How to Bet on Horse Racing: A Beginner’s Guide

Horse racing is a popular sport. Yes, it is not in the soccer, football, or basketball stratosphere, but it’s quite close up there. One could argue that it has roots that are quite deeper than any of those sports we mentioned. If nothing else it is older, and the first bets that were put on horses predate soccer and basketball by a few decades at least. Yet, there are still people who haven’t experienced a bet put on horse racing. All of you who are new to horse racing betting are welcome to learn from this article. 

Before you start, let us tell you one important thing – it is pure fun! First of all, you can bet on horses in more than a  few interesting ways as a beginner. Some folks bet on horses purely based on their interesting name. There are people who bet depending on the rider’s short color. As is usual, some bets are based on lucky numbers. Good people at Stake.com have seen all of them. And depending on the race and the horse, sometimes it all works. 

Horse betting revolves around the biggest horse racing events in the world. We’re talking about events you probably know even if you’re new to the sport. Have you heard about the Kentucky Derby, the Grand National, and the Melbourne Cup? We bet you have. This sport has a centuries-old tradition and you shouldn’t take betting on it lightly. Instead, read this guide, and even as a beginner bet like a pro. This is how to cover your pony bets. 

Win, Place & Show

The best way to start your horse race betting adventure is the simplest one. Win, Place & Show are the essence of horse betting. These three bets are bets for horse positions. A win is a bet on a horse that comes first. Place is a bet that bets on a horse who finishes second. Show is the final bet and with it, you place a bet on a horse who will finish the race placed third. The best part is that you can combine these bets. Let’s say you use a $5 base for your best.

A Win bet requires $5 for your initial bet. But, if you want to hit all three bets in Win, Place, and Show you need to put $15 forth. To hit this bet you need for your horse to finish at one of the first three positions. A Win-Place wager is a bet on your picked pony to finish either first or second. With a base of $5, this is a $10 bet. As you can see, these are the simplest of bets when it comes to betting on horse racing. 

Exacta and Exacta Box

Here, we’re moving our wagers a few steps higher. Exacta and Exacta Box are a higher level of horse racing bets. As a horse bet we put it right above Win, Place & Show. Exacta is when you hit the two first horses that come through the finishing line. What makes it an interesting wager is that you can make it a straight bet. So, if you put $5 on Exacta 1-2 you want to hit not only the two first horses but also their exact order of finishing. A nice little perk of betting on horses, right? 

The other Exacta option is called a box. If you take a $5 punt at Exacta Box 1-2, you only need to have the horses you’ve put a bet on finish first and second. Their order doesn’t matter for this racing horse betting. What you need to know before betting on Box is that you need to double your wager compared to straight. Also, the fact that makes Exacta so popular is the fact that you can make as many combinations as you’d like. This is where the math comes into play as you need to be careful about the number of combinations not to exceed your betting budget. 

Trifecta and Trifecta Box

Trust us, when you get into horse racing and horse betting you will quickly fall in love with sports betting tied to betting on a horse. The real fun starts with Trifecta and Trifecta Box. Here is how. While a bit of a complicated bet. Trifecta and Trifecta Box offer the best payouts. As you can probably guess after getting acquainted with Exacta, with Trifecta you need to hit the first three horses to finish the race and their exact order. A straight Trifecta is a 1-2-3 order of your picks. If you want to give yourself a piece of freedom with a  Trifecta you’ll opt for the Trifecta Box. 

What’s important to remember with these racehorse bets, is that if you choose a Box you increase the number of combinations, and thus your initial bet increases. The box is always more expensive than a straight one, as it offers more chances to win due to a bigger number of combinations. While the eventual payout when you hit a Trifecta is nice, the initial bet is massive if you want to cover all the possible combinations. With a $5 base, a six-horse Trifecta comes with 120 combinations so you’ll have to part with $600 to cover the three horses you favor. 

There are a few more ways to bet inside of a Trifecta, but as a beginner, you’re better off keeping yourself to the basics of Trifecta betting. Once you get a better grasp of horse race betting today you can explore its depths. 

Superfecta/Superfecta Box

This is where the stakes go really high. Many beginners don’t even come near to Superfecta/Superfecta Box but you need to learn about them nonetheless. Why shouldn’t these bets be attempted by beginners? Well, it’s simple. To hit one of these, you either need to be an expert in horse racing or you need to be extremely lucky. Superfecta requires you to hit the first four horses in a race and their exact order. This is extremely hard, and we don’t recommend people pushing their luck when it comes to horse racing online bets. Yes, if you hit on this bet, the reward will be massive but what are the odds? 

As a beginner, you’re better off trying your luck with Exacta and Trifecta. But, if you, for some reason, fall in love with Superfecta, you should know that it also comes in both straight and box versions. The reason why beginners should avoid both straight and box when it comes to Superfecta is the fact that the number of combinations is almost limitless with the latter and to cover them all you need to invest quite a sum. While we enjoy horse betting to its fullest, we do not recommend pushing your bankroll to the limit with one of your initial bets. 

Is There More to Horse Racing Betting? 

Yes, there is. Horse betting can get as deep as you like it. The only thing is that you need to learn a few things about races. When are the dates, which horses are favorites, and how does the weather affect the riders and the animals? There are even more factors that affect the outcomes of every race. The best part of horse racing is that you don’t have to bet only on one race. You can combine the races and their outcomes. 

If you’re in for more exotic horse racing betting you ought to explore pick threes, pick fours, and pick fives. We’re talking about multi-race bets. Here you bet on winners of three, four, or five consecutive races. Of course, this bet needs to be put before the start of the first race. These bets are best done if you’re feeling confident about the winner of the first race. When you’re confident enough you can cover the following races and try to focus only on the favorites. When you hit one of these wagers the payouts can be quite big, and the best part is that they come with even a small amount put forth for the initial bet. 

If you thought that this was all, you’re mistaken. Even these best come with a few more perks. You can bet on these races through Exacta, Trifecta, and Superfecta bets. What this means is that you can bet on the first two horses in the first race, the first three in the second, and the first four in the third race. While this appears to be impossible to hit, you will be betting on the same principle as with a single-race bet. So, if you can get one right, you can two, and if three come around you will be a rich man. 

What makes betting on horses so great is the fact that it’s fun for everyone. Your bet can be as little as $2, or it can be as big as $500. Some folks even put thousands forth on one horse, which only shows how diversified horse racing betting is among players. It is everyone’s game and we love it for what it represents. 

Why Go to a Horse Race in The First Place?

This is another good question. Putting betting aside, you first need to develop a liking for horses and racing before you start betting. While online horse racing bets dominate this niche today, one should try visiting a racetrack before trying his hand at betting.  Watching horse racing is like any other sport. It is a thrilling experience that offers plenty of excitement to spectators. Betting on horse racing while on the racetrack is a special experience in its own right. While betting from home at online casinos offers plenty of comfort, many will want to substitute for a windy day at the hippodrome, as they should. 

With plenty of tradition and history engrained in this sport, people should experience it regardless of betting affairs. Even if you bet and lose, nothing can take away from what you’ll see, hear, and feel during one simple horse race. If you win, the entire experience will be multiplied on so many levels. What you as a spectator will like is the prices associated with both entrance fees at a racetrack and initial bet requirements. 

These days, sports such as football and basketball are getting too expensive. Horse racing offers twice as much excitement for a lower fee with the option to bet on the spot. Food, drinks, and a betting slip in the hand, looking at some of the most noble animals on the planet running don’t have a price. Wait, it does, and it is not high and it’s very affordable. The more reason to experience everything horse racing and horse betting firsthand. 

Bottom Line

Horse racing is an exciting sport in its own right. When you add betting to the mix it gets elevated to a whole other level. If you’re new to the whole experience, it is even better. Witnessing a race for the first time, with a betting slip in hand is a unique experience. Above you have our beginner guide to horse betting and we hope that you find it useful. 

Horse racing and betting offers depth on all levels, and as such it is quite attractive to both spectators and bettors all over the world. Considering that horse racing events are held all over the world from Australia, across the Middle East, Great Britain, and France to the United States and Canada.

You have little excuse not to watch a race live. If you still haven’t had a chance you can enjoy any race on the TV and wager at online casinos. Yes, the experience is lesser but it’s a good place to start. Outlets such as Stake offer plenty in the domain of horse racing betting and horse racing streaming. It’s a place where you can satisfy both of those needs.