So, the powers that be said: How about applying your betting rules to future Woodbine races rather than just recapping how they worked in the past?
Good idea. That’s why your Bettor’s Edge column will now start appearing on Fridays rather than on Mondays. Let’s win together!
Glancing at Saturday’s Woodbine program, the first thing that jumps out are the three specialist 7-furlong races in a row, from races 7 to 9. That calls out for a pick-three play applying the 7-furlong rule of looking for the horses with the highest Equibase speed figures at that distance.
- Race 7: #5 Silken Dollar’s (4-1) speed figure of 88 is only three higher than #9 Bijou Baby (6-1) but last year she posted a blazing 97 which makes her a standout. Have a care for #1 Lady Moonshine (20-1) and #4 Wicked Mercury (5-2), both of whom posted an 84 last year.
- Race 8: None of the entrants ran a 7-furlong race this year, so we’ll consider last year’s figures: #7 Taquanyah (12-1) posted a 92 and #2 Loon Cry (2-1) posted a 108 pace figure. #1, #5 and #9 posted either 87 or 88 speed figs..
- Race 9: Only one horse has raced at 7 furlongs in this race for maidens and that is #4 Hawkesbury (2-1).
So your pick-3 ticket would be 4 x 5 x 1. Of course, those three races are also the first three legs of the pick-4 and the three middle legs of the pick-5 and three legs of the pick-6. Convenient!
Other possible rule applications:
Race 1 is the chaotic non-winners of two races, which means a horse with dominant speed can get away on the field. That horse is #4 Hayek (5-2). Problem is, she should have done that in the last race, but didn’t. Because this condition it so erratic, leaving out the two favourites and boxing the other four horses in a 20-cent superfecta for $4.80 could result in a payoff in the hundreds.
In race 4, a race for maidens on the turf, the obvious strategy is to check out the turf Tomlinsons in the DRF and you’ll find #3 Raymore (4-1) has the highest figure at 388, so you’d certainly want to add him to the first leg of your pick-4 ticket(s).
~ by Ivan Bigg
