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— Posted by robgomm on 8:27 pm on Aug. 20, 2001
Hi Mr Segal, what has been your biggest coup? What advice would you give young up and coming racing journalists (like me!)? Are you a fan of the all-weather? Finally, have you got any good contacts in the industry…can I have some names? Sorry…ignore the last one if you like! I’m just after some names! Thanks for taking some time out from the form book! Rob.<br><br>The one most people remember is That Man Again at Salisbury but I got a bit lucky that day as connections were the ones which really got stuck into the horse and it wasn’t really Pricewise that forced it down to 5-1. In terms of tipping the best selection I’ve given was a horse called Sharoura for a Yarmouth sprint a couple of years ago at 25-1. Financially the Grand National has always been a good race for me having backed Papillon at 66-1 two years ago and Red Marauder at 50s last year.<br>Yes I do like the all-weather but it definitely needs a bigger pool of better horses as by the end of the winter it’s very boring watching Juwwi take on Air Mail and the like time and time again.<br>Finally the best advice I can give about getting a job in the industry is to keep writing and keep trying. I wrote hundreds of letters to everyone I could think of and finally got lucky. Keep at it and don’t worry if your ideal job isn’t advertised because once you’ve got your foot in the door plenty of opportunities will arise<br><br>— — Posted by Bilko on 9:22 pm on Aug. 20, 2001
After the success of your predecessors in the job of "Pricewise", do you feel under any pressure to maintain the annual profits that they have made? And is the long term objective to set up your own tipping line?<br><br>Yes there is pressure but I do have the back up of having done Pricewise for a few years now when Mel Collier was away and having a pretty decent record, which eases the burden somewhat.<br>No the long term objective is not to set up a tipping line, firstly because I think that particular area is saturated already and secondly that is real pressure. Don’t forget the Post is only £1.05, while it costs a fortune to join one of these lines.<br><br>— — Posted by sunybay on 12:20 am on Aug. 21, 2001
thank you for your time tom!
I just wish have similar success as mc in the column and tip more winners than nick fox(worst tipster I have seen in my life)<br>I used read the column and it was really bad news when I liked a horse tipped by pricewise.<br>what do you think these big bookies like coral, Ladbrokes and wh which are unable to maintain the price they announce in the morning for no more than 10 min<br><br>Not the Suny Bay, how did you manage to put up with Charlie Brooks for so long!<br>To be honest there are some worse than others and a few of the bigger firms just use the Pricewise box as a marketing tool and don’t take a bet which is totally out of order. Ladbrokes have been holding their prices longer than most of the others recently but I don’t know why the majority bother to get involved if they are not prepared to lose occasionally.<br><br>— — Posted by Razeen on 10:56 am on Aug. 21, 2001
Tom
Does the way that you select a horse differ depending on which column you are writing for (e.g. Pricewise Betting Bureau, Spotlight)?
If so what is the major difference between the selection methods and which do you personally consider to be the best?
Thanks<br><br>Excellent question and yes different methods have to be used.<br>The one thing most punters get confused about is that the Pricewise column is totally dedicated to the price. For example if they were to bet 1/3 Galileo and 5/1 Fantastic Light for the Irish Champion Stakes there can only be one Pricewise selection, despite the fact that I personally think<br>Galileo will win again. Consequently, as all those that have done Pricewise in the past will tell you, we often think there are others more likely to<br>win a certain race than our selection. The dreaded word ‘value’ is the key and 5-1 Fantatsic Light would simply be too big a price to sniff at because<br>he can win and should be around 5-2.<br>Bureau is trickier because I seldom do it on early price days so often ended up tipping the worst value horse in the race. For example I was quite<br>keen of a sprinter called Kyllachy the other day at Nottingham but on what it had done it was a 6-1 chance. Bureau and others highlight it’s chance<br>and it starts 2-1 while the form horses Astonished and Eastern Purple are massive at 11-2. Given those prices the selection would obviously change.<br>Consequently probably the best way to succeed on Bureau during the week is to stick to solid 5-2 or 3-1 shots which don’t have the scope to contract in price too much and wait to the weekend before trying to find something better. In short Bureau should have a much higher strike rate than<br>Pricewise.<br>Spotlight is the graveyard shift but is without doubt the most widely read and important in the paper. Unfortunately the deadlines are very early and<br>so writing 70 odd comments and pricing up 70 odd horses doesn’t really leave you with a lot of time to be totally confident about your selection.<br>I don’t really consider Spotlight a tipping service so I can’t count that one as being the best but if there was a rival paper providing competition<br>Bureau is the ideal because it gives you the opportunity to look at such a wide variety.<br><br>— — Posted by Jay Torbitt on 10:56 am on Aug. 21, 2001
Hi Tom
Firstly, good luck with Pricewise – it’s a respected column in racing circles, and well done for getting the job!
It’s probably a question which many people ask you, but do you have a set formula or system to your success? What factors do you consider when making a selection? (eg trainer form etc)
Cheers<br><br>I use all the usual factors i.e. Jockey, Track, Ground, Trainer, Draw etc, although I’m not much of a figures man.<br>There are a couple of words that have always held me in good stead though and they are Watch and Think.<br>Firstly watch every race you can closely preferably with the sound down and come to your own conclusions about it and the horses involved. It’s amazing how influential pundits, commentators and the racing press are and as a result the horses they highlight are often too short or too hyped.<br>Secondly keep thinking all the time and don’t get lazy or fall into the trap of agreeing with others just because they say its right. How many<br>times have you been unimpressed with a horse but come round to thinking it was a great just because everyone else thinks it was. The best selections<br>and bets are without doubt the ones that you have come to through your own judgement rather than listening to or reading someone else.<br><br>— — Posted by Daylight on 9:02 am on Aug. 22, 2001
Hi Tom & thanks for your time,
I remember seeing your name when you registered to be a member here a while back, do you visit us often? And how did you hear about this site?
Mel Collier did a similar Q&A for us a while back and he said his 1pt selections were token bets as having to write a 500 word article has to have a selection at the end, should we take your 1pt selections as the same?
I remember last year you picking out 33/1 dodgepot That Man Again and a cry of foul play was called if I remember rightly when it won due to its mass improvement, do you ever contact any trainers after making a selection in a race to find out if the trainer is going to try with it that day? As this horse is well known that it only wins when ridden up front with the pace, basically you know your fate after 1/2 furlong if its held up.<br><br>Daylight, I visit the site about once a week and Mel Collier told me about it.<br>Most of the 1pt selections I don’t back for exactly the same reasons as Mel outlined and no I never make contact with trainers who are invariably bad tipsters and are obviously biased.<br>As far as That Man Again goes it was simply a draw race and he got the rail on a track that favours front-runners.<br><br>— — Posted by sunybay on 11:00 am on Aug. 22, 2001
hi again.<br>I would like to know what do you think about:<br>sakhee in the arc<br>banks hill for the breeders cup mile<br>and finally what about the rematch in Ireland between Galileo and fantastic light.
regards<br><br>Bit worried about Sakhee staying the trip if the ground came up very soft but would think Banks Hill would have excellent chance in Breeders Cup<br>granted a good draw and fast ground.<br>Galileo will win as it looked to me like Fantastic Light gave up the ghost close home at Ascot and Galileo is likely to improve again.<br><br>— — Posted by Matron on 11:35 am on Aug. 22, 2001
Hi Tom,
Finding winners for the "no 1" racing paper in the UK must place a lot of pressure on your shoulders. If you<br>or one of your colleagues goes through a bad patch does the editor start banging the desk and demand<br>you find winners "pdq"!
Regards – Matron<br><br>Took me about two days to work out what pdq meant but the answer to your question is that I don’t know. I’ve never had a regular column so can’t be sure and my predecessors or colleagues wouldn’t tell me if they were in the s**t house.<br><br>— — Posted by Leos Luckyman on 7:39 am on Aug. 24, 2001
Hello and thanks for your time,
Are there any jockeys that you favour when choosing selections or are there any trainers whos horses you follow more than others ?<br><br>Jockeys 1 Fallon, 2 Holland, 3 Hughes, 4 Spencer, 5 Kinane and Murtagh.<br>Nothing original there.  Perhaps more interesting are the ones I avoid and they include Pat Eddery, Richard Quinn, Frankie in any race bar a Group 1 and the Hills brothers unless they are on front-runners.<br>Once again the Stoutes, Dunlops and Johnstons (got that one in for you Leo) pick themselves but a couple of smaller ones to keep an eye on are John Balding and Bob Jones<br><br>— Posted by LUKE on 9:59 am on Aug. 24, 2001
I would like to ask which horses have given you your biggest or most notable wins.Also with the jump season not far away are there any horses you have to follow -not necessarily in the big handicaps<br><br>Papillon provided me with me single biggest win, although Anzum in the stayers hurdle was not far behind. As far as a single horse goes I was<br>devastated when Cavalero was killed last year as he was my favourite jumps horse recently and I backed him at 50-1 to win Aintree Foxhunters and 44-1 (Tote) when he won Cheltenham Foxhunters.<br>Ilare, The Bajan Bandit and Thyneandthyneagain are three that should do well.<br>Not sure he’s going to run in this country this season but Ilare could as he’s owned by the Marquise of The Fellow, Algan and First Gold fame. Could easily have won French Gold Cup last year with positive ride on only fifth start over fences and he’s only 5. He has the potential to be the best<br>chaser around by far.<br><br>— Posted by ZZASS on 10:59 am on Aug. 24, 2001
Hi TOM
Thanks for your time over this :)
1.<br>What does it take to get the right selection for your Pricewise horse as you must have a few sorted out for the days racing BUT have to plum for the one as LOADS of people when the get the R/Post look up your horse straight away<br><br>Its hard but you have to stick to what has done well for you in the past.<br>Usually I’ll have a couple on the short list and the price/jockey or trainer form will more often than not tip the scales in one direction or another.<br>As fars as going straight to the Pricewise selection straight away, you can’t do more than try your hardest and if Pricewise punters are losing<br>then so am I.<br>
2.<br>Is the Pricewise a new challenge for you and do you like the pressure that comes with the job ?<br><br>Yes it’s a new challenge because it’s in my name now and I could do without the pressure, but I’m pretty sure I can do well.<br><br>3.<br>Which is the Best horse "not winning you money but in racing " that you have seen in your time as a reporter ?
LAST ONE ok<br><br>On the Flat without any doubt Dayjur as he did things I’ve never seen any horse past or present do.<br>Over jumps Desert Orchid and Istabraq.<br><br>4.<br>Has they ever been a horse who has trotted up and you say mmmm wish I had put that up ?<br><br>So often it’s untrue. I’m sure it’s the same with anyone else but in these big handicaps you can narrow the field down to a handful and then its only<br>small margins that tip you one way or the other.<br><br>Sorry for all the Questions as YOU have one of the best jobs in the racing word :)
BUT I wouldn’t like it ;)
As I said thankyou for you time as they say time is money
Zzass
— — Posted by Kathy on 4:28 pm on Aug. 24, 2001
Hi Tom,<br>Thanks for your time.
Apart from working out who will be your Pricewise selection, what other area of horseracing are you personally interested in, involved in or passionate about or is it just a job as far as you are concerned?<br><br>Kathy, No it’s not just as job as racing has been my passion since a very young age and I’ve always wanted to be involved in the industry. In fact<br>I’ve always wanted to be part of the breeding industry and still hope that one day that is where I’ll end up.
— Posted by robledo on 10:53 pm on Aug. 24, 2001
Tom,<br>Good luck in the new job,
How often do you back your selections?
If you ever change your mind between the time you write a tipping piece and the race going off – on grounds of rain, new stalls position, etc – would you consider putting out a message, say on the Post’s internet site?
Many thanks,
Robledo<br><br>Nearly always back my selections providing I can get on at a reasonable price and yes I think any tipster that has to tip the day before the race<br>will come to different conclusions if certain factors have changed.<br>Sometimes even if they haven’t certain other thoughts will come to mind that will dent my confidence in the morning. As far as the Post’s internet<br>site is concerned I know there are ongoing discussions as to how Pricewise will be displayed in the future but changing selections or advice is a bit<br>tricky for loads of reasons.
— Posted by Daylight on 12:24 pm on Aug. 26, 2001
Tom,
Do you not find doing all your tipping articles in the RP conflict with each other?<br><br>Yes I do but I read this site regularly and its very seldom two different people come to the same conclusion. Racing like anything is all about<br>opinions and you wouldn’t expect two football or political pundits to agree very often either.
— Posted by jez on 1:16 pm on Aug. 26, 2001
Hi Tom<br>I know you have contributed to pricewise for a long time now so your not exactly thrown in the deep end and some great winners last year like That Man Again and Prince Alex I think. Are you the only pricewise tipster that has ever given from one selection a day three winners in a row: Fatehalkair 2pw@13/2; Italian Symphony 2pw 4/1 and Raffles Rooster 2 pw@5/1 on the 16th,17th and 18th February 1999.<br>The problem this year has been a real attempt by bookmakers to make it really hard to get the prices advertised- shayadi in the ebor was an example – website supposed to put the prices up at 10.a.m they did but Shayadi it said selection suspended and could not get a penny on at 25/1 . Also there is a Stanley shop 7 miles away and they have told me before that it is not their policy to hold prices for at least 15 mins so I knew it would be a waste of time going. They were the only firm going 25/1 and I would think very few managed to get that unless you have a deposit account with them. Also one last point I have noticed that whenever pricewise goes for a horse top priced by surrey they never seem to win – they must have some hot odds compilers for horse racing, because they always seem to get it right at being biggest.<br>All the best and I hope you steer pricewise through the rest of the year for another year of profit. I`m sure you will, after the excellent start you have made.<br>Thanks for your time.<br><br>Thanks for some kind words Jez and I know it’s impossible to get Stanley prices but what am I supposed to do. The pay lots of money to go in the<br>boxes and I can’t dismiss them totally out of hand as they assure me that some people got the 25-1. I usually try to say to take the 20-1 with other<br>firms if that’s good value too. By the way Shayadi broke a pelvis unfortunately.<br>Surrey are definitely a major player now and have some good odds compilers but they’ll get it wrong from time to time, just as Ladbrokes and the rest will. Hopefully we’ll all be able to take them for a few quid.
— Posted by Nev on 3:30 pm on Aug. 27, 2001<br>Hiya Tom, thanks for your time.<br>I’ve asked this question of others before, so now it’s your turn mate.<br>How do you handle losing runs with your personal betting ?<br>Many thanks,<br>Nev.<br><br>Nev, like everyone else not very well. There are times when nothing goes right, in fact since taking over I’ve had at least five horses beaten in<br>photos. However I never had a losing season betting and I’ve done pretty well when I’ve done Pricewise or Bureau over the last few years, so you’ve<br>just got to be confident that things will turn round. Finally never ever change the strategy that served you well over the years and definitely don’t start chasing your losses. If you’re confident in your own ability and have sound logic, things will come right, although a bit of luck here<br>or there wouldn’t go amiss.<br>
<br>
How about that….Mel Collier recommends Tom Segal on to this site!! It took me a while to type my question because i kept typing Mr Segul….good Q+A.
Thanks for answering all our questions Tom.
Good luck for the future.
Regards – Matron<br>:cool:<br>
Although I never asked a question, I really enjoyed reading that and I can relate to a lot of that when I make my selections!…. all the best Tom!
 Hi DL :wave:
  I dont know wether tom has finished answering questions but if he hasnt id like to ask this question.
   Tom,<br>        Why are the Racing Post tissue prices so far off the mark sometimes?
          Thankyou. :pimp:
Thanks again Mr Segal, another superb question and answer thread. I didn’t realise that one man had to price up 100 horses. That’s mad, is there no way the Racing Post would employ a specialist tissue making firm to do the forecasts? Surely that would be much more sensible than trying to kill their workers by overworking them. Rob.
Yes it was me Kathy and I had Tom in mind a while back but waited until he had settled in to his pricewise job as I knew he was a member on here a while back (his username gave the game away :) )
Toms wasted no time when he replied within a few hours of me sending him the Q&A mail and I would like to thank him for his time with that & for visiting (& posting) to answer Vikings question which was put up after the deadline. I also know how busy he must be at this time of the week (pricewise selections due tomorrow) :clap:
 Hi Tom :wave:
   Thanks for taking time to reply after the deadline (soz DL). Much appreciated.
        All The Best :pimp:
Hey Nathan, been looking at your scores/bets. Pretty fair! Have you ever tried that ‘goals galore’ (Weekend games only it seems) at William Hill?
If you’re not aware, though I’m sure you are, it’s the coupon where you get to pick how many teams will SCORE – so no bother about win,lose or draw as long as they both/all score. 1,2, I think it goes up to ten-fold (20 teams). I put down six for 66-1 (They give you at six-fold). and guess what, just put down £2.00 and just ONE team didn’t score. Could be an idea to try three teams (3 coupons I think you’d have to fill out, for a quid or two quid, can’t remember the odds on that, think it’s 8-1). A tryout at those odds. could be good! Thanks, Naseby.[/color:8h66eae8]
Hey Nathan, been looking at your scores/bets. Pretty fair! Have you ever tried that ‘goals galore’ (Weekend games only it seems) at William Hill?
If you’re not aware, though I’m sure you are, it’s the coupon where you get to pick how many teams will SCORE – so no bother about win,lose or draw as long as they both/all score. 1,2, I think it goes up to ten-fold (20 teams). I put down six for 66-1 (They give you at six-fold). and guess what, just put down £2.00 and just ONE team didn’t score. Could be an idea to try three teams (3 coupons I think you’d have to fill out, for a quid or two quid, can’t remember the odds on that, think it’s 8-1). A tryout at those odds. could be good! Thanks, Naseby.[/color:3l7rtgg1]
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