Horse Racing Bets – Types & Explanations

Betting on Horse Racing is a practice as old as the sport itself – which is pretty old. During all those years, people have devised all sorts of betting types, and their names don’t really help you understand what they’re all about. Have no fear, though: we here at BetInfo have compiled a handy list of all horse racing bet types out there with beginner-friendly explanations of how they work.

Firstly, Horse Racing has a lot of types which are simply defined by the number of different bets that are combined. Let’s go over the basic ones.

Single – A straight win bet placed on a single event. As simple as they come.

Double – A single bet covering two outcomes of two events.

Treble – Basically the same as a Double, only with three events.

Accumulator – Works in the same in all sports betting. 4 or more selections who all depend on the previous ones winning. The odds stack multiplicatively to allow for huge winnings, but also hugely risky.

Trixie – Four individual bets placed on three separate events. Comprised of three doubles and a treble. At least two of these bets must win in order for you to make a profit.

Patent – Basically the same as a Trixie, only comprised of three singles, three doubles, and a treble all placed on three events.

Yankee – Much like the previous two. Comprised of six doubles, four trebles and a fourfold.

Lucky 15 – same as above, only with four singles, six doubles, four trebles and a fourfold.

Canadian – Also known as Super Yankee. Same as above, only has ten doubles, ten trebles, five fourfold’s and a five-fold accumulator.

The same principles go on to apply to Lucky 31 (31 total bets), Heinz (57 bets), Lucky 63 (63 bets), Super Heinz (120 bets), and Goliath (247 bets.)

Secondly, there are several types of horse racing bets defined by what you’re predicting will happen:

Win Bet – A simple prediction that your selection will win the race

Place Bet – A wager that your selection will cross the finish line first or second. Shorter odds than a Win Bet.

Show Bet – Same as a Place bet, only extends to 3^rd place as well. Again, considerably shorter odds.

Across the Board – Combines the previous three types. A winning selection will win all three of them, a 2^nd place confirms the Place and Show parts, and a 3^rd place only wins Show.

Each-Way – A wager that the selection will either win, or place in positions 2, 3, 4, and sometimes even 5.

Forecast – A betting type where you try to predict which horse will place first, and which will place second. Harder to get right than previous types.

Reverse Forecast – Much like the Forecast, only it doesn’t matter which of the two horses takes which place.

Tricast – A betting type where you try to predict which horse will finish first, which will finish second, and which will place third. Very risky, but massive potential profits.

Reverse Tricast – Much like the Tricast, but it doesn’t matter which of the three selections finishes in which place.

First Four / Superfecta – The same principles as Forecast and Tricast, only involves four horses and the first four places.

Reverse First Four – The same principles as Reverse Forecast and Reverse Tricast, only involves four horses and the first four places.

Additionally, there is Tote Betting. A tote bet puts your stake into a pool with other punters, where the winners divide the whole pot. Thus, your odds prices are determined by how many bettors back which option, rather than the bookmaker.