Chapter 24 - Four Follow-Up Systems

The owner of a thoroughbred, even a cheap animal, must spend about $15 a day, or more, in sheltering him, feeding him, caring for him and training him. Then he takes a chance that the horse never will earn enough to pay for his board and keep.

Some players like to have all the fun of "owning" a stable without paying all the bills. About the best way to pull off this trick is to draw up a list of horses to watch and follow.

The player need spend nothing more than his usual $2 bet when he finds one of these horses entered in a race. When the race is over, win or lose, the player can let the horse wander back to the stable where the owner can resume paying the bills. All the player needs to worry about is that he is not on vacation when the horse wins.

The following pages offer some suggestions as to how players in the past made up "stables" to follow.

System Number 1

Frequently, an owner enters two horses in the same race and they run as an entry. In other words, the player gets two horses for the price of one ticket.

The owner, of course, doesn't expect the horses to run one-two, but once in a while that does happen. One of the horses usually is far over his head, and the owner may be racing him in competition instead of giving him lone workouts.

Sooner or later, however, the defeated horse is dropped down among his own company. Many players overlook him because his last performance was bad. A good method is to follow these defeated horses and play them every time they are entered alone.

A list of such horses can be compiled by watching the result charts or by looking at past performances. An "e" before the price in the past performances indicates the horse ran as an entry in that race. If he has not won since then, put him on your list.

The method is simple:

1.a horse becomes a selection if he once ran as an entry and since then has not won a race.

2. he must be running alone. If he shows up again with a stablemate, there is no play.

3. continue playing each horse in all his starts but when he wins drop him.

System Number 2

Since Trackman is on hand every day to watch the horses workout and then perform in actual racing, he is the one selector whose judgment should be worth most.

When he selects a BEST BET, it is well to note that selection but not to play it. If it loses, watch for it the next time out. If Trackman has it on top (but not as BEST BET this time) play it. Such horses are worth two or three follow-ups.

System Number 3

(Long-shot Repeater System)

1. Selections are made for this long-shot method in the same manner as they were chosen for the Repeater System on page 202.

2. The selections are not played on the day chosen unless, of course, the player counts them under the regular Repeater Method. But the long-shot method comes into play only if the horse LOSES on the day he was first chosen.

3. All such losers are followed for not more than three times and then dropped. If they win within three times, they also are dropped unless they should again qualify as a Repeater horse.

4. In brief, losers in the Repeater system are followed up until they win or until they have run three times from the day they first became a selection.

5. The selections which do best are those which after their winning race in which they qualified, they have been raised sharply in price and have lost and then are dropped down again.

Workout Sheet

For the Long-shot Repeater System (System No. 3)

June 15

4th Race, Belmont—YOU GO paid $20.60

1st Race, Delaware—ULTRA PRIAM paid $13.80

2nd Race, Delaware—BONA REQUEST paid $11.20 (This daily double paid $83.20)

June 19

1st Race, Arlington—FLEET ARGO paid $30.60

7th Race, Arlington—BLACK EMPEROR paid $10.40

8th Race, Hazel Park—DORJE paid $21.60

5th Race, Monmouth—TEN SECONDS paid $64.40

8th Race, Monmouth—GUNTER MASTER paid $23.00

1st Race, Delaware—BEAUTY MISS paid $11.20

June 20

3rd Race, Arlington—RONUS paid $25.20

6th Race, Arlington—LEATHER KID paid $8.80

6th Race, Hazel Park—INTELLIGENT paid $10.80

7th Race, Hazel Park—WINDSOR KNOT paid $21.00

June 22

8 Delaware, DOCTOR LEO

He ran out of money in first time out after he qualified

The second time out he paid $55.20

System Number 4

As indicated in a previous chapter, all but the best horses run in claiming races. These cheaper horses are known to the fans as "claimers" or "platers."

Most tracks restrict claims to owners of horses running at that track. Any owner, by depositing the claiming price before race time, can claim a horse.

An owner of a claimer is in somewhat of a dilemma. If he enters the horse at a low claiming price the character of the competition and the assignment of weights will increase his chances of winning. But it also increases his chances of losing his horse to what fans call "haltermen" —owners who like to build up their stables by claiming horses.

For example, an owner may think his horse is worth $4,000 and runs him in $4,000 claiming races. But he doesn't win. The owner then may drop him to $3,500 or $3,000 in hopes that he now will win. Another owner, who might think the horse is pretty good but not worth $4,000, may be watching and when the animal is dropped to $3,000 put a claim in for him.

Once a horse is claimed, the new owner usually runs him in a race with a price tag above that which he paid for him. There are several reasons for this.

He may enter the horse for a higher price with no hope of winning but just to see what the horse can do. It gives the horse more racing experience and gives the new owner a chance to study the horse in competition.

Again, an owner who claims a horse for $4,000 doesn't want someone else to claim him for $4,000 the next time the horse starts. The stable can't make any money that way. So the horse may be entered at a higher price to discourage claimers or to make sure if he is claimed that the stable will make a profit.

Sometimes the horse astounds his new owner by winning at the higher price. For it may be that the old owner had continually underestimated the horse's ability.

Rules:

1. Make a list of all horses that have been claimed in their last race and then follow them up for three times or until they win.

In the past performances, a "c" in front of the claiming price of the race means that the horse was claimed for that amount from that race.

Workout Sheet for No. 4 June 15

6 Hazel Park, GRAND TEMPO paid $10.00

The horse was claimed for $5,000

In his next race he was entered for $6,500

Today he was entered at $6,250 and won 8 Suffolk Downs—COAXIAL paid $14.40

Was claimed for $2,000

Ran out at $2,750 in his next race

Lost again at $2,500

Today he won at $2,500

8 Belmont—G-TWO paid $65.70

Claimed for $7,500 in a 7-furlong race

Then next time out entered at a mile and a sixteenth for $12,500 and won

June 20

9 Suffolk—TARZAN paid $11.20

Claimed for $4,000
 
Ran out in an allowance race the next time out Then entered at $4,500 and won

4 Monmouth—WAILA paid $41.40

Claimed at $5,000

Won at $6,000 the second time out after being claimed 4 Delaware—TRUMPINGTON paid $15.00

Claimed at $6,500

Ran fourth at $9,500

Won at $10,000

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here….