Line Horse

Good day Clanners
Would some one please explain to me how the line horse are selected per race? And surely the criteria must change from race to race?
Not quite understanding this line horse concept.

Thanks

You could get many explanations on this - for me, the 'line horse' in a race should be the one that has 'consistent' recent 'form' (running to more or less the same rating) over the distance

www.nhra.co.za/pubs/docs/handicapping/Ha...pping_Guidelines.pdf

Somewhere in the above document...maybe...

Frodo Wrote:

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> You could get many explanations on this - for me,
> the 'line horse' in a race should be the one that
> has 'consistent' recent 'form' (running to more or
> less the same rating) over the distance


For me it is also a horse in the race with exposed form against a few of the other runners in the race so you use this horse to gauge where the other should run to him. As Frodo said they must be reasonably consistent.

Thank you very much for the replies, makes a bit more sense.

... the horse whom you think ran perfectly to its merit rating (or any other rating you may use) ie not up and not down. How do you identify this horse? What I like to do is find the most number of multiple linehorses by using 1 pound as a margin of error about the MR's. If that is not conclusive then use 2lbs as a M.O.E.. (I wish I knew how the NHRA ojectively determines the linehorse).

Mac Wrote:

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> ... the horse whom you think ran perfectly to its
> merit rating (or any other rating you may use) ie
> not up and not down. How do you identify this
> horse? What I like to do is find the most number
> of multiple linehorses by using 1 pound as a
> margin of error about the MR's. If that is not
> conclusive then use 2lbs as a M.O.E.. (I wish I
> knew how the NHRA ojectively determines the
> linehorse).

They use a dart-board and block out the numbers not in use for the race !!!()

If i understand this correctly, there are no set guide lines for the handicapper to use. So ones calculations could be well off the mark, if he uses horse a and you b.
Sorry for all the questions, just trying to understand better.

Bunks Wrote:

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> If i understand this correctly, there are no set
> guide lines for the handicapper to use. So ones
> calculations could be well off the mark, if he
> uses horse a and you b.
> Sorry for all the questions, just trying to
> understand better.


Some races prove very difficult to rate - like for example the race in which Pomodoro and Whistle Stop ran on Sunday - both obviously ran below par - whilst the 3rd horse National Key probably ran above his rating - so one would be looking at the winner and the 2nd horse to get a 'line' of the race - but yes different handicappers could rate a race differently - that's why I believe P employs a group of handicappers to (ideally) debate these things and come up with 'reasonable' ratings - after all a point this way or that way can mean the difference between a horse getting into a race (which he potentially could have won) or not.

Thank you very much Frodo

in time for 2026. Revival of this topic.

Thanks to Formgrids i get to see quickly who th LH is and in most cases a case can be made for the line horse they choose.
Sadly they also get it wrong and horses are then left with no hope of a second win unless the trainer runs the horse often enough to get back down to a more reasonble rating.
This alon with the 2 year old ratings that get assigned at end of July every year, needs some tweaking if SA racing continues with MR system under the new reaility of smaller fields less horses, less owners, less atkes, less races.

20 Dec 2026
Wayne and Tin Tin Race 3 and race 8.
Wayne up 6 points.
Tin Tin unchanged. Worth followoing
Same race as Wayne - Got the feeeling - Unchanged. ??
Just my wood from trees opinion