Horse Betting Payouts
In horse racing there is no more exciting bet than the Pick 6. This is the most difficult bet to win in all of horse racing, but the rewards for winning it can be huge. Some horse bettors have won more than $1 million on the Pick 6. The Pick 6 is a unique bet in horse racing because it has a different payout structure than other exotic bets. Calculating horse betting odds can be tricky, especially when it comes to a pari-mutuel system where the win odds and payouts are constantly changing. For further help understanding bets, check out this guide on how horse betting payouts work, look at win rates displayed at race tracks, and use online odds calculators.
www.USAPlayers.comOnline Racebooks Horse Racing Payouts
While betting on horses is an enjoyable experience at Online Racebooks, most people are not betting for the entertainment factor. Most people who are going to the tracks are doing so to have a shot at winning cash. While it may not always be a huge win, there is still money to be had, and these come according to horse racing payouts. Payouts vary according to the odds that the track has set on your horse, and this becomes even more complicated when involving more than one horse per bet. Though the odds may not dictate your horse or horses chance of winning, they do directly set your payout, and monitoring these odds is essential for determining your horse racing payoffs.
The mathematics are simple, and typically rely on fractions and decimals, however you choose to calculate it. For example, you place a one dollar bet. The odds on your horse are 1-to-1 against, or even, you will double up, giving you your initial wager back plus the wager tacked on. 2-to 1 odds will give you twice what you initially invested on top of the wager itself. In this instance, your one dollar will turn into three. On the other hand, your horse and one dollar bet carry a 1:2 pay out. With the 1-to-2 odds, your pay out will drop to $1.50, giving you half of what you invest on top of the initial investment.
If you remember middle school math, you can may remember proportions. Horse betting payouts are determined according to your wager according to the proportion of the odds. If you have a calculator handy, this will be an easier determination. First, convert the fraction to a decimal by dividing the bottom number, or the denominator, into the top number, or the numerator. This will give you a decimal number, which will then be multiplied by the number you wagered. This will give you a third number, which is to be added to the first, giving you your total pay out.
Looking deeper into the math of the payout, You will start with your wager, or X. Your wager, or X, is two dollars. Your odds, or Y, will then be 3-to-2. Divide three into two and you will end up with 1.5, or one and a half. To recap so far - the wager, or X, is 2, while the odds, or Y, are 1.5. Multiply X by Y, or 2 times 1.5, and you end up with Z, or 3. Add X and Z, and you end up with P, your pay out. In this example, P will be equal to 5 dollars.
The calculation, if looked at from an overview, will be X*Y = Z, Z+X = P.
While this may look confusing, you will not have much difficulty calculating your odds, though if you are serious about determining your payout in advance, you may want to bring a pocket calculator to the race track. Otherwise, sit back, relax, and enjoy the races.
Racebooks with The Best Horse Racing Payouts
| Rank | Online Racebook Reviews | Racebook Bonuses | Tracks | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DSI Racebook Review | 20% to $500 / 8% Rebate Program | 100+ | VISIT |
| 2 | BookMaker Racebook Review | 20% to $500 / 8% Rebate Program | 100+ | VISIT |
| 3 | CaribSports Racebook Review | 50% to $250 / 5% Rebate Program | 20+ | VISIT |
| 4 | Bovada Racebook Review | 20% - $100 / 3% to 5% Rebate | 80+ | VISIT |
| 5 | BetJamaica Racebook Review | 100% to $100 / Up to 7.5% Rebates | 120+ | VISIT |
| 6 | Intertops Racebook Review | 25% to $100 | 10+ | VISIT |
Horse Betting Payout Calculator
Win, Place, Show – How To Bet On Horses
WIN (W) bets require that a horse finishes in 1st place.
PLACE (P) bets require that a horse finishes in 1st or 2nd place.
SHOW (S) bets require that a horse finishes in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place.
I’m going to use the diagram (of the finish of a race) below to answer some common questions on the Win, Place, Show bets. The Tote-Board Win odds are above each horse in parenthesis.
How do you calculate the expected payout for a Win Bet?
- Win payouts are based on a $2 wager. Multiply the Tote-Board odds times $2 and then add the $2 wager back.
For example, #8 is (7-1), so 7 x $2 = $14, Add $2 = $16 payout.
- To calculate prices for odds other than X-1, simply convert the (fractional) odds to a decimal equivalent and do the same calculation.
For example, odds of (8-5) equals 1.6 x $2 = $3.20, Add $2 = $5.20 payout.
- I always do this mental conversion to decimal equivalents for clarity in my own mind. In fact when I jot down the Tote-Board odds on my sheet they are always in decimal format. For Example:
| Tote-Board | Decimal | Payout |
|---|---|---|
| (9-2) | 4.5 | $11.00 |
| (7-2) | 3.5 | $9.00 |
| (5-2) | 2.5 | $7.00 |
| (9-5) | 1.8 | $5.60 |
| (7-5) | 1.4 | $4.80 |
| (4-5) | 0.8 | $3.60 |
What does it mean to bet a horse “Across the Board?”
This is just a shorthand way for making a Win, Place, and Show bet in equal amounts. For example, if you bet #8 for $2 Across the Board in the above race, your bets would be $2 to Win, $2 to Place, and $2 to Show for a total of $6 wagered.
Horse Betting Payouts
In this example, a $2 WPS wager on #8 returned $28 ($16w + $7p + $5s).
Horse Betting Payouts Explained
To continue with the example, the same $2 WPS bet on #6 would have cost $6, but only returned $3 since the Show ticket is the only one cashed.
What happens if I bet a horse to Place and he wins the race?
You get the Place price only. So $2 to Place on #8 returns $7.
Can you calculate the expected Place price based upon the Win odds?
Win, Place, and Show wagers are all placed into separate Pools. So the anticipated Place price cannot be directly calculated based on the Win odds. In addition to that, the Place price is dependent on exactly who the 1st and 2nd place finishers are in the race. For further explanation on this point, keep reading.
Let’s change the order of finish slightly by switching the top two horses #8 and #2.
The former payouts are shown on the left for comparison, and the new payouts are shown on the right.
Since #2 is now the winner, his payout line is switched to the top of the chart. He pays $12 for a win ticket because his odds are 5-1. Formula (5 x $2) + $2.
Notice that the #8 place price stayed exactly the same ($7), as did the #2 place price ($6). That is because the same two horses finished in the top two positions, just in reverse order.
Now let’s change the order of finish again by pushing the #8 horse back to 3rd place and moving the #6 horse up to 2nd place.
Horse Race Payout
Since #2 remains the winner, his Win price ($12) does not change. However, notice that his place price decreased from $6 to $5. Why? Because more total money was bet on #6 (the new 2nd place horse) to place than on #8 (the former 2nd place horse). This is reasonable, considering that the Win odds on #6 are 3-1, while the Win odds on #8 are 7-1.
Generally the amount of money bet on a horse is proportionate between the Win, Place, and Show pools. The simple reason why the payout is less for Place and Show wagers (compared to Win) is that the payout pool is being divided by two horses for Place and three horses for Show.
You can conclude from this information that your best return from a Place or Show wager generally happens when the favorite(s) does not finish “In The Money” (The Top Three Spots). Unless of course you bet on the favorite, which is another story!
There are a lot of opinions on whether or not it’s even wise to make Place and Show bets, as opposed to just Win bets, but we’ll save that topic for a future article.
Horse Betting Payouts Calculator
Select “Get Started” from the menu above for a complete list of articles about Handicapping and Wagering. For example, Racing 101 has several articles about the basics of Horse Racing. And Meet The People has interviews with trainers (e.g. Christophe Clement), Jockeys (e.g. Gary Stevens), and on-track personnel (e.g. Maggie Wolfendale).
Horse Betting Payouts Win Place Show
By Neal Benoit