Whatever others may try to tell you, ratings are only a general guide to the
relative winning chances of a horse. Their real value is that they reduce the
field to manageable numbers of possible winners. Armed with this information,
you rarely waste form-reading time on no-hopers. Additionally, ratings point
to the value bets - the horses apparently overpriced in the market that have an
outstanding chance of either winning or at least placing at a big price. They
also provide potential for forecast and permed tricast bets; and can also be
used profitably for the placepot, the jackpot, and even the ITV Tipster
Competition. Used carefully, TowerForm Ratings will frequently offer such
lucrative opportunities. (E-mail us if you need to know how to perm 3, 4, 5, or
6 horses in a tricast.)
We are firm believers in encouraging people to come to their own conclusions
about the information they are given. If someone is given too much information
about a horse's chance, the odds are likely that the phrase "I could have
backed that" will be repeated almost daily. We can give you dozens of reasons
why any one of six horses can win a handicap. But if we did it would only
confuse. We see no cause for adding further information to the ratings we
publish. It is not a science, it is an art. Take the ratings as they are, then
act on instinct.
If you don't fancy a highly rated horse, don't back it just because it is a
highly rated horse. All you need to do to find winners among the ratings is:
check that a highly rated horse has performed well in similar company in the
past; is the horse suited to the course; is the horse in its best form or
coming to its best form; is the trainer in form or out of form; are ground
conditions suitable; does the horse perform better at certain times of the
year; does the horse like small fields or big fields. This is called form
reading. No amount of scientific jiggery-pokery will alter the fact that the
best form reader and the best tipster is your good self. Let no-one dissuade
you otherwise. You are just as good a tipster as any in the country. All you
probably need to make that an inherent fact is discipline - if you haven't
already got it, obviously. But get that discipline and you'll be laughing all
the way home from the bookies.
But back to the ratings...... To achieve the figures we first estimate a rating
based on the overall form of a horse. Then we modify that overall rating (by
evaluating recent form) to give a figure that indicates a horse's relative
chance in the class of race it is contesting. Then we do a final adjustment
with reference to the rivals it is facing. It's that simple!
The ratings are updated daily and normally available via email to subscribers
around 9 pm on the night before racing.
Every horse in every race rated will have a handicap mark. Every subscriber can register to access the web version of the ratings. Also we send subscribers a back up ratings list in an Excel spreadsheet format attached to subscriber's emails. Each race is rated in descending
order - highest at the top, lowest at the bottom. This will allow subscribers
to play about with the ratings and also make it much easier to spot trends.
All results quoted will be for the top two rated handicap
marks
(incl joints) but in the vast majority of races, the winners will come from
the top four rated handicap
marks
(inc joints) - though to be truthful, even a monkey couldn't fail to include
most winners given 4 shots a race !
