Isn’t that the million-dollar question? Which races you choose to enter is one of the major choices you will make as a stable owner.
Generally speaking, your goal is to enter your horse into races most suited to their attributes and preferences. While entering the perfect race with the perfect conditions that match your horse’s preferences is ideal, you’ll routinely be faced with decisions that call for selecting the best available options. In addition, as you have to race your horse to figure out its attributes as they’re hidden until retirement, there’s a lot of strategy and skill involved.
This decision flow tree below is typical of the one players follow as they work their horses through the race tree to find opportunities for success. Of course, always pay attention to the freeroll events. Click here to learn about freeroll events.
When entering a race, we recommend most players go to their horse and then click on the “Find Preferred Races” button, as it automatically sorts for races your horse can enter that share its turn and surface preferences.
Here is an article written by Zane, the General Manager of Bukidnon Farms, that nicely dives into Photo Finish™ LIVE race types.
0 & 1 Year-Old Foals
They can’t race yet.
2 Year Old Juveniles
It’s a momentous day when your foal finally turns two and can race. They will only be able to run in “Juvenile” races, which tend to have lower entry fees. That’s a good thing, though! This way, you can figure out your horse’s strengths and weaknesses before hitting the big time as a three-year-old.
It’s always recommended to use the exact grade quick filter when searching for a horse that isn’t at the very top (S+ or higher) to accurately gauge how it competes against similarly graded horses.
You should have a couple of big goals for your juvenile horse:
- Figure out its “Distance Preference” (DP). Every single horse has a distance that it prefers to race at. For some, it’s like 4-6 furlongs or 10-12 furlongs. Others prefer two furlongs, like 7-8 or 10-11. And some horses are very specific and just like one furlong. So try your horse at different lengths and WATCH THE RACE; it gives hints of where the horse does best. For example, if you enter into an 11-furlong race and your horse is in first from 7-9 furlongs and then falls back to 5th place, you know to try dialing in their DP at 7-9 with future races.
Once you figure out your horse’s DP on the Preferred Races screen, we suggest creating and saving its min and max furlongs using this button:
That way, when you are on the preferred races for a specific horse, you’ll be able to go to the Saved Filters dropdown menu and see something like this:
You can then select your horse’s preferred distance and filter its races to just those distances. This will be important as your stable grows.
You want to race it in at least three non-handicap races to establish its “Benchmark.” All races except handicaps count towards this score.
3 to 8-Year-Old Horses
First, it’s important to note that only three-year-olds can race in the four Major Races like the Virtual Kentucky Derby and Artemis Cup. As such, plan your calendar wisely.
Second, all horses have a “Peak Age”. Most horses peak between 3 and 5, but there are outliers on each side. Remember this as you face your horse, evaluate its ongoing performance, and make strategic decisions.
Maiden
These are GREAT to race in until you get that first win. Select your exact grade so, for example, your A+ is running against another A+.
A—and lower races are allowance races with weight per grade due to the low population, giving them an avenue to compete for their first win.
There are no Maiden races for 6+ year old horses.
Plenty of maidens are available for juveniles, especially early in the season.
3+ races have some maiden options, but they’re much sparser deeper into the schedule.
Your two-year-old will be able to race in the following Juvenile races.
Allowance
Allowance races are also great for almost every horse grade, as they’re designed to level the playing field. Like above, just ensure your horse’s grade is listed in the allowance section; otherwise, it’ll likely be outclassed.
Grade Restricted Stakes
Grade Restricted Stakes allow you to race against other horses of the same grade. If, for example, the race is an A+ Grade Restricted, it is not advisable to race in it with an A- or lower, as your chance of being competitive is very low.
Pro Tip: Grade Restricted Races have freerolls that many races qualify for. Make sure to consult the calendar and the Juvenile Grade Restricted and 3+ Grade Restricted Series pages for more
Grade III, II, and I Races
These are the races where the big dogs hang. If your horse isn’t an S or higher, the chances are you won’t be competitive. The entry fees are high, and the competition is stiff. Grade II is higher than Grade III, and Grade I is the most competitive.
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Graded races offer the highest $CROWN ratios in the game, making them especially rewarding to enter.
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Many graded races act as qualifiers for series like Kingmakers or Major races and serve as finals for various other scheduled series.
Claiming
Claiming Races are unique in that every single horse can be purchased or “claimed” at a predetermined price. As such, only race in these races if you’re comfortable with your horse potentially being purchased at the claiming price.
Claiming races are available both in open fields and mostly within grade-restricted fields, helping keep an even playing field. If you run too good of a horse in a low buy-in race, it’s going to get claimed.
Claiming races are the ultimate “evening” of fields because if you race too low, you get claimed; if you race above your ability, you lose the race and won’t get claimed.
As the season progresses, claim prices rise as horses compete to win $CROWN for being amongst the top 20 horses in claiming wins. Check the leaderboard for current prizes.
Watch the leaderboard and claim upcoming races to find horses you can claim who could help you get on the leaderboard.
Click here to view the Claiming Leaderboard.
Click here to learn more about the Claiming Leaderboard.
Click here for a community article on Claiming Races
PRO TIP: Many big stables will run low-level claimers with new juvenile horses when the season begins. Keep an eye out, you may see a primo looking for running low level claimers before it’s had a chance to establish itself yet. This isn’t exclusive to juvenile claimers but it certainly stands out more.
Benchmark Restricted
These races have a “max Benchmark” that your horse must be equal or below to enter. This ensures that the horses racing yours are somewhat equal in ability but make no mistake, there’s a lot of strategy at play here.
Note: Undercards for the majors require ten benchmark races to be eligible for those freerolls during the season.
Benchmark Allowance
These races specify a range your horse must fall into AND weight is removed in increasing amounts the lower your rating is.
As your horse continues to race, age, and face new competition, you must continually evaluate and adjust your strategy. Make no mistake, Photo Finish Live is a game of skill and strategy, and as always, we welcome you to join the public Discord chat and ask questions.
Pro Tip: CLICK HERE to learn more about each race type.
6+ Year Old Racing
In Photo Finish™ Live, racing opportunities are as varied as the horses. Grade-restricted stakes and high-level allowance races (A- to S+) provide thrilling opportunities for competitive racers.
The Silver Stakes series is a juicy option for those looking to boost their earnings. However, to enter these lucrative freerolls, horses need L28 earnings – so racing within your age bracket matters more than ever.
Want to know more about major races? Check out our racing basics guide for everything you need to get started.
Knockout (aka Hardcore) Races
If you’re done with the horse, KO races are for you.
You can try to sell it, but you can also enter it in a KO race.
KO races are winner-take-all, and the winner gets a chance at the entire KO jackpot.
A sim runs 7 coin flips. If you hit heads every time, you win the Jackpot.
All horses that do not win are auto-retired and removed from your stable. They now reside in the Third Time Pasture, where they can live out their days.