Short Fields: Owners Love it! Bettors Despise it!!
Quote from Lonnie on August 16, 2024, 10:54 AMIn my humble opinion, short fields are BAD for the sport. That said, I'm also an owner, and I love them. I just haven't had any races with fewer than six starters.
But, the bottom line is, from a betting perspective are bad because:
- You usually end up with one very short (odds) favorite, who becomes un-bettable from a value play.
- Makes for very boring races - Often single file until the stretch, which allows the front runner to control the fractions, which is unbearable.
- Single file races give the impression of collusion - we don't need any suspicion in the eyes of bettors. Our sport is suffering bad enough as it is. Don't fuel the bonfire!
- Smaller betting pools and options. This leads me to another sore point - I feel there are too many exotic bets. They dilute the betting pools and tap out the punters as those races often have a higher takeout. That's a beef for another Topic and for another day. And so are trailers. Again, another topic for another day.
I understand that short fields can occur in stakes races if not enough horses drop in the box. The solution to that is to make them non-betting races.
You can encourage owners to drop a horse into a race by offering participation payouts. Say 1% of the pool to any starter who finishes sixth or worse. And that 1% should not come out of the purse money so as not to penalize the horses that finish in the top five, but, are paid by the track. They will make that up with an increased handle.
That's my one cent! Oops, there I go, shorting myself. I want another penny for my thoughts!
In my humble opinion, short fields are BAD for the sport. That said, I'm also an owner, and I love them. I just haven't had any races with fewer than six starters.
But, the bottom line is, from a betting perspective are bad because:
- You usually end up with one very short (odds) favorite, who becomes un-bettable from a value play.
- Makes for very boring races - Often single file until the stretch, which allows the front runner to control the fractions, which is unbearable.
- Single file races give the impression of collusion - we don't need any suspicion in the eyes of bettors. Our sport is suffering bad enough as it is. Don't fuel the bonfire!
- Smaller betting pools and options. This leads me to another sore point - I feel there are too many exotic bets. They dilute the betting pools and tap out the punters as those races often have a higher takeout. That's a beef for another Topic and for another day. And so are trailers. Again, another topic for another day.
I understand that short fields can occur in stakes races if not enough horses drop in the box. The solution to that is to make them non-betting races.
You can encourage owners to drop a horse into a race by offering participation payouts. Say 1% of the pool to any starter who finishes sixth or worse. And that 1% should not come out of the purse money so as not to penalize the horses that finish in the top five, but, are paid by the track. They will make that up with an increased handle.
That's my one cent! Oops, there I go, shorting myself. I want another penny for my thoughts!
Quote from Niatross on August 16, 2024, 6:05 PMI agree with you there on all points. It's a bad look for the public. Though I've only looked at it from a betting perspective. I don't know what the public thinks. Then again, there is no public to ask. ::sadness::
I agree with you there on all points. It's a bad look for the public. Though I've only looked at it from a betting perspective. I don't know what the public thinks. Then again, there is no public to ask. ::sadness::