Home to the ever-popular Ayr Gold Cup, the most westerly track in Britain is Scotland’s pride and joy.
Here, you’ll find a straight six-furlong track with varying biases, as well as a 1½-mile round course which is galloping in nature and particularly gruelling when the rain gets into the turf.
As a general rule of thumb; low numbers are best on a round course including here, but there is more to it than that at Ayr.
Ayr Course Draw Bias Overview
Remember to factor into things not only any draw advantages, but also horse running styles too. Those happy to race handy to well at Ayr, so make sure you keep that in mind when looking at the expected pace in the race along with the draw.
Any draw biases are more prevalent here on better ground. When the rain comes at Ayr, the ability to get through the ground and see out the trip is more important than the stalls position.
On the straight course at Ayr, high numbers (stands side) generally have an advantage. Naturally, if the stalls are in the middle, on the near side or when the field is a full one, that advantage is starker.
Most wins on the straight course at Ayr in handicap races have come from runners drawn in at least the highest third of the field. The Ayr Gold Cup draw bias is similar, with few low-drawn runners doing very well.
It pays a little to be drawn low on the round course, but over longer distances this doesn’t matter a whole lot.
5 Furlongs at Ayr
The five-furlong sprints here are on the straight track, so the high numbers on the stands side tend to have an advantage. As always, check the stalls position as the figures will be skewed if there is a small field and the stalls are on the far side. The field will stay over there and there will be little in the way of draw bias.
6 Furlongs at Ayr
This is the Ayr Gold Cup, Silver Cup and Bronze Cup course. There are big fields for all three, with high numbers on the stands side being best of all. As long as there is a fair pace right across the track, you can upgrade those on the near side and/or downgrade those on the far side.
7 Furlongs at Ayr
Races here over 7 furlongs and 50 yards start opposite the stands on the far side of the course. The race begins very shortly before the first bend, continuing on the turn for some time before hitting the straight.
With that, low numbers are best here. Those needing to get to the front will have to burn lots of fuel and get round a wall of horse to get into position. In the straight, things level out quite a bit but there is still a slight advantage to being drawn on the inside over seven furlongs.
One Mile at Ayr
Starting on the far side, mile races at Ayr are on the round course. Handicap races at Ayr over a mile have a strong record of producing winners drawn very low, so even in smallish fields it pays to be drawn 1-4 in particular.
9 Furlongs at Over at Ayr
The one mile, one furlong start at Ayr is on the far side of the round course, directly opposite the winning line while the 1¼-mile start is in a chute.
These races offer runners plenty of time to sort themselves out in the back straight before making the first turn, meaning the draw is less important than over a mile or seven furlongs.
Races over middle distances and longer hold no great advantage to any runners, regardless of draw.