Here's my opinion:
It's hard to get an edge in horse racing as there are too many variables, including (but not limited to) the weather, track conditions, the jockey, the weight carried, post position, the start out of the gate and how the horse feels that day.
You can study the Form until your eyes hurt and pick the 'best' horse based on PAST performance, only to have the unexpected change the outcome.
If the horse runs true to form and wins, it is most often the favorite and you have to bet alot to win a little. My father worked at the track(s) for 36 years and said that there are 50 ways a horse can lose a race and only one way to Win.
It's nice to pick a longshot and make a score, but that doesn't happen often and most bettors rejoice while forgetting the 100s of losers they bet along the way. It's nice to hit a big payoff on the exotic wagers,but there's no edge in that either.
I bet for many years at the Fairgrounds in New Orleans and did OK, because it was the most crooked track in the country and if you were friends with an owner, trainer or jockey, you could often times get some inside info on when a horse was 'ready'.
Where big money is concerned, there will always be someone trying to rig the outcome and sometimes they're successful, but often they fail also.
Youse bets your money and youse takes your chances.
Look at Big Brown for example, you had to bet a ton to win a little and when he lost the third leg of the triple crown...... MILLIONS were lost. He was the 'best' horse, but the unexpected happened and he was pulled up by the jockey. There went the edge.
You may get an entirely different opinion if you had gotten answered by Ronnie Allen or New York Blackie or any one of a thousand other poolplayers.... imo
Doug
(btw, I play poker regularly at the horse track here in town and had $20 across the board on a 37-1 shot that won the race like Secretariat. I'd gotten the tip from the owner and bet on him 3 races in a row where he'd come in dead last before going wire to wire. Ain't life grand ?)