| One of the complaints I often hear from fellow horse | | | | great advantage. So when a horse with ability or a |
| players is that harness racing favorites are always | | | | very competent driver is racing from one of those |
| bet down to ridiculously low odds. Of course, by | | | | posts, the crowd expects it to win. |
| favorite I mean the horse that goes off at the | | | | It is true that the favorite has the best chance of |
| lowest odds in the race because more people have | | | | winning, but as these "follow the leader" types heap |
| bet on it. It is true, harness racing seems to produce | | | | their money on the favorite, driving the odds down, |
| a lot of horses that go to post at very low odds. | | | | they ruin the chances for making money by betting |
| The reason for this is what I call the "sheep | | | | on the favorite. But a wise bettor will realize that if all |
| mentality." There is a lot of scared money on every | | | | that money is heaped on a favorite, then there is a |
| race and as you may have heard, "Scared money | | | | possibility of making money by betting on one of the |
| never wins." That is an old saying, but it is certainly | | | | other likely contenders. |
| true at the harness races. One reason that the | | | | Why complain about the favorite being an underlay |
| favorites often go to post at very low odds is | | | | when it creates the overlays you need to make |
| because many people in the crowd, like scared | | | | money betting on harness races? In any form of |
| sheep, will follow the leaders or crowd and just bet | | | | investment, when one commodity is over valued it |
| the favorite, figuring it has the best chance of | | | | creates an opportunity for a shrewd investor. When |
| winning. | | | | they all pile onto the favorite and make it an underlay |
| Favorites win a high percentage of races in harness | | | | there must be an overlay in the field. |
| racing because Standardbred horses are usually quite | | | | To make money betting on harness races you need |
| reliable and because post position plays such an | | | | to find overlays and bet them, just as you do at any |
| important part in a horse's chances of winning. At | | | | other form of racing or gambling. In other words, |
| many half mile and five eighths mile tracks, the | | | | what you are really looking for in a harness race is a |
| outside post positions have very little chance of | | | | good bet. My idea of a good bet is any bet that the |
| winning,while the inside posts, particularly the one or | | | | crowd has failed to place an accurate value on and |
| two posts, have a great chance of winning. There | | | | that is going off at higher odds than the horse's |
| are also tracks where the post position five has a | | | | expected chances of winning justify. |