Missed Opportunity
There’s a point in Andrew Beyer’s memoir, “My $50,000 Year at the Races,” in which the author realizes why the handicappers he admires so much are able to remain calm regardless of what they lose: It’s because they know there will always be another betting opportunity. I had to remind myself of that when I saw the official chart for the fifth race at Suffolk Downs today.
If you looked at Royalist’s past performances, you wouldn’t find a very promising animal in his three starts at Suffolk Downs. He’d been eased twice and ran eighth in his last race. Yet, only a few days ago I touted this horse to one of the grandstand guys who asked for tips on Mario’s barn. His record was bad, I admitted, but he’d been put on Lasix after bleeding, had sharp workouts, and his behavior around the barn was that of a colt feeling good. “Maybe he’s the longshot I’m looking for,” the guy mused. He was, sir, winning today at odds of 24-1, and I hope you were there to collect, unlike me.
