I have been studying TG using the ROTW for about 6 months now. I have learned a lot along the way. I understand the analysis if TG figures and patterns, but not how everyone is using TG on a day by day or week by week basis. I tried searching for this topic, but I haven\'t found the right search terms yet. My question is how do most players use TG on a weekly basis? For example, the cost of TG has to be relative to your play. This is clearly not a product for the $2 player, yet it is easily a product for the $1K/day player. Do most of you stick to one circuit? One day a week? Every day?
Perhaps it would help if I describe my play a little bit. I pretty much play $100-400 each weekend on the races that interest me and mostly the NY circuit. I feel like it would be practical for me to start using TG weekly, but don\'t know that I am fast enough with the analysis to evaluate more than one track on Saturday and Sunday. So how do you handle it when you are really interested in a race or two at Santa Anita, another at Keeneland, and in NY, etc? Do you just purchase TG for the circuit you like the most or pick and choose a card with the races you are most interested in? I would appreciate any pointers on the practical logistics of buying and using TG.
There is a create a card special option available online that allows you to choose any 9 races at any tracks and it will only cost $25 instead of $45.
My way is simple. I get the DRF the day before and try to scope out a wagering strategy (which tracks and which races I have an affinity for). When I\'ve figured that out, I get a weather forecast for the track, and if if looks fast and firm, I then order the races I want and study them further.
One nice thing about Thorographs as oppsed to Rags (I have confessed that I use both) is T-G allows you to buy just one race at time, so you can always decide whenever you want. Rags has a $15 minimum on their site, so you could spend a lot, and if you forget one race, you\'re screwed!
If you focus on one track that\'s a different strategy, but if you play multiple tracks, you really have to narrow the types of races you feel most comfortable with -- mine are (in no order) Maiden Special Weights, Maiden Races on Grass, Allowance Races, Stakes -- I\'m not so hot with cheap claiming races and turf sprints aren\'t always my best though in California, you get an lot of those, so you have to deal with it.
It\'s interesting to me that I\'ve looked at Aqueduct lately, and I really like it for whatever reason. Maybe the jockeys are so much better, and I also think the grass racing is better in NY than California, but I really find Aqueduct a track where I can make some money -- that\'s rare for me b/c I usually play only California tracks.
I\'m not very far ahead of you, Number58, TG-wise, so maybe these suggestions will help:
* Keep a copy of the explanation on how to read TG handy. Refer to it often.
* Definitely cherry-pick your tracks / races, and use the Create-A-Card feature. I skip short fields, sloppy tracks (too many potential scratches), maiden races, and unless it\'s a stakes race, 2 year olds. On any given weekend day, and this time of year, I end up with about 4 or 5 races from NY, 1 or 2 from Kentucky, maybe a Calder race, and the rest SoCal. I almost always select turf races only, because these continue to be a great source for decent mutuel prices.
* There is no point in buying more than 9 races for any one day (only $25 with Create-A-Card) when you are first starting out. IMO, with a premium product like TG, you no longer need to be an \"action junkie\", if you were one before; you have in your hands all that you need to crush the living snot out of a race or three. The goal is to get your knowledge,understanding, and most of all, your betting confidence, to a level where you say, \"This is the race. I\'m going for it\", and then swing from your heels. You won\'t ever get there if you overwhelm yourself by looking at TG sheets for 300 horses in one day.
* Don\'t stop learning when the race is over. Unless you swept the pools in a race, from Win all the way through to Octofecta, some horse(s) likely ran better than you expected, and some ran worse. Did you miss something? Save the TG\'s, take them home with you, then go through the race again with the Equibase chart in full view. You\'ll find stuff you missed, so I promise you that this will speed up your learning curve, and lower your \"tuition payments\".
Good luck!
Thanks, these are some excellent suggestions because I am not an action junky. I just need to look at a few races to pick out my best couple of opportunities.
And, since I am heading to the BIG A on Saturday, feel free to email me on Friday, as I will be handicapping the card all day Friday at the work desk. We can discuss the live ones for the Sat card.
Nice work if you can get it! lol Where do I apply? Will be glad to have you share your thoughts-
Rick B.\'s last two points are so good I\'ve copied them below, and I\'ll echo them here.
When I first started using figs and came to understand their power I got a little overzealous. I was looking at 2-3 products a day, and as Rick B. says, that\'s just too much. Focus on your strengths as a handicapper and use the figures as a tool not a crutch or a replacement for other handicapping methods.
EdD
Rick B. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> * There is no point in buying more than 9 races
> for any one day (only $25 with Create-A-Card) when
> you are first starting out. IMO, with a premium
> product like TG, you no longer need to be an
> \"action junkie\", if you were one before; you have
> in your hands all that you need to crush the
> living snot out of a race or three. The goal is to
> get your knowledge,understanding, and most of all,
> your betting confidence, to a level where you say,
> \"This is the race. I\'m going for it\", and then
> swing from your heels. You won\'t ever get there if
> you overwhelm yourself by looking at TG sheets for
> 300 horses in one day.
>
> * Don\'t stop learning when the race is over.
> Unless you swept the pools in a race, from Win all
> the way through to Octofecta, some horse(s) likely
> ran better than you expected, and some ran worse.
> Did you miss something? Save the TG\'s, take them
> home with you, then go through the race again with
> the Equibase chart in full view. You\'ll find stuff
> you missed, so I promise you that this will speed
> up your learning curve, and lower your \"tuition
> payments\".
>
> Good luck!
All excellent points IMO . To a degree , everybody has their own style and see potential plays , patterns , potential race shapes , value etc unique to themselves when handicapping .
I weight my decisions heavily with pattern plays and patterns and make adjustments based on a horses potential to save or lose ground and ability get a trip . Even though I\'m betting on a relative \"Newtonian\" scale compared to many here , I still want a price and a lot for my money .
It\'s a good practice - win or lose , to look at the sheets and charts afterwards to gain insight into not only how but why your horses performed the way they did . IMO , certain meets or circuits might favor a personal approach or style of play better than some others .
I\'d love to attend Aqu this weekend - specially at this time of year with the 2 yo pattern picture beginning to solidify , one can be a bit ahead of the curve - but Saturday I\'m planning on attending a Chamber Music Festival to hopefully see and hear South Africa\'s very own Neville Dove - the #1 concert pianist ...
These are some excellent points. I haven\'t gone back and looked at races afterwards, so I will give that a try. I was asking about how you use the product because one of the things I will do with a DRF is go through and look at all the maiden claimers looking for that rare horse dropping down from a quality MSW start who has only raced in a MSW or two. I don\'t see this as a really practical thing to do with TG figures. I was also trying to figure out what level of play justifies purchasing TG. At my level of play, I can probably justify a 9 race card purchase on Saturday/Sunday, but I am just not going to play at the same level the rest of the week. I rarely play on a regular day of the week unless it is a situation like the BC Friday races or maybe Kentucky Oaks or something like that. I may even go several weeks before I see a race situation that I like enough.