Horse Race Betting 101: Everything You Need to Know

There are few more popular sports across the world than horse racing, with millions tuning in to watch popular races such as the Kentucky Derby and Grand National.

It is around the time of these events that newcomers come into the sport and look to learn more about what is required to place a bet and win money on selections.

Fortunately, we have you covered here with a Horse Race Betting 101, covering everything that you need to know before placing your first wager.

Choose A Sportsbook

The first step that potential bettors must make it to sign up for an online sport. Before doing this, you should ensure that the bookmaker covers horse racing action and does so in an extensive fashion.

After selecting a sportsbook, you can claim a welcome bonus, which will ensure that you can make your money from your first deposit go further. After verifying your account and adding funds, you can begin betting on horse racing.

You can find out more about it here: twinspires.com/edge/racing/wagering/best-bets/

Placing A Bet

After adding funds to your account, you can then place your bet on a race. To do this, you should find the horse racing section, and then find the track in which you want to bet on. After then clicking on the time of the race, you can pick your selection and add it to your bet slip.

Once the selection has been added to your bet slip, you will then enter the stake that you wish to wager on the horse, and place the bet. The bet will then be settled after the winner has been declared by the judge. Winning returns will immediately be added to your account, while losing slips can be found in your bet history.

Exploring Betting Markets

Newcomers to betting on horse racing will typically feel safer wagering on the win market. Here, you will simply be putting your stake on the horse that you believe will be called the winner. Alternatively, there are different betting markets available to a gambler than can be explored.

A prominent market is the place bet option. Here, you will be selecting a horse that you believe will finish in the first three places of a race. The odds will be shorter, but this selection enhances your chances of winning returns due to the selection being able to finish second or third.

More complex betting markets are also available when betting on racing, including the exacta and trifecta. In these markets, the bettor will need to correctly predict the finishing order of a race, with the exact first two needed to land the former, and the first three home in the correct order to win returns on an exacta.

What to Look For When Betting

There is no full-proof way to finding winners on a regular basis in horse racing, but there are tips that can be followed to enhance your chances of gaining regular winners on a long-term basis.

Research is incredibly important when assessing the most likely winner of a horse race, and that includes examining the latest runs from each competitor in the field, and assessing the distance in which they have competed over. For example, if a race is run over a mile, horses that have recorded wins over that distance will stand a better chance of winning than those that have only recorded victories over longer.

As well as examining the latest form, bettors should also examine the strike-rates of trainers and jockeys, as this could help to pinpoint yards that are outperforming and riders that are confident. Speed figures are also worth considering when betting on flat racing, as these will indicate the horses that have performed best.

Parlay Betting

Parlay betting is exceptionally popular when wagering on other sports such as American Football and soccer, and there is a market for it when gambling on horse racing.

This type of bet allows a gambler to combine two or more selections into a longer formed bet, with all selections needing to win in order to gain returns. Healthy returns can be picked up from this option, but that is due to the difficulty to land a winning parlay.

However, many seasoned bettors will typically take advantage of parlays when it comes to combining a number of short price favorites to ensure that they can get better odds for likely winners to land the spoils. But, it is always important to be wary of the shortcomings of parlay betting.

Gamble Responsibly

The key to achieving long-term success when betting on horse racing is to gamble responsibly. This includes setting yourself deposit limits, and sticking to them regardless of your results. It is also important to only bet what you’re willing to lose, and to never use betting as a source of income to pay for bills.