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Originally Posted by Bravado2112
I did not qualify this year, but have in the past and have had some degree of success in other tournaments. Tournaments require a big learning curve - especially these days when the competition has gotten tougher and there's far less "dead money" and a lot of sharp people/teams playing these things. The hardest thing to do is to shift your focus entirely to a tournament-play mentality and not a betting or profit mentality. Passing on a sure 4-1 winner or placing a max bet on a horse who isn't your top choice is counter to what you're used to doing, but it's often necessary in tournament play. You're playing to outfinish 200 people on a random isolated day, not show a profit. Maximizing the non-mandatory races is essential.
There are many different types of structures (live money, mandatory races, odds caps etc) and being flexible enough to adjust your play to reflect the rules is required. So is having an idea of what type of score is necessary to win and being clearheaded enough to focus on getting to that number without distraction from the leaderboard and the people screaming every time a longshot wins. At the same time, you also have to be able to adjust your play later in the day to reflect where you are in the standings and do what's necessary to give yourself a chance to get near the top or to protect a lead.
Just like in regular betting, prepare to pay for an education. You're not going to show up and beat 200 veteran tournament players simply by handicapping well. There are resources available for some degree of help and ideally some time spent playing on paper and simply watching a couple of tournaments to learn your way around them would probably be helpful. There are some cheap online tournaments that are probably worth playing to get your feet wet as well. That's just a start but the most essential component is understanding and adjusting to the difference between betting and tournament play.
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Very well said bravado.
Contest play is so much different. If I'm betting and lose through the first races -- then I'm usually playing more conservative in the later races. If I'm in a contest and lose through the first races -- then I'm definitely playing more aggressively in the later races. At at certain point in a contest, if you're behind in points, just like a boxer who's losing on points you have to start throwing the haymaker or knockout punch because it's you're only chance.
In every contest that I've finished well in -- I've always started well. Never made it to the big dance. Only had the chance to play three live contests this year. Keeneland (summer), Churchill, and Ellis Park. Next year I hope to play more.
I have a close friend who qualified for both Vegas contests in 2007. Part of his recipe is to play at least 10 - 15 contests per year. He's a damn good 'capper too.
Hope this helps.