Playing the ponies

I'm a sucker for stories about gamblers.  60 Minutes had a good feature the other week, which I will probably post later.  Brendan Koerner has a post about a relative who's made a living as a gambler. Here is the relative's take on horse racing: 

Horse racing, meanwhile, is a great way to make money if you're willing to put in time at the track. As my relative notes, 98 percent of the people who bet on horses have no idea what they're doing; they plunk down money based on gut feelings, past performance, or cuteness of a competitor's name. You can run rings around those folks if you're willing to attend morning workouts with stopwatch in hand, as well as understand when it's appropriate to take a risk on a parlay. (My relative's share in a successful Pick Six gambit is what put home ownership within his reach.)

Consider me part of the 98%