Horse betting is one of the most preferred sports to bet on and it has fans all over the world. This is why when online sports betting have become popular, horse races were some of the major events that punters can place money on.
Since newer virtual sportsbooks are popping out constantly, you may feel overwhelmed by the numerous options you have. However, you can easily cut down your choice to only a few trustworthy and fair online bookmakers. All you have to do is follow a list with requirements that should be met by the web-based sportsbook. This way you will be able to enjoy the best horse racing betting in the comfort of your home.
If you are new to this scene, you might feel surprised by the numerous markets available online. There, you will come across various betting options that offer different odds. It is always good to have plenty of variants to choose from and make the best bet that will bring you a great payout.
Before you head to online horse racing betting sites, you should be familiar with the different types of bets that you can make. If you are interested in this sport and the types of wagering options you have when you embark on online sports betting, keep on reading.
History of Horse Racing
Horse Racing is an ancient sport that first started back in the era of Nomadic tribesmen in Central Asia. Later on, it has become a source of entertainment among kings and nowadays it is a sport with global popularity. In fact, horse racing is one of the few forms of gambling that is legal in many countries.
In the UK and Ireland horse racing has been extremely popular for centuries. There are two main codes of racing – Flat and National Hunt. The former runs from April until November, while the latter is in season between November and April.
As its name suggests, a Flat race does not include any obstacles such as hurdles or fences. The racing horses are usually smaller in size and they run significantly shorter distances. Flat racing is quite popular worldwide and breeding plays an important role when it comes to the racing horses. When it comes to National Hunt races the breed of the horses does have such a strong impact and often it is more about the technique that is used.
The US is also another part of the world that is fascinated by the charms of horse racing and betting on the sport. Flat races on the dirt are among the most popular variation of the sport but there are also quite a few races on turf and ones that include jumps. The US is a host of several major horse races throughout the year and The Triple Crown series is definitely one of them. Another popular horse race held in the US is The Breeders Cup which attracts numerous participants thanks to the major prize it is offering. The aforementioned UK and Ireland are also avid competitors in Breeders Cup which is held somewhere between late October and early November.
France is yet another host of a major horse race known as Prix De L’arc De Triomphe. It is usually held in October and in addition to the French, UK and Irish raiders, there are often participants who have come from as far as Japan. The Australian Melbourne Cup is another extremely popular horse race that gathers raiders from all over the world. And if you were not convinced that horse racing is popular worldwide, you should take a look at the Dubai World Cup which in the past few years have attracted numerous runners from all over the world with its generous prize.
How to Pick the Best Horse Racing Betting Site
When it comes to picking the most suitable online sportsbook where you can bet on horse racing, there are often way too many choices. Although it may seem like there are way too many options to pick from, you can be sure that the best ones stand out from the rest. If you look for a few important key elements, you will actually be able to separate the proper virtual bookies from those which are not trustworthy.
Online sports betting should always be fun and you are advised to stop making wagers once you have lost the thrill. Since you are betting your real money, you should make sure that the online sportsbook is a reliable and honest website. This way you will be sure that your money is safe and you can enjoy a fair betting experience. Look at the licenses that the web-based bookie is holding and check whether it is properly regulated by trustworthy authorities.
Of course another aspect you should look for when you are picking the virtual bookmaker where you place your bets is being able to use a safe and convenient payment solution. This way you will be sure that your money will be transferred right away and you would not have to worry about a thing. The best online sports betting sites accept various banking solutions which can suit the needs of different bettors.
One of the advantages of betting online is that most web-based sportsbooks offer various promotions and bonuses to their members. This way punters will have the opportunity to improve their chances of making successful bets. When you are choosing the sports betting website where you would like to place wagers on horse racing, pick one that will offer generous deals and bonuses. This way you will be able to enjoy your online betting to the fullest.
When you are confused which online bookie to choose, you can also base your decision on the wagering options you are provided with. The best thing about interactive sportsbooks is that they are offering numerous betting options which can make your horse racing betting more exciting and rewarding. What is more, virtual bookmakers offer numerous markets with different odds. This is why you are advised to pick the online sportsbook that offers the best odds and the most wagering options. This will enable you to make the ultimate bets and possibly enjoy great payouts.
If betting on horse racing is your passion, make sure that the online bookie of your choice is covering all the major events. This way you will have the chance to follow the biggest horse races in the world and place your bets while doing so.
How to Bet on Horse Racing
If you are new to the whole online horse racing betting, there are several things you should know before you start your journey as a virtual punter. One of the most important things that you will have to comprehend in order to make successful bets is odds. There are fixed odds betting, pari-mutuel (tote betting), and exchange betting in horse racing. In order to have a better understanding of online horse racing, we will further elaborate on the three different types of odds.
Types of Odds
Fixed odds can be described as placing your money with the interactive sportsbook on already agreed odds. If your bet is successful you get paid the amount determined by your stake and the fixed odds you have chosen to put your money on. With betting on fixed odds, punters know how much they will win if their predictions turn out to be correct. The only exception is when they make a wager on what is know as starting price (SP). This means that you are not betting on agreed odds but rather the odds which have been determined at the beginning of the race.
Parimutuel, or as some people call it tote betting, is quite different compared to fixed odds. Here, you do not have any odds nor do you bet against the bookmaker. When you opt for making a pari-mutuel bet, you wager goes into a pool for that race. In the end, the pool is divided between all winners in accordance with the size of the stake they have made. There are three major factors that determine how much you can win by making a pari-mutuel bet. It is important how much you have wagered, what is the size of the pool and how many are the winning punters.
Exchange Betting is a fairly new way to place your money on a horse race. This allows peer to peer bets, rather than betting against a bookmaker. The essential of this type of betting is that you decide on the bet you would like to make and you determine the odds. Then your wager is matched with the one of another punter who is making an opposing bet. The great advantage of exchange betting is that you can also choose to lay a horse in the race. This means that you can place a bet on that particular horse not to win.
Steps to Betting Online on Horse Races
Once you have picked the online sportsbook where you would like to wager, you must open an account. This usually happens extremely fast and all you have to do is follow the registration instructions on the screen. This way they will be able to start with their online betting adventures.
After creating an account, punters will have to upload funds to their sportsbook account. They can head to the Cashier page of the website and pick the option that will allow them to top up their betting funds. After entering the amount you would like to deposit, pick the banking method you prefer. The next step would be confirming the transaction and your money will be available in your sports betting account.
The next step following the uploading of money to your account is picking the horse race you are interested in. You will see all of the markets that offer odds for the current game and you will be able to pick the best odds that you believe will bring you a rewarding outcome. Once you have made your choice, click on the bet you would like to make and enter the amount of the stake you would like to make. Confirm it and all that is left to wait and see whether your wager has been successful
Types of Horse Racing Bets
When it comes to horse racing bets, there are quite a few wagering options that you can utilise. Whether you are interested in the traditional bets that you can make or you want to place some more exotic ones, you can learn about each of them in this article. You will be able to improve your chances of winning if you opt for making more advanced and intricate bets. This is why it is advised to get accustomed to all wagering options you will encounter at online sportsbooks.
Win
This is probably to simplest straight bet that you can make on a horse race. You just need to pick the horse you believe will win the race and put your money on it. You get paid if the runner you have picked ends up the first one to pass the post. Since players typically bet on different sportsbooks, the size of their payouts can differ. Usually, the wins are calculated based on fixed odds or using a pari-mutuel system. There are also some races, especially those in the UK that use a “starting price” to calculate the payouts for the successful Win bets.
Place
In US horse racing, as well as other regions across the world, Place betting is making a wager on a horse to finish in the top two positions. This means that punters are paid only if the horse they bet their money on finishes either first or second. Although the payout is lower compared to the one for a successful Win bet, the chances of guessing the correct outcome are bigger with Place betting. In many countries, the Place bet is made on the horse finishing in some of the predetermined positions which can be more than just the first two.
Each-Way
This type of wager combines the Win and the Place bets. This means that punters are betting on the win of their favourite as well as on him/her finishing on any of the positions determined by the Place bet. If the horse you bet your money on finishes first, you will be paid for both your Win and Place bets. Thanks to the Each-Way bet even if the runner you have chosen does not win but finishes in one of the leading positions, you will be paid for the Place part of the wager.
Exacta
As an exotic bet, Exacta is difficult to be predicted but many players still enjoy making it as it offers generous payouts. This wager includes betting on the two horses that will finish in the top two positions. In order to get paid, you will have to guess correctly both of the winners as well as their exact positions. Since Exacta is difficult to be predicted, many bettors prefer to make several bets of this type. This is why you can also come across wagering options like Exacta Boxes and Exacta Keys which offer punters to cover as many Exacta bets as possible.
Quinella
If Exacta sounds like an interesting but way too risky wagering option, you can try Quinella. You have to bet money on the horses which will finish in the top two positions, however, this type of bet is a little easier to predict. Even though you are still putting your money on the first two winners, you do not have to guess their exact order. Since the risk with Quinella is a little lower compared to Exacta, so is the payout. Despite that, bettors can still enjoy great prizes if they make a successful Quinella bet.
Trifecta and Superfecta
If you thought that Exacta is difficult to predict, wait until you come across Trifecta and Superfecta bets. Since this type of wagers is quite risky, the payouts are great. Punters who want to make a Trifecta bet will have to predict the top three winners in the race, while the Superfecta wagering option requires guessing correctly the first four horses that will pass the post. With both of these exotic bets, punters will also have to guess the correct order of the winning horses.
Daily Double
This is known to be one of the first exotic bets in horse racing betting. If you decide to make a Daily Double wager, you will have to guess correctly the winners on two consecutive races. Although there is nothing complicated about this type of bet, it is definitely hard to predict the correct outcome of not one but two races.
Back in the days, the Daily Double could be made only on the first two races on a track. These days, however, punters can make this type of wager on any two races that follow each other.
Pick 3/ Pick 4/ Pick 6
All of these wagers are variations of the Daily Double. The essential goal is the same, however, the number of consecutive races you bet on is increasing. With the Pick 3, you have to bet on the winners of three races that follow one after another. The Pick 4 includes betting on four consecutive horse races and the Pick 6 – six consecutive races. Even though these wagers are quite difficult to be won, punters are still tempted to make them as they offer amazing payouts.
Prop Bets/ Specials
Other popular wagering options you can make on horse races include Prop bets and Specials. Those types of bets are not really related to the outcome of a certain race. There are Special bets such as picking a jockey who will have the most wins at a meeting or betting on a trainer who will have the most successful season.
Although this type of exotic bets can be fun, they are more suitable for punters who like to make riskier wagers. Since it is difficult to predict events that do not depend on the outcome of a certain race, unexperienced bettors should be cautious when they make Prop or Special bets.
Matchups
This type of exotic bet can definitely bring players a generous payout and it is certainly easy to comprehend. With Matchups the sportsbook will present the odds for two horses competing in the same race. Punters have to choose which one will finish the race before the other. If you make the right bet, you will get paid. In this case, it does not matter if the horse you bet on is the winner of the race. Your win simply depends on betting on the right horse from the two that the sportsbook is presenting.
Lay Wagers
This type of bets is only possible at a betting exchange. Laying a horse means that you are betting against it. You will simply have to make a Lay bet on another punter’s Back wager on the same horse. This way you are making a counterbet and either you or the other bettor will get paid at the end of the race.
Tips for Horse Racing Bets
Once you know all the wagering options you can use when betting on horse races, it is recommended you also keep in mind a few tips. These will help you to enjoy your betting experience to the fullest and make the most out of your wagers.
It is advised you start betting by making small stakes. This way you will be able to keep your losses in check and gain some knowledge about the whole process of sports betting. You should always set a budget beforehand and stick to it. Once you have reached your limit, you should stop making bets.
Pick the races you bet on carefully. Since horse racing is a global sport, there are races every day in different parts of the world. This is why it simply will not be profitable to bet on every single race. It is best to pick the events you are truly familiar with and have a general idea which horse can be the possible winner of the race.
It is recommended to avoid Parlays which are basically several bets combined in a single one. Although the payouts can be great, it is very difficult to enjoy a successful outcome out of a Parlay bet. This is because punters are not paid, even if only one of the legs in a Parlay bet is not successful.
Last but not least, take the most of your online betting. The beauty of having access to numerous online sportsbooks is that you will be able to pick the best odds for the race you are interested in. You can also bet at several virtual bookmakers and this way you can improve your chances of winning.