Which is Easier??

[Brian Collier]

   Is it easier to pick 1 horse to show, or to pick 3 horses and for 1 of them to win?  Keep in mind, this is for a 9 horse race.

[swaymi]

that pick nine ticket cost 1968.30 if that is what you are trying to do is pick three horse in each race good luck....

[Brian Collier]

Actually I'm refering to the guy hat wager's $100 to show every race. We should have a handicapping contest on show horses, since some say it's not possible to come out ahead, and some do. Maybe for friday nights BigM.

[Fillmore Bear]

The win % of the first 3 betting choices combined is somewhat higher than the in the money % of the favorite.
Presumably this would extrapolate to almost any individual handicapper.
It's all but impossible to win betting to show.
There used to be a guy who bet place and show on Chicago harness and seemed like a Pro:BUT he was at the races EVERY night 2 hours to post watching warmups like his life was on the line AND he shopped the pools very carefully AND the takeout was about 3% less back then.

[BeauNarro]

screw win-place-show bets. I only bet trifectas. I usually key a horse to win with 3 others for $1. It's a $6 bet. I rarely put the favorite on top-only in my little $2 back-up bet. example below the #3 is the favorite:

5with 1-3-7with 1-3-7
3with 5with 1-7

$8 bucks total. I usually put two mid to high odds in with the favorite for second and third placers. You'd be surprised on now many big trifectas you will hit.

[EYEcanSEEitNOW]

Depends on what type of a race you are handicapping...

Take for instance a race at Maywood where there are 3 or 4 horses who have very little chance of winning in every race.... Then, of course, it is much easier to pick 3 horses in a race and have just one of them win..

Balmoral, on the other hand, would probably be easier to pick a show horse in most races...  In Crete, it almost seems as though anybody can have a shot at crossing the line first... One that comes to mind would be HEBE a few weeks back...  I couldn't have played that horse with monopoly money.. yet he wins and only pays $40...!!!!    He is a perfect example...  He is also a perfect example of why anybody who has the last name CALVERT isn't allowed to train horses in the state of Illinois any longer!!!