What's the best way to use Grades? Assuming AI Best Horse Pct gives a reasonably accurate estimation of a horse's win probability, and that the AI Line is some kind of estimate of the final tote odds, the grades are the most important thing of all, in my opinion.
As you may know, Grades are just an expression of the $Net. For example, A+ means the $Net is greater than $2.40, where $Net = $2.00 is break even.
I have noticed that $Net is a function of AI Line (AILineOdds) and AI Best Horse Pct (AIBHPct) according to the usual formula for ROI:
$1ROI = Odds * Probability - (1 - Probability)
where $1ROI is the Return On Investment for each $1 bet ($1ROI = 0.0 is break even).
in DET
$1ROI = AILineOdds * AIBHPct - (1 - AIBHPct)
For example for AILineOdds = 0.34 and AIBHPct = 36.2% = 0.362,
$1 ROI = 0.34 * .362 - (1-.362) = -0.51
To convert $1 ROI to $Net,
$Net = 2 * $1ROI + $2
In this example
$Net = $2 * (-0.51) + $2 = $0.97.
My philosophy is to never bet horse to win that have $Net less than $2.00. Assuming the AI Line and AI Best Horse Pct are accurate, betting such horses will always lead to losses in the long run. I focus on horses with $Net > $2.40, i.e., A+ horses.
<< I believe the Grades (A+, D, etc.) were initially portrayed as ways to find who the whales are likely to bet>>
I am not sure that is correct. My understanding is the AI Line is how the public (mostly whales) should bet, whereas the AI BH Pct is how the AI predicts the win probability for each horse. $Net/Grades are a function of both of these.