Horse Racing Betting Markets Explained

So you’re off to a day at the races and you’ve got no idea where to start. Well, you’ve come to the right place. Here at Bet Central, every day is a day at the races. We’re well versed on the differences between a Canadian and a Yankee. And no, the one isn’t a baseball team.

Luckily, we’re here to share that knowledge with you in a bid make your day at the races a success. At the very least, you can impress your friends with talk of a double roving banker quartet in the main race.
While horse racing betting can be as simple as slapping a tenner down on your favourite horse, it can also get as complicated as understanding the Duckworth Lewis method. Here are a couple of the more familiar bets you can place on a given race day.

Win Bets

A win only bet is simply a bet on the horse you believe is going to win the race. Fairly straightforward stuff.

Place Bets

A place bet means you are betting on a horse to run 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th depending on the number of competitors. The odds will be a fraction of the price for the horse to win, but you’ve got a couple more chances to win.

Each Way (E/W) Bet

An Each Way bet is very popular and is effectively two separate bets: one for the horse to win and one for the horse to place. This is a good bet on a horse at slightly longer odds who should place, but might go on to win the race.

Exacta

An exacta is where you attempt to predict the horses that will run 1st & 2nd in the correct order.
This is a nice bet to use if you like two horses in the race and can’t decide which one to back for the win.

Trifecta

A trifecta is where you attempt to predict the horses that will run 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order.
Slightly more complicated – you can back as many horses as you want to finish in the top three. You can take this as a straight bet, boxed or with a roving banker.

Straight Line

A straight line is a type of trifecta bet where you select three horses to run 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order.

Boxed

A boxed trifecta is a type of trifecta bet where you select three or more runners to fill the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places. The great thing about a box trifecta is that the runners can finish in any order so long as they fill the first three places.

Roving Banker

A roving banker is a type of trifecta bet where you back a horse to run anywhere in the first three places and the other selections must fill the positions that your banker does not.

Swinger

A swinger bet is where you pick at least two horses to finish in the top three. You win if the two horses chosen fill two of the first three places. There are three winning combinations – 1st & 2nd; 1st & 3rd and 2nd & 3rd.

Quartet

A quartet is where you attempt to predict the horses that will run 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the correct order. As with the trifecta, you can take this straight, boxed or with a floating banker (or two).

Place Accumulator

Choose a horse, or horses, to finish 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in each of the seven races that make up the Place Accumulator. One or more horses can be selected for each race. This is a great bet if you want to be involved in a number of races on the day for a small investment. It also has the added benefit of paying quite well should it arrive.

Jackpot

Choose the winner of all four races that make up the Jackpot. One or more horses can be selected for each race. A little tougher than the Place Accumulator – the Jackpot is a nice bet to take if you fancy one or two horses in the four required races. A nice way to play it is to banker your favoured horse in two races and go with a wider selection of horses in the two other races.

Pick 6

Choose the winner of all six races that make up the Pick 6. One horse or more can be chosen in each of the 6 races. This is the holy grail of South African horse racing betting. It comes with the highest risk, but also the greatest reward. Land one of these bad boys and you’ll be rolling in the dough. A nice bet to take with mates where you pool your money together and take your fancied horses in each of the six races.

All that’s left is for you to go out and pick a winner. Our horse racing betting strategy guide should help with that. Good luck and happy punting.

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