Horse Racing
Horse racing is a contest of speed between two or more horses, usually Thoroughbreds, which are driven or ridden over a special course. One of the oldest known sports, and still popular in most countries, horse racing is also one of the most highly organized and commercialized sports.
Betting is an important element in the popularity of horse racing.
There are four main types of betting on horse races:
- Simple betting between individuals;
- Sweepstakes betting, in which large entry fees, or stakes, are pooled and awarded to the winners;
- Bookmaking, in which speculators offer odds against each horse and accept bets against their predictions; and
- Pari-mutuel betting, which is the most widespread system and that used at the major American tracks.
Pari-mutuel Betting
The designation pari-mutuel is a French phrase translated as “betting among ourselves.” Under the pari-mutuel system, the betting odds on a given horse are derived from a comparison between the total amount wagered on the horse and the total wagered on all the horses in the race.
The odds are automatically computed by a device called a totalizator, which posts them on a lighted tote board clearly visible to spectators. Odds are recomputed at approximately one-minute intervals until post time, when all bets must be placed and the pari-mutuel machines are locked. Winning tickets are cashed after the race’s results have been declared official, by which time computers have determined the payoffs.
Pari-mutuel bettors can wager that a horse will win (finish first), place (finish first or second), or show (finish first, second, or third). In the event that two or more horses are entered by the same owner or trainer, they are coupled in the wagering as an entry. In this situation a bet on one of these horses is a bet on all of them. In some races with many competitors, horses with less chance of winning are sometimes grouped into single betting interests known as fields.
Combination wagering involves more than one horse. Such combinations include:
- The daily double, in which the bettor must predict the winners of two consecutive races (usually the first two of the day), purchasing the ticket in advance of both.
- The pick-6 (or pick-3) , in which bettors must select the winners of 6 (or 3) consecutive races.
- A quinella, where the bettor must predict the first two finishers in a single race without regard to the order in which they finish.
- An exacta (also called perfecta), where the bettor must specify the exact order in which the first two horses in a race will finish.
Such involved wagering almost always yields higher payoffs than straight win-place-show betting.
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