Today, at Hollywood Park, I hit the Daily Double. Two of my early selections, Three Points in race one and Belong to Parfait in race two, won their races. Three Points paid $4.40 for the race one win and Belong to Parfait paid $7.00 for the race two win. I love starting out the day with a couple of winners. The Daily Double paid $12.80 per $2 wagered, which makes me a very happy horse racing bettor.

Race five from Hollywood Park is a 1 1/16 mile $40,000 claiming race on turf. Being that it is a turf race, I set out to look at the class of the nine horse field to make my selection. The morning line is favoring Rich Sense at 5-2 and Early Ronan at 3-1. Rich Sense is definitely a threat here, but I think Early Ronan could be much ado about nothing. However, the horse I really like in this race could go off at a nice price.

Race three at Hollywood Park is a 1 1/4 mile turf allowance race—ALW62000. All five horses in this field are from other countries. New Regina is from Brazil, Tivadare from France, Cissy from Argentina, Live Life from France and Dalicia from Germany. When trying to handicap a turf race, I look at class first and foremost. The public will most likely go for Live Life with jockey Valenzuela. The morning line has Live Life at 9-5. Her last race was almost a month ago at Hollywood Park(N2X) where she finished second by a neck—giving up the lead. I think she is going to need to lead to be successful in this race.

Every good horse racing website needs to have a horse racing glossary. If you are new to horse racing handicapping or just horse racing in general, here are some horse racing terms you should know.

This year’s Met Mile (Metropolitan Handicap) was an absolute thriller. It came down to the wire and Silver Train won in a photo finish. Silver Bullet stayed just off the pace for most of the race and then took charge as the front-runners tired. Sun King challenged as well and made it very interesting, but Silver Train won by a head. Jockey Edgar Prado, who was the jockey of Barbaro, had to feel great. Both Silver Train and Sun King had bumped starts.

Most casual horse racing fans and those new to horse racing handicapping tend to think all races are the same. Some horses are lined up and run to the finish. If you are going to engage in horse racing handicapping, it’s vital to know not only the difference in race types, but also how they stack in a hierarchal sense. Horse racing is the same as many other sports—you have the major leagues and several levels below them. A horse may run at many levels over the course of its lifetime and during that lifetime it may move up and down many times. Following is a listing of horse racing types (also known as “Class”), listed in the order of their level—from lowest to highest.

Hollywood Park is about to hold another installment of their $1,000,000 Guaranteed Pick Six promotions. It will be held on Monday, May 29th. Entrance is open to all of those placing a Pick Six wager at Hollywood Park or one of its co-mingled satellite wagering locations. The minimum bet n the Pick Six is $2 and normal Pick Six rules apply. The $1,000,000 Guaranteed Pick Six promotion on Monday will consist of the final six races at Hollywood Park.

Race two at Los Alamitos is a 400 yard 5000 claiming race for three year olds and upward. The one horse, Fits the Bill, was scratched in this race. The field is now down to six horses. All horses are four years old with the exception of Prrr D Terrific, who’s 6 years old, and Specialization, who’s 8 years old. The favorites are Ottabe a Fast Lane, Specialization and Under the Radar.

Race one at Hollywood Park is a 7 and 1/2 furlongs 8000 claiming race for Fillies and Mares four years old and upward. Non-winners of two races in 2006 are allowed 2lbs. and non-winners of a race in 2006 allowed 4lbs. Mercedes Dancer is the favorite in this six horse field, but caution should be applied. Mercedes Dancer is dropping a ton in class and had not showed anything special of late. The drop in class and sub-par workout times most likely means she is only running at partial ability.

Friday, May 26, 2006

Race one at Emerald Downs is a 1 mile long 10000 Maiden race for three year olds and upward. I have looked over the seven horse race and found a horse that I like. The general consensus is leading towards Candlestick Park, who is 3-1 in the morning line. Candlestick Park continues his descent in class. My main concern here is the fact that he’s showing little in 6 furlong races. Today’s, one mile race might be too much.