Handicapping a horse’s speed, mostly known as pace handicapping, is an essential thing for bettors to determine which horse will go early or stay fast late. The speed of a horse will also determine the quality of the horse. Many handicapping proponents also say that the race’s outcome will still be based on its performance and not solely because of its speed. 

As a bettor, it is best to do pace handicapping for all the horses on the race you are planning to wager on. However, it would help if you watched out for these common mistakes when doing speed handicapping. 

Speed Overvaluing 

How fast a horse run is crucial in horse racing as it is a game of who finishes the race first. For a horse to reach the finish line first, it must have the fastest speed on all the contenders. 

Although horse speed is the focus of pace handicapping, there are still so many factors that you should consider in pace handicapping. The common mistake bettors made here is that they rely too much on speed and with the horse’s past speed results. 

Before doing a pace handicapping, you should study how to properly do it first to avoid overvaluing a speed which is the most common mistake by many bettors. You must understand the importance and the proper application of speed on your handicapping strategy. 

Jumping In Without Proper Knowledge

Most newbies jump into betting in horse races without even doing research. If you genuinely want to win and profit from wagers on horse races, you must never ignore how necessary knowledge is in attaining success. 

Professional and veteran horse race bettors take time to study the contenders and plan a strategy before placing their bets. This effort includes handicapping and comparing statistics and information of all the horses involved in the race. 

To ensure that you will get the best result of your research, take as much information as you can to study each horse properly. As a result, the chances of you winning your bet and profiting will increase significantly.

Not Taking Other Factors Into Account

Not just because it is called speed or pace handicapping, you will focus on one the speed of the horse. Of course, other things will affect how the horse performs on the race track, including his speed. 

A proper way to carry out a horse race handicapping is to consider the race conditions, the horse’s form, and its connections—for example, the horse’s success rate increases if handled by the best jockeys in the industry. 

Studying the Horse Pre-race

Expert betting advice newbies to stay distant from a racing system. They instead encouraged newbies to study the horse’s speed, pace, and form to have a more promising outcome on their betting decisions. 

Proper knowledge about the horses will increase your chance of choosing the best horse correctly and, in return, give you a chance to win your bet. The best thing to do here is to visit the horses before the race at the walking ring and watch them as they do their exercise to prepare for the race. Also, watching the Prep races can give you a hint on how well the horse will perform on the race day.

Another thing to remember when doing your pre-race observation, do not to get easily deceived by what you see on the horses, like leg bandages and the like. Bandages are used for horses for injuries and the protection and support of the horses.

There are so many things that you can notice that might deceive you into thinking that a particular horse is weak and does not deserve your wager. This is the main reason why handicapping is essential before you choose the horse to bet, as what you see is not always what you thought it is. 

Even the most veteran bettors still perform a handicapping before deciding which horse to wager on. This is one of the best tools that can help you determine which horse will give you significant profit or who will not. 

Bet Base on Value 

Another reason why handicapping became a thing for professional bettors is because they already know that the best way to win in horse betting is to bet based on the horse’s value and not based on luck. One way to get the horse’s value is through handicapping. 

Never underestimate the importance of handicapping in horse betting. You are not betting on losing. But instead, you are betting to profit. Even if your main reason for betting on a horse race is just for fun, it will only be fun for you if you win. 

Do Proper Research

Aside from doing a pace or speed handicapping for each horse in a race you are wagering, it is also best to research every factor that you think will affect the result of the race, such as their trainers, jockeys, bloodline, and past performances.