Whether you are betting on horse races just because you find it fun and exciting, or because your goal is to pocket a bit of extra cash, you should make sure that you know the right techniques to pick the best horses for your bets.

So, exactly how can you go about learning how to pick winning horses for your bets? There is no shortage of methods for trying to pick a winner. Everybody has his or her own methodology for interpreting the handicapping statistics. Some methods are more scientific while others rely more on intuition.

For example, some people choose horses based on silly factors like the name of the horse. However, if you are really serious about learning how to make the right horse racing picks, you should follow these three important steps.

First, make sure you learn as much as you can about the horses that will be racing. There is a lot of information readily available, especially for those who are placing their bets online. Taking the time to do your homework ahead of time will give you a better chance of making the right picks.

Don’t overlook the wealth of information offered online. You can research a horse’s entire history of performances on the Internet. Make sure you find out how the horse finished its past couple of races, and how long ago its last race was.

Try to find horses that have raced recently. Avoid horses that have not raced within about the past 45 days, particularly if it is been many months since their last race. If they have not won in the last couple of races, this does not mean that you should not bet on them, but it is one more factor to take into consideration when making your decision.

Second, you should learn as much as you can about the jockey who will be racing the horse. While the horses performance is not solely determined by the jockey, the jockey does play an important role in the horses behavior.

One of the things you should pay careful attention to is how experienced the jockey is. You may want to bet on a different jockey if you discover that his performance is less than 3%.

Finally, make sure you do some research on the track where the race will occur. Again, this is one more consideration that may have an impact on the final results of the race. Understanding the way the track is designed can help you determine if it is particularly well suited to any of the horses who will be racing that day.

Simon M Skinner has worked in the online gambling industry since 2000. He has worked for some of the premier online sportsbooks and now runs internet marketing for BetAmerica - the premier online US horse betting website.