How to Bet on Horses Online
You might be a great horse racing aficionado but the race track is nowhere near where you reside, or you don’t have the time to visit a land based racebook that will offer the odds you would like to wager on. The dawn of the Internet era during the last two decades has completely changed the face of traditional horse racing. Now you can place your wagers online just by clicking a button on your computer screen. Not only that, you can even watch the races going on live and access the tote boards, receive the latest news and information via newsletter and also participate in chat forums and blogs pertaining to Horse racing.
Why choose an online racebook?
There many advantages to betting on the horses online. First of all, you can bet on any race, whether it is international or local, from anywhere in the world. All you need is a computer and internet access. Secondly, online racebooks save you precious time and fuel since you need not drive to and from a land based racebook or wagering center. Online venues offer multiple tracks that are available on a particular day which many land based racebooks don’t. So you have a wider choice online.
Getting started at an Online Race book
When you decide to place your wager online, you are doing so with all the information you can get since online websites give you complete information on the races you can bet on. However, you need to first create an account with one of the online websites. Read about how to choose an online racebook in one of our previous articles on the subject. Once you decide on the racebook to join, you sign up/register for free. You will be asked to select a username and password for your account. You are also required to give an email address that will be verified by the website. The account you set up at the website will enable you to deposit money in your account electronically. Similarly, all your race winnings will also be credited to this account.
Types of Bets
After you create your online betting account, go through the handicapping information available on the site. It will tell you which horses are in the particular race, the odds, past performances of each horse, details about the jockeys and the trainers, the race distances, etc. Armed with this information you are now ready to place your wager. But before going to the actual betting, let us take a look at the type of bets you could place.
Win: This is the easiest bet to place where you bet on a particular horse to win. Obviously, you get paid only if the horse you wagered on won.
Place: Here you bet for your horse to come second. If your horse finishes first or second, you win the bet. However, this bet pays less than the win bet.
Show: A wager on your horse coming first, second or third in the race. Even if your horse wins or comes second, you will be paid. This is considered to be the safest bet by experts although you will not earn much money from these bets.
Across the board: You bet for the horse to either come first, second and third. If the horse actually finishes in the first three places, you win.
Quinella: You win your bet if you pick out both the winner and the second place in the same race in whatever order.
Exacta: The exacta bet wagers involve betting on the first and the second horse to make it to the finishing line in exactly the same order in an event.
Trifecta: The Trifecta bet allows you to place wagers on the first, second and third horse making it to the finishing line in exactly the same order. This bet pays well provided you make the right choice.
Superfecta: In this kind of bet, you pick out the first, second, third and fourth horse to make it to the finish line in exactly the same order.
Daily Double: In this bet, you select the winners of two consecutive horse races of the day at a particular track. The bet can only be placed before the first of the two races begins.
Pick 3, Pick 4, and so on: Here you are betting on three winners of three consecutive races or four winners of four consecutive races respectively.
Placing your bet
Simply knowing the rules of betting or the types of bets does not guarantee that you will succeed. The outcome of a horse race depends on so many factors, including a little bit of luck. That is why gambling at the races is a risky business. It is a good idea to study the horse’s performance for the previous three or four races. This will give you a good idea about the state of fitness of the horse you will bet on. Also, check out the horse’s breeding, running style and training. Is the horse a front runner? All such information is available with the racebook.
It is equally important that the jockey for the horse has good riding skills, a good sense of timing and judgment and is able to communicate well with the horse. Additionally you will be able to gather quite a bit of information if you do some research on the net relating to the horse you would like to wager on.
When you have all the information, you can decide the bet you would like to place on the horse of your choice. Once the bet is placed, all you have to do is wait for the race to take place. You can always follow the race live on your computer since most of the websites do live streaming of the races. This is one big advantage of joining an online racebook.
If you have placed the bets on the right horse, the website will pay your winnings by crediting the amount to your racebook account. You can then withdraw the money from your account using various withdrawal options offered by the site.
