Betting on Horse Racing | An Introduction
Betting on horse racing can be a daunting task for first time visitors. The terminology is complicated, the odds make no sense, and figuring out if you won can feel like a jigsaw puzzle. For those interested in picking a winner; you can ask friends for tips, pick horses by name or color, or choose your favorite number… but what if you don’t know how to use that information to make a bet? Most people will take a stab at it, become more confused in the process of losing money and ultimately head to the bar after the 2nd race for a guaranteed ROI. This common problem hinders both the racetrack and the consumer. The racetrack wants you to understand the betting so you continue to bet, hopefully in increasing amounts as you feel more comfortable, while the consumer is unlikely to come back if they had a bad first experience. This blog hopes to solve that problem by teaching you enough to feel comfortable betting on horse racing and hopefully making some money along the day.
THE SIMPLEST WAYS OF BETTING ON HORSE RACING ARE THE WIN, PLACE, AND SHOW BETS.
All of these wagers involve a single horse in a single race. Win betting is the most straightforward option at the racetrack and the basis for the odds you see. The minimum amount for a win bet is $2. This is important because the odds displayed are the horses odds to 1. For example, you will see in the photo below that the #1 horse has a 10 next to his number. For the racetrack regulars that number allows them to quickly estimate the win payout, but to the casual or first time visitor, the response is more likely “What the heck does that mean.” Using a simple formula you can easily make sense of these numbers and understand what the horse would pay should he/she win. The way to calculate this is to multiply your bet size by the odds of the horse, then add your bet size to that number. $2 x 10=$20 + $2 bet= total payout of $22. Another important component of the win bet is that your horse must win the race for you to collect any money. With this, you are less likely to cash a winning ticket than a place or show bet, but stand to win significantly more money should your horse win. Each bets has its own unique benefits and at the end we will introduce one of the most common strategies for betting on horse racing, “across the board.”
PLACE AND SHOW BETTING OFFER A GREATER CHANCE TO CASH A WINNING TICKET, BUT THE PAYOUTS CAN LEAVE YOU SHAKING YOUR HEAD.
With win betting your horse must win, but with place betting your horse can come in 1st or 2nd. This added element gives the bettor a much higher chance of “winning” and collecting, but the payout is almost always significantly less. This bet is more conservative than win betting and more aggressive than show betting. Place betting serves as the happy medium and is a popular bet for both beginners and experts. The next wagering option is show betting, the most conservative way to bet on horse racing and the highest probability of cashing a winning ticket. With a show bet, you are betting that your horse will finish in the Top 3, commonly referred to as “in the money.” This bet is significantly less of a challenge than picking the winner. However, because of the greater chance of “cashing” the payouts are substantially less. You may wonder why that is? Think of each betting pool as a pie. The win pool can only have one winner and those fortunate enough to hold a Win ticket on the winning horse are entitled to the whole pie. Place betting, which includes the top two, is paid to 2 horses, thus splitting the pie in half. While with Show betting, the pie is divided three ways, producing the lowest return. Each bet has its loyal followers, but if it is your first time betting on the races you may not be sure, so think of it like this. If you want to win big and tell your friends you had the winner, stick with win betting. If you want a blend of cashing a ticket and winning big, bet the horse to place, and if you want to cash tickets and visit the betting windows more often, stick with show betting. And if you still can’t decide, why not try your hand at betting the horse “Across the Board.” Across the board is the art of betting the same horse to Win, Place, and Show. It is 3 individual bets on one ticket and $2 across the board on any horse would cost you $6. $2 to win $2 to place $2 to show. This bet is the best of all three worlds, giving you the chance to win big and cash a winning ticket at the same time. Plus, if you remember to tell the betting attendant you want to bet your horse “Across the board”, they will never know its your first time betting on the horse races.
