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How many times have your heard, "Watch the tote board?"

Too many, probably.

"That horse just dropped from 15-1 to 5-1. Someone must have bet a bundle on him."

"That horse should be lower than 10-1."

"There’s no action on that horse at all."

Well, there are several situations when you should listen to the tote board when it talks:

If a horse that figures or is the odds-on favorite with 20 percent of all the cash in the win pool bet on the steed and 10 percent or less of the place and show pools is only wagered on the animal, the heavy betting is traditionally supposed to be stable connections. Serious horse players usually only wager to win while the public likes to spread money around.

Another angle is when a contender who lost the last race steps up in class but the odds are lower than the previous trip. Logic says the odds should be higher, but the thoroughbred just might have needed the race. The more prolific the trainer, the better chance you have to score. The action could be coming from those in the know - not the public.

When the odds on the favorite drop below 7-5 or 8-5, the odds on other contenders should rise. If they remain steady on the second, third or fourth choice, that usually means smart money is going down. If the favorite looks vulnerable, all the better.

I most often listen to the tote board in 2-year-old races and haven’t been too disappointed. But I’m paying more and more attention to it in other races.

EDITOR'S NOTE :
Talking about tote, I remember I told you before that Malaysia bred horses are the lowest quality in Malaysia and Singapore. I remember the last horse that I bet and win on Malaysia bred is Blue Grass. It was trained by Tiang and ridden by Jackie Chuah. The top favourite for that race is No 4 - Gaya Gemilang. Trained by Velu and ridden by KL Oo.

The payout for No 4 drops to the minumum but later the tote for Blue Grass starts to drop as well. It shows that someone is betting heavily on it. About 1 minute before racing, the payout for Blue Grass is less than $20. Remember, Blue Grass is a Malaysia bred and ridden by an apprentice jockey while Gaya Gemilang is ridden by a top jockey. Which one you should bet ?

Of course I choosen Blue Grass because this horse got strong support ! So ... next time if you have chance to see scenario again, please please think thoroughly and bet wisely so that you can win.

Another horse that I want to point out is Dr Jack. This horse is trained by W Liew. In this race, W Liew got 2 entries. Dr Jack is ridden by Anandan while Endeavour is ridden by Saimee (1998 Champion Jockey). The payout for this 2 horses drops but Endeavour is less than Dr Jack.

What is the results ? Dr Jack lead all the way to the winning post and the payout is $69 !. In the next race, there is one more horse ridden by Anandan and trained by W Liew - Sphritzer. I simply ignore betting on this horse because the tote is not "sounding".

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