Curragh Draw Guide
The sprint track sees races over 5 and 6f – it is a wide track and high draws tend to tack over to the centre, while low draws stay up the near side rail. 6f races tend to have very big fields – usually over 20 with the maximum number being 30. There seems to be no consistent draw bias over the two sprint trips, but occasionally one part of the draw is favoured over the other. One good example of an individual race bias came in the 6f Peter Keatley Curragh Equine Groundcare Handicap on 30th September 2008. The winner Toasted Special was drawn top of the shop in 30, with the next 10 runners home drawn 16, 25, 20, 28, 26, 27, 17, 22, 24 and 19. The best finishing position for a single figure drawn horse was a distant 15th! Another example of a high draw bias over 6f occurred on 13th April in the Four Star Keadeen Hotel Handicap. The 29 runner race saw the first five horses home drawn 20, 17, 27, 24 and 21, with the best finishing position for a single figure stall 13th.
For punters who like the straight forecast bet, then it may be worth considering perming the three highest draws in 6f handicaps of 10 or more runners. Although you would have won only once in every 12 races on average, the payouts achieved will often make up for it. From 2005 to 2008 this bet would have yielded a profit of £414.46 (ROI +197.4%) to 6 x £1 perms in each qualifying race.
On the round course over 7f there has not been a noticeable draw bias in recent years, although over 1m high draws do seem to have a slight advantage. The slight advantage to high draws is evident also at 1m2f. Handicaps over 1m4f also have shown a very slight edge to higher draws.
