Steve has been using Elite Racing horse racing tips since 2013. In this interview, he discusses his experiences being part of Elite Racing membership.
What was your approach to betting on the races before you started using Elite Racing?
My approach was to self-study. This was intermittently successful but generally unsuccessful because there’s a lot that goes into it. It’s not just form, because algorithms these days are so much more than just knowledge of particular horses.
What made you decide to try Elite Racing for a more professional approach to horse race tipping?
I had previously used a couple of other systems. Every agency offers a range of tips, which you can pull bits and pieces out of and sound successful, but over a period of time, you get to know their stats are not right. I had a couple of those to help me because I was just enjoying having a punt and I’d not been particularly unsuccessful to the point where it was spectacular. I’ve had some success, but I wasn’t getting on top of it. I thought after those two other systems, and I’d have a look on the internet for something I thought might have a bit more oomph.
What’s changed for you since you started using Elite Racing as your tipping service?
What’s changed is more the style of how I approach things. I still maintain my own independence, and that has got two sides to it. One is just what Larry would call a mug’s bet, which it truly is. Another one’s a Blackbook that can identify horses that have a genuine chance of winning under certain circumstances in certain conditions. But Elite Racing gives you a structure that, over a period of time, is more likely to be successful.
What’s different for you financially in terms of fees or returns?
I haven’t actually done the math, but I know that for the past number of years, I’ve been topping up my betting accounts less frequently. It’s not every week or every second week or even every month I’m putting money in. I’m winning enough to sustain myself.
What do you think is Elite Racing’s key point of difference from other professional horse race tipping services available in Australia?
The first one probably is you can talk to them. I mean, you wouldn’t want to be a pest, but you can talk to them or write to them, and they’re usually good at getting back to you. The second thing is the record’s not bad. There’s a consistency that’s valuable.
How does the Elite Racing information fit into your routine? How do you go about using their tipping service?
Fitting into my routine is easy because I’m a very routine kind of person. Elite Racing makes certain indications about what they’re going to tip, and they have a certain method and time frame of doing so, and they deliver.
Do you recommend Elite Racing to your friends as a professional horse tipping service?
I do, but I don’t push too much. I’m inclined not to encourage people unless they ask. If somebody was asking me, “Oh, how do you do it?” I’m in two or three syndicates, and I’m probably the more successful of my co-betters, which doesn’t mean great success, actually, but I’m more successful than them. I tell them, “Oh well, I’ve got my own ideas, and I also support Elite Racing.”
Following Elite Racing would mean that you’re getting a very good head start on a horse that’s got a very good chance, and from there, you have the right to look at the jockey and look at the horse and make your own determination. There are occasions when I will disqualify a horse for a particular reason of my own. Elite Racing follows the algorithms pretty well, but the bottom line of it all is they send me horses, which are a pretty good show, usually a good chance. I could either blindly follow them, or I could do some work myself, which is what I choose, and the record speaks for itself.
What about the ethics of Elite Racing that you’ve observed over this time?
Oh, they’re highly ethical people. I don’t know them personally, but they’re decent people, I’m absolutely sure. I don’t think they’re in it for anything else. Looking after their people is what they want to do. The racing industry is not necessarily a very ethical environment, but I have not seen even a glimpse of anything to suggest that the guys at Elite aren’t 100% focused on getting good results for their own clientele. I’ve always had the feeling that the guys work really hard for me.
What’s the thing that you get out of being part of the Elite Racing membership?
My father took me to the flat at the Royal Randwick. Inside, where the car park is now, that’s where all the poor people went, and that was us. He took me there, and I would scurry around, picking up tickets. I had it in my blood. Through that whole process, I would see and learned that it’s very hard to win. If you can find some system or some agency or somebody that can point you in the right direction, and they’ve only got the interest of their support base at heart, well, that’s about the best you’ll get from a professional horse tipping service. My observations are that Elite gives you the best shot.
