Greyhound Dog Racing Tips.
When I first started going to the dog track, I loved betting on closers. Not for me the early speed dogs that went off at low odds. Nope. I was the one who bet on the dog that hung back until the last turn, then put on the juice and passed the tiring speedballs that the crowd had bet down to nothing. My closers, on the other hand, usually paid well, because most bettors are fools for early speed and afraid to bet closers because they might get blocked or not make it in time.
My friend, Willie, who got me going to the track in the first place, used to call me Longshot Louie, because I bet on so many closers at long odds. But he had to admit that they paid off well when they came in. And nothing beats the thrill of seeing your longshot pass the frontrunners right at the wire, except the thrill of cashing a ticket on a dog at 10-1. For me, the drama was almost as important as winning.
But now, the thrill is gone. I don't bet on dogs because they're closers anymore, unless there are other good reasons to bet on them. Over the last thirty years, I've learned that dramatics don't pay the bills. The thrill I get from cashing several tickets on dogs who pay decent - but not long - odds is much better than cashing one longshot ticket and losing the other longshot bets.
Early speed and the ability to keep up with the pace are more likely to indicate a winner than pure closing ability. Even in a route race, early speed is a good thing. Although closing ability is important, go over your old programs and notice how many times the winner of a route race got out early. Maybe it wasn't first, but it was out there at the beginning of the race or at least at the 1/8th call.
Every once in awhile, a dog comes along that gets up into stakes races, even though it doesn't have early speed. When that happens it makes for some exciting races, because so many stakes dogs have early speed. Of course, the really good ones also have stamina and determination. (K's Flak's puppies come to mind. They must have been crossed with bulldogs somewhere in the past, because they never gave up.)
I love watching races where closers come off the pace to nip the frontrunners right at the wire, but I don't bet on many of those races. I don't bet on whims either, like I did when I first started going to the dog track. Nowadays, I use much better judgment and cash a lot more tickets than I did back then. I still get a thrill, but I don't have to have a cliff-hanger finish on every race to get one.
Greyhound Dog Racing.