Want to get started gambling on horse racing, but are not certain how the odds, payouts, or fundamental betting rules operate? When you’re gearing up to put a wager on a horse race, there are a couple of things you’ll need to understand to prevent confusion. Not to worry, we’ve got you covered.
Horse racing gambling does not rest upon fixed chances that bookmakers make as many conventional sports do. It’s important to know how to read horse racing odds before you begin. When you know the basics of horse racing betting, read on to figure out how horse racing odds and payouts are generated.
Pari-mutuel Odds and What They Mean For The Payouts
This is the major way horse racing differs in the heart from gambling in a sportsbook. There are a number of differences between reading and calculating odds for traditional sports, and reading and calculating odds for horse racing. At a casino or internet sportsbook when you bet on a soccer team, as an instance, the chances are fixed, meaning that they’re locked in if you wager and you are betting against the house.
In horse racing, the pari-mutuel system means handicappers are betting against each other. This occurs both at the track and at online sportsbooks.
The odds on a horse are dictated by how much money is wagered on the horse . The house requires a percentage off the top (generally 10-30% based on the sportsbook or monitor you’re betting with), but all the remaining money is pooled together and odds are calculated if the horses break from the gate.
The dimensions of the payout is set at the conclusion of each race, determined by how the horses put.
For instance, say 90 percent of the money on a given race had been bet on the same horse and only 10% percent of their money was distributed among the rest of the field. If the preferred won, 90 percent of these tickets would be winners and the money put into the gambling pool by that 10% of losers would pay out the large set of winners. This usually means that only pennies would be distributed to the winners.
On the flip side, if the 90% horse lost, there would be a ton of cash to pay out and just a small percentage of winning tickets to accumulate this large amount.
Odds are a reflection of just how much money has been bet on every individual horse. A large favorite (who’s receiving a ton of gambling volume) can return as few as five or ten cents for each two dollars wager, so a 2 winning wager could hypothetically bring back as small as $2.10.
That being said, horses that are 100/1 win occasionally, meaning a $2 win bet can cover excess of $200.
Calculating Payouts on Exotic Bets
The chances on exotic stakes, exactas, trifectas, Pick 3’s, and Pick 5 are calculated exactly the identical way as pari-mutuel odds. There are separate pools for every wager, so if you bet an exacta, your money has been bet against everybody else enjoying an exacta. If you gamble a Pick 3, then strictly Pick 3 cash is at the pool.
Why is exotic bets both more difficult to acquire and more lucrative is the variety of possible winning combinations. Whether there are eight horses in a race that means there are two possible outcomes, among the eight horses has to win. In a Pick 3 if you can find eight horses in race 1, eight horses in race 2, and eight horses in race three, which generates 512 possible combinations (8 x 8 x 8 = 512 different possible outcomes).
Evidently, choosing one from eight to win is simpler than one from 512.
What’s ML in Horse Racing? Tip: Not the Moneyline!
We just discussed the value of this betting odds, which change as people bet. Very low likelihood mean a strong likelihood of winning but with a payout that is minimal. Higher odds are more profitable but less likely.
The morning line (ML) is an expert’s guess at what the final odds of a race will be. It isn’t always precisely accurate, but it’s a critical tool for estimating each horse’s chances and payouts, especially for new bettors.
Somebody who works for the track creates an educated guess when horses are entered right into a race exactly what every one of their odds will be if the gate opens to start the race. The person who puts the morning line could be the race caller (announcer), a writer who handles the races on a daily basis, or actually anyone with experience handicapping.
Essentially, anyone with a sense of the track that has a strong sense of the way the public will wager based on previous performances and human connections for every horse sets the morning line.
When the ML specialists arrive in their estimated odds, they factor in past results, trainers, jockeys, owners, what tracks the horses have been running at, and each horse’s history. Basically , they analyze everything a handicapper looks at.
The ML helps to know as you decide what horses you like, and it can sometimes enable you to consider unique horses and get a sense of just how much a bet may cover.
What Is a Scratch in Horse Racing?
A horse that is entered to run in a hurry, but the owner or coach decides he or she’s not going to engage is scratched. To be scratched is to be removed from the race before it begins.
A horse may have suffered an injury, be sick, or not enjoy the track conditions because it’s raining or too hot and dry. Other times, the connections (owner/trainer) just change their mind and believe there’s a better chance for the horse to run on a different day.
Should you bet on a horse to win and he or she’s scraped, your money gets refunded. This is an integral feature of horse racing betting and this exceptional rule gives bettors some insurance in case their preferred horse drops out of a race. The one thing like more traditional sports betting is when baseball stakes are conditional on the beginning pitcher playing.
Various monitors have varying rules about horses scratched in other kinds of stakes, but generally, you obtain a refund, a consolation payout, or occasionally in the case of a Pick 3 or Pick 5 you can have your horse changed to whomever your favorite in the race is. In order to understand what’ll happen to your wager in the case of a scratch, make sure you inspect your sportsbooks’ terms and conditions.
There’s More!
All wagering could be intimidating at first, but our horse racing guides are designed to make you feel comfortable and assured in the bets you place.
To learn more regarding horse racing gambling and a variety of sports wagering, have a look at our gambling 101 section.
