Whether you’re still learning your way around the track or you’ve been part of a horse-loving family for years, learning about betting on the ponies before you start laying down cash is key if you want to have the best chance of winning. Plenty of people place bets here and there at the horse track, but if you want a chance at winning some serious money then you’ll have to sit down and learn a bit about horses, horse racing, and betting.
Horse racing might seem like an outdated way to have fun, but don’t be fooled by the fact that your grandfather loved it. Horse racing is a great form of entertainment bursting with excitement and an affordable way to have fun and to see live action. Compare this to the cost of seeing a professional basketball game and you’ll quickly see why horse-loving families love the track for multiple reasons.
Types of bets
Unlike other forms of gambling, watching horse racing at a high level is a great experience. But if you’re new to the track, you need to know how to do more than just watch the show. The first thing you’ll need to learn is what kind of bets you can place. Here’s a selection of some of the bets you can place:
Win
Aren’t we all betting to win? Yes, but a ‘Win’ bet is when you bet that one horse will come in the first place. If it does, you win.
Place
If you bet on a horse to place, you’re betting that the horse will come in first or second place. Both options will give you a win, though the payout will be less than a straight Win bet. However, it does give you more security since it gives you two chances to get some cash.
Show
This type of bet gives you three options and bets that your hose will come first, second, or third. This type of bet gives you much higher chances of winning, but the payout is significantly less than for the previous bets mentioned.
Lucky 15 Bet
A lucky 15 bet consists of 15 bets with 4 selections in different events. This kind of bet will have 4 trebles, 4 singles, 6 doubles, and 1 four-fold bet. Even if only one of your choices wins, returns are paid to treble the odds. If all your selections win, you’ll get a 20% bonus. To figure out how to calculate this kind of bet, you can use a lucky 15 bet calculator. This is more of an exotic bet, so it might be a bit advanced for a beginner.
This is just a sample of the types of bets you can place at the horse track, but definitely does not even begin to cover them all. As a beginner, your best bet is to stick to straight wagers like wins, places, or shows, and work your way up to more complicated exotic bets that give you more varied chances of winning.