my previous blog post...it is quite clear many folks are looking forward to the opportunity of laying horses.

However, be careful what you wish for. It is not that easy and is actually a very difficult skill-set to learn, being able to lay horses in a profitable way long-term.

Whenever you hear someone talking about a tepid favorite in a race and wishing he/she could bet against a particular animal, most times that horse is in the range of 2-1 to 3-1. Now keep in mind, the odds shown on North American tote boards reflect about a 15% takeout rate. When playing on the betting exchange, there is no rake calculated in the odds as commission is only taken from those players who win on a race (2%-5%, depending on handle).

So alot more often than not, to lay a horse on the betting exchange, one must offer odds slightly higher than

What Is So Great About Exchange Wagering?

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:47:29 GMT

So, what is so great about exchange wagering ? Well, let me tell you a few things in this brief introduction to exchange wagering.

First of all, whenever a 'trade' on a betting exchange is made, just like in the stock market, there is a buyer and a seller which will be referred to here as a backer and a layer. The backer is betting on a horse to win and the layer is betting on a horse to lose. A trade is made when a backer and layer 'match' prices on the exchange and the price agreed upon at the time of the trade is then locked in.

What this does is give players so many more options getting involved in a race. One can back and lay the same horse while perhaps locking up a profit if backing the horse at a higher price than laying the horse. Sometimes, you can lay a horse on the exchange at a lower price than a horse will go off in the pari-mutuel market and one can use that as a hedge as well.

For many years, I have often heard at the track or at an OTB regarding a short-priced favorite or horses people just have a negative view on that they w