If you’ve dabbled in any kind of sports betting, you’ve definitely come across the word “handicapper” — but what is a handicapper? And how do they do what they do? Check out our educational video to get a quick overview of this exciting role.
What Is A Professional Handicapper?
In horse racing, professional handicappers use their knowledge of the competitor’s past performance, connections with other industry professionals and personal observations to assess how well they expect a horse to perform. Individuals who exhibit a skill for making accurate picks can turn it into a career by selling tip sheets with their insights.
How Do Handicappers Make Odds?
Handicappers rely on sophisticated data analytics and algorithms to analyze past races and guide their decision-making. They analyze variables like the horse’s class, speed ratings, track conditions, race distance and pedigree to identify odds for each individual.
By watching races and morning workouts, analyzing data, and using their knowledge of the horses and the track they’re running on, professional handicappers can recognize trends that help them predict the outcome of races.
How Do I Become A Good Horse Handicapper?
The expertise and network needed to become a reliable handicapper require years to develop, with many races requiring hours of work to analyze to select the best picks possible accurately. A few ways to start developing your handicapping skills include:
- Building connections with trainers, owners and jockeys
- Observing the horses during workouts
- Keeping track of competitors’ past performance
- Developing a solid understanding of statistics and their applications in sports betting
- Familiarizing yourself with the different factors that can affect a horse’s performance
- Learning from the techniques of established handicappers
- Practice! Developing your unique handicapping methods can take lots of trial and error.
At Green Sheet Racing, we’ve been handicapping races since 1947, so it’s safe to say we know a thing or two about making quality picks.
