Betting

Question
I hope I'm staying within your realm of answerable questions.
I'm fairly new to betting on horses (we have an off-track facility nearby) and I have read a couple of books about various betting strategies but haven't landed on anything that works.  I know there's no way to win every time but I seem to lose ALOT!  I have buddies that do no research whatsover, can't even read the sheets, pick horses by their names/numbers, etc that consistently win more than I do!  I look at jockey records, horse's past wins/losses, Beyer scores, morning line, etc to choose a horse.
Can you offer any solid advice on choosing a winner?  I'm getting tired of taking my friends there when I'm the 'expert' but they win more often using zero strategy.  Any tips?

Thanks

Answer
Hi Randy:

If your friends are picking horses by names and numbers, they are not winning, and only by sheer luck would they be picking more winners than you.  If they're cashing tickets more often, it's probably because they are betting more money and getting more live tickets.  Very few, if any, people make a living betting race horses.  There are so many different variables, and often, racing luck has more to do with who wins than does talent.  

Good handicapping skills are very difficult to develop and often come only after years of trial and error.  Beyer numbers are the best indication of a horse's true talents; however - and this is most important - in the hands of a novice or amateur, these numbers often create more confusion than sense.  Simply having the best Beyer numbers does NOT mean that a particular horse is the best in that particular race. My advice: read as many books on handicapping as you can, especially those by Beyer and Davidowitz.  

Brad Adler
www.superthoroughbred.com