Investing Lessons From the Race Track

LAKE GEORGE, N.Y. (TheStreet) -- The horses are back at Saratoga, and I've made my annual August trek up to the Adirondacks to spend time at my vacation house overlooking Lake George. It's the perfect place to enjoy some boating and take in the racing at the grand old thoroughbred race track in Saratoga.

Last year, in "Five Investing Tips I Learned at the Track," I highlighted some lessons and strategies that are applicable to both investing and horse-betting:

Don't Bet Every Race

Do Your Research

Eliminate the Losers

Not All Favorites Are Good Favorites

Be Aware of Derivatives

After nearly 30 years of going to the races, I still learn more about investing and betting with every visit. I would like to share three more lessons I've learned at the track.

1. Stick With Your Strategy

My colleague Mitch Rosen and I co-manage a Web site called Horsepicking.com. While Mitch is an excellent handicapper, my personal acumen is in figuring our how to bet the races. Similar to my trading models , I've developed a betting model that formulates a betting strategy based on Mitch's picks.

When we deviate from our strategy, as Mitch sometimes likes to, we often miss out on opportunities. When we stick to our model, our expected return is always positive over an extended period of time. When it comes to investing, you need to do the same.

A side lesson: Picking stock and learning how to buy and sell them are two separate and distinct talents. If you don't have them both, you need to work with a good partner.

2. Understand the Downside

Investing is not only about picking winners. It's also about generating returns on investments. Some favorites will return such low payouts that it is hardly worth money betting on them.