xtra ordinary day ar1/2 qr6/10 sr7/9 sometimes stopping at first win really bites

Hi!
That's why you have to know your average strike rate and also your strike rate on any track you usually bet.
That way you can follow the trend, and if your system, or your form selections are consistent you can even vary your bets accordingly. Ie. let's say you know your ave. strikerate is 20% and you are way above, then it is likely, mind you only LIKELY that your winning streak is not going to last long. But of course you must have had enough races and bets in your records to make it meaningful.
I personally stop when ahead, but I do bet a reasonable amount, so ahead means a couple hundred.
Cheers.

I personally stop when ahead, but I do bet a reasonable amount, so ahead means a couple hundred.

SMART

I never stop when I'm ahead and have NEVER regretted it. I always play level stakes and I know I will be having (on average over many years) 15-30 bets per Saturday (M,S,B,A,) . I only play Longshots ($20 or longer). This means a minimum,say, $300(15x$20) to a max $600(15x$20) risked per afternoon. If on the first bet you get a $21 winner and are immediately $400 up you could go home happy or you can STICK TO YOUR SELECTION METHODS. The next 14 to 29 horses dont know you've had a winner (and decided "enough is enough,we're not going to win any more for this guy"!!) so why would'nt you back them as planned?? At this point you might lose $280(the next 14 bets) of your $400 (still $120 ahead) or even lose $580 (29 more unsuccessful bets) and be $180 down on the day or ......... hit JETWAY in the 7th at Adelaide yesterday and catapult another $660 ahead (ie $20x $46-$20x13 more bets). Of course I still placed my last 2 planned bets (despite cracking tha "Grand") as the afternoon is NEVER over til it's over!!!
This reasoning goes even more so for shorties as stopping with a 2-1 or 4-1 winner when you are barely ahead means a great chance of giving that "puny edge" back next time. Plus: on any system or selection method or staking system or whatever that I've ever seen ,the profits come in clusters (ie several average or disappointing days followed by A BIG ONE ) This is the same with almost everything in life. That's the origin of the expression"Good things come in threes". Maybe they come in twos or fours but they DO come in irregular doses. What folly it is to be a the start of such a day and not to hang on to get them all. Cheers , and good luck.

Each to his own I suppose!
But if you get your winners in a clump it should ring a bell! Why is it so?
If your selection method is sound, your strikerate will not vary more then 5% up or down in any reasonable period of betting.
If it does, it means your method works far better on certain types of races or tracks then on others, which should be a great help to you by eliminating the loosing types.
Of course It means a lot of statistical work (boring work at that).
It does not strictly apply to your kind of betting but even there I am sure you could find a reason why a longshot comes in ahead ot the more fancied horses, true sometimes it's just luck but more often then not there is a reason for it.
Good luck to you.
Cheers

Hi Marcus! I dont mean a "cluster" of similar races or one age group of horses etc. I mean that the wins (I dont bet place) ,especially the big ones, are not as predictable as clockwork. Some days you have half a dozen longshots come second or third by a nose or half head due to the most miniscule variation in "the running".You are so close to the boilover that you start thinking "What about 10 bucks the place as well" even though you know that's a long term mistake. These losers could've been winners if the slightest touch/bump (unseen) hadn't happened or if one ( also unseen) blade of grass didnt fly for a split second into YOUR nags eye. Or if the jockey had've tapped it's rump a quarter second earlier (or later) etc etc.How to know?
But some days everything falls into place.Every photo goes your way;the bet you couldnt get on in time is a hopeless loser (saved another $20****:your 2nd placer gets up because 3rd protests against the winner; the rank outsider you're on goes 10 lengths ahead and a fall holds up the field. You name it!! Sure, I would LIKE to examine my records until every variable was under control ,or be certain my methods worked better on Group races than others etc,but you are right that that's too boring. Anyway.Marcus I still didnt notice if you were advocating stopping betting when ahead or not,which is what this threads about. Let us know and good luck.

Of course everything can come in clusters. If you have a strike rate of 20% it doesn't mean that in every 5 race block you will have 1 winner.
Personally I believe in keeping on going. I believe I have an edge so why stop. All I would be doing is losing money by stopping. The way I bet is not a day to day thing, it is a continuous series of bets, so some days I will expect to lose money.
The reason I bet, is because I want to make enough money to not have to work. It is because I believe that I can. My objective is to make as much money as possible. Why settle. I do not care about having a high POT. As long as I am returning more than I am risking, then that is all I can hope for. My aim is to return 105-110% on my outlay, so the more I outlay the more I make, the more races I bet on, the more I outlay.
I believe in what I am doing so there is no need to stop.
I would suggest that people who do stop if they reach a certain profit for the day, are really not that confident in their ideas over the long term. What are they scared of? Losing their profit for the day?
I understand that spending all day betting is not an ideal lifestyle, but would people be confident of winning long term if they bet for a certain period of time each day regardless of your profit or loss?