drop in Handle
 

I am not a $2 bettor. I used to wager between $1,000 and $5,000 per day. However, I have reduced by amount drastically. WHY? The powers to be have ruined racing for me and many other large bettors. Back in the 60's and 70's when I started the minimum wager was $2.00. In Today's money that would be probably around $20. Instead of increasing the minimum......what do they do they lowered the minimum to 50 cents and in some cases 10 cents. Well, because payoffs are based on the amount of winning tickets even a 10 cent bettor can play combinations with longshots thereby increasing the number of winning tickets and thus reducing the amount of the payoffs. When the powers to be changed Exactas and Trifectas to 50 cents I could no longer bet the same way. 10 cent superfecta even made it worse. So I quit betting exactas, trifectas and supers. When the Hi5 came along I switched to only betting those races and especially when there was a carryover. Gulfstream was my major play as it was a rolling Hi5. Well, someone at Gulfstream (who probably knows nothing about betting) decided to drop the rolling Hi5s. Over the past 10 years I probably bet over $1million dollars at GP. But with their decision I have dropped GP completely except maybe the last race when there happens to be a carryover. So now I've dropped by betting to maybe just a few races a week. So, instead of putting a few hundred thousand threw the windows yearly I'm down to about maybe at most $10,000. And if you are one of those people that says just buy more tickets on the same exacta or trifecta than you don't understand and I don't want to even talk to you. Another thing I don't understand is why so many tracks have gone to these jackpot payoffs. I thought tracks made their money with turnover of dollars wagered. The jackpot races simply take money out of the bettors pockets that they can't rollover. Where is the logic here? Maybe the tracks make more money with the interest on holding your money than they do on you turning the money over. Just doesn't make sense to me and I will never bet a Jackpot race unless it is a Hi5 carryover. Bottom line is that I think many of the high rollers have given up on racing and move there money elsewhere, like Football or some other sport. Until the powers to be are replaced I see betting the horses as a dieing sport. Just maybe this is intentional - I don't know. Losing someone like me is like losing 100 or more $2 bettors. Guess they want to cater to the masses instead of the hard core gamblers.

My kingdom for a carriage return!!!

Please let me know if I've got this right.


I understand that mr.chicken has been a member here for a long time 2018 I think I read that under his name.


Also under his name, I see that he has made (1) one post.


All things considered...having read his post from start to finish...here are my comments.


1. He would like us to believe that he bet tremendous amounts on horseracing in the past. Interesting enough, for a first poster, 'specially after all these years!
2. He says he has cut his betting by a very significant amount, and states some of the reasons for doing this
3. He does not 'figger' that it's too important to write his thoughts (or organize his thoughts) in and effort to make his statements more meaningful to his readers.


Since he has waited 6 years to make his first post, I am suggesting that we cut the gentleman some slack.

Sports betting is where all the action is, if you live in a state where it's legal.

Horse racing has no real chance against legal sports betting, it's seen as a much better game by the general public, and I would have to agree.

IMO, there isn't as much to sports betting as horse racing. It’s like betting a match race with much less takeout, and there are just not as many interesting scenarios in football or baseball or whatever, compared to horse racing

I agree though of course on THE WEB the gloves come off early and often.

More mysteries tonight. Not sure why mr chicken took a while to make his first post, but I do realize some people like to type and others don't - regardless of the state of their carriage return.

I'm in agreement with chicken's experience. In the 80s and 90s, I used to typically toss several hundred thousand through the tote every year, and when ADWs came out I was a VIP member at Winticket/Twinspires at first, though I can't say as I've heard from them now for over a decade. But I was a bigger fish up until about 2005 or so, if you will, like a walleye or bullhead.

Now I too am a minnow, though I don't consider the changes in minimum bets or the types of wagers to be the biggest reason for my personal decline in handle. It has much more to do with competition from "computer" guys/groups, and the much more difficult task of finding overlays. There's many races where I find no value, as I can't compete with their edge in "true odds" calculations nor can I compete with their edge in rebates.

This year I've retired and will be living on a lower, fixed income. I suspect twelve months from now, based on current trends, I'll be more accurately described as "plankton" versus a minnow.:)

+1 If I wanted to get serious about sports betting, then I'd just steer my efforts to the financial markets. The ponies are much more interesting, even with the problems in the sport.

I'm gonna call BS on this one.

Sports betting is a lot more interesting than horse racing if you want to, you know, actually win money.

My sentiments exactly! :ThmbUp:

Unlike most of the posters here...I will bet on practically anything that I see potential profit in. Horses, sports, poker, and even certain casino games, are all on my wagering menu. And the only reason I avoid the financial markets - bitcoin notwithstanding - is because "long term" to me is three hours instead of three years. The horses are the toughest game in town to beat, IMO...and I consider a flip of a card or a roll of the dice to be just as "exciting" as any horse race. And just as "interesting" as well. It isn't the particular gambling game that is "interesting" or 'exciting'...IMO. Like castaway says...it's whether or not the bettor is primarily "profit-motivated".

Before I started betting baseball...I considered this game to be so boring that it was painful for me to watch it on TV. But once I started betting on it...I was fixated on every pitch of every slow-moving pitcher.

Sports wagering apps offer so much better promotions than horse racing ADW's do. Horse racing ADW's have so few offers and promos.

The competition for market share in the sports wagering industry leads to the customer having lots of good options to make profits with all the offers available. On my ADW I get 4 chances a week to make a $10 win bet and get the money back if the horse runs 2nd or 3rd. Whoopie.

Greatest gambling game game on earth, even with the problems

They offer great props because they are making a killing off the squares.

sports betting with these apps is a joke. if you are playing on them, you are a guaranteed loser no matter what you get for the promotions.