California Chrome was the favorite to win the 2014 Kentucky Derby, and the chestnut colt purchased for $10,000 will certainly get the Triple Crown talk going again. The story behind this California-bred horse is pretty awesome, as two average Americans from California dubbed “dumb asses” by a trainer when they got into horse racing somehow managed to win the Kentucky Derby. Steve Coburn and Perry Martin turned down $6 million for a 51% ownership in California Chrome before the Derby, but now with the horse’s fifth-straight win and a real shot at the Triple Crown, we can safely assume the price has gone up considerably.

The Triple Crown was part of my childhood. I was a little too young to appreciate Secretariat in the early 70s, but Seattle Slew and Affirmed were both incredible horses and I remember those vividly. Seattle Slew was dominant in 1977, even if it wasn’t celebrated quite as much as the legendary Secretariat. Affirmed was special due to the classic rivalry with Alydar in one of the most excited Triple Crown runs in history. Their epic battle ended in a race at the Belmont Stakes for the ages with Affirmed literally winning by a nose to grab the Triple Crown.

But Affirmed was the last winner. It was so exciting in the 1970s with these great horses, but nobody good have predicted the Triple Crown drought that would follow. There were many close calls, and I was at the Belmont Stakes in 1989 when Sunday Silence was trying for the Triple Crown but was denied by Easy Goer. I had bet Sunday Silence hoping to witness history, but I was in the infield near the finish line as Pat Day rode to an impressive win for Easy Goer, which was probably the better horse.

But May is around the corner, and the sports world will be watching sports like basketball and hockey, but that won’t be all.

As we get set for the NBA and NHL playoffs next week all eyes have diverted away from horse racing but lest we forget the most exciting 2 minutes in sports that are the Kentucky Derby. The 2014 Kentucky Derby takes place at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May and you can get the latest qualifying scores report and line moves at the official Kentucky Derby betting site to help you with your Kentucky Derby online wagering picks and predictions.

Horse racing could really use a Triple Crown winner, as the health of the sport has really suffered over the years. Pimlico Race Course in Maryland, home of the Preakness Stakes, had to be bailed out by the state in order to continue operations. Many race tracks these days can’t survive without slots to draw more visitors.

But the big races are still a huge party, and if you’re looking for a great time you can start with the classic Kentucky Derby.

Among horse racing experts nowadays, nothing is more important than the form of each racehorse. What a horse has done in the past can be used to predict just how it may do in future races, and for this reason, when used properly, form can be an effective indicator and a clue as to how a race may unfold.

Many casual punters may choose to bet on a horse because they like the name or have a lucky number. More experienced race goers may have use basic methods of selecting a horse, such as an in-form jockey or trainer. However, the most hardcore, and often most successful, of punters will take into account a range of factors, mostly from how the horse has performed in the past, also known as its form. Form is made up by a few key statistics.

What To Look For

Class: This is an indicator of how the horse performed against other horses of a certain quality. For example, a horse may have won every race it has entered, but in a lower class of race, which may be a negative for his future chances against tougher opponents. On the other hand, a horse that has performed badly in a higher class may just need a step down in class to perform well, something which will be seen in its form. This can also affect the odds as obviously all races are looked at in isolation and you can only be as good as the opposition you face.

Distance: Along with class, another key point to note about a horse’s previous races is the distance of the race. A horse may have been well beaten in a previous race, but stayed on strongly towards the end. This may indicate that with a longer trip, the horse could perform much better.

Going: The going is a way of describing the condition of the ground in a race, for example ‘good’, ‘firm’, and ‘soft’. Some horses may have recorded their best performances on ground of a certain type, suggesting they prefer it. This can be an extremely important factor.

Course: Some horses, for whatever reason, simply perform better at certain racecourses. This can easily be seen within a horse’s form and is a favourite factor with form-readers.

Form can be an extremely important aspect of betting, and today races can come down to a clue hidden deep in the past performances of horses, and as much as things like the Coral form guide can help some days mystic meg would struggle . However, as with any of us, racehorses can simply have bad days which cannot be explained, but also, on the flip side, with a bit of luck a horse can win any given race. Due to this, form can be an excellent indicator, however, there is no accounting for improvements or good old fashioned luck, whether it be good or bad.

Race tracks have been facing difficult issues for years. In places like Ohio they’ve had to add slot machines to get people to come. At Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland, the Preakness Stakes wasn’t enough to keep that track out of trouble. The state had to get involved to save it. Of course horseracing betting is incredibly popular online and in places like Las Vegas. The huge races like the Kentucky Derby get mobbed with visitors of course as these are huge events in popular culture. But getting visitors to the tracks on a consistent basis for the weekly races is critical to the success of the entire industry. But as pointed out recently at Deadspin.com, the demographics are not too friendly to the industry as the fans are mostly older.

Fortunately we’re seeing modern marketing efforts coming from the industry as many have embraced social media tools like Twitter. The Kentucky Derby account has over 33,000 followers while the Breeder’s Cup has over 27,000 followers. Even the Preakness Stakes has over 7,000 followers, though they could probably be more active on that account. Also, as pointed out by Deadspin, the industry is signing up brand ambassadors who will use events and social media to reach out to younger people in cities like Miami to spark interest. Of course these representatives are often young, beautiful and female, but that has always been a marketing staple. The point is that they can no longer just count on men in their 20s and 30s to just show up at the track on the weekend. There are too many entertainment and sports options, let alone casinos and online gaming options as well. The good thing is that the product is still very entertaining. Horse races are a blast when you spend the day at the track. The key is conveying that message and finding promotions to get young people in the door for the first time so they have fun and then want to come back.

Placing bets in multiple sports games at the same time requires more than manual handicapping techniques. Computer handicapping presents a viable solution, as the automated system can create statistics and calculations quickly. Even when compared with the methodology of a professional, calculations made by software is far more consistent. This is because there is always a tendency for “human error.”

And when correctly utilized, the software can place the odds in your favor by painting a canvas of the possible winner of a future race. As for judging factors, you always have the option of generating ratings from the computer and making modifications based on unaccounted for variables.
Computer handicapping can be used in different sports including:

1. Baseball

The right baseball handicapping program can go a long way in generating a positive ROI (in some cases for the entire season). It will also give you a competitive advantage over a square handicapper, but most of the results depend on the accuracy of the data. Regardless of whether the data is downloaded from an online site or entered manually, it needs to be spot on because the software itself will be worthless if the facts are incorrect.

Moreover, a good program will make modifications from what it has learned from the previous seasons. This is done through propriety technology used in software that features a learning module (AI or Artificial Intelligence). It is just like Siri on iPhone, the voice assistant that makes suggestions after learning about the behavior of the user.

2. Horse Racing

A horse racing handicapping software becomes imperative if you are planning on betting multiple races at once. This is because there are far too many jockeys, tracks and races, so it becomes impossible to rely on a manual handicapping technique. Good software will be easy to use and you don’t have to configure the models, dimension sets and factors for each new race.

This is because the systems are based on learning by doing, so most of the data is saved under user names and the same variables are taken into account for future races. Some offerings also give an option to automate models based on recent data and place bet parameters to draw a line between the safest and the best bets.

3. NFL

NFL handicapping programs can be used for over/under wagering as well as direct bets. Some of them can also make graphs and pie charts for each team, showcasing the number of points earned and the yards gained by different players. Those graphics are then converted into a spreadsheet to advise you over wagering and direct betting in football.

The technology generates automated scoring of over/under results as well as wins. You can also find options to make a ledger, to compare success in a particular game, week, month or year to the previous game, week, month or year.

So computer handicapping technology does have a role to play and, combined with the manual input of missing factors, it can increase the chances of monetary success.