Never bet on or aginst the favorite.

[partsnut]

chuckg:

Never bet on or against the favorite.

Is this an old "hossy" phrase? Or, is it for real?

Great question.
There are some on this board that will hide any horse below 5-2 odds.
I personally look to beat the favorite.
I normally will try and do that betting just one horse.
However, I will bet 2 horses if they present a "value" situation.

From what you are saying you are hitting about 25% of your bets (betting 2 horses) where one third of your winners were favorites. In my humble opinion, you won't make much money at that rate unless your hitting some long odds horses as well. I guess you would have to gauge your ROI in order for you to ascertain if your are using a correct method.
I have found through my experiences that just betting one horse to win I would need 28 - 40% winners.
I have done this for 150 and 200 race cycles and had just a marginal plus ROI.
I am of the opinion that a 20 race cycle is meaningless because it's what happens in the long run that will tell you if what you are doing is worth the time and effort you are spending on it.