Horse Racing - Betting on the Sport of Kings

Humans and horses have a relationship that is older than history, involving transportation, hunting, plowing, hauling, war making, and racing. Documented equestrian events took place at the first Olympic Games in 776 B.C. Ruins of hippodromes show that chariot racing was popular throughout the ancient Greek and Roman Empires.

In the early 12th century, England’s King Henry I began the custom of breeding horses for greater speed and power, pairing Arabian stallions with Irish hobbies for his cavalry. Jockey Clubs emerged in the 18th century, leading to organized wagering and the trade known as “bookmaking.” Horse racing and betting enjoyed immense popularity, especially in the United Kingdom, for more than 200 years.

By the 1990s, however, horse racing had begun losing its appeal. The public turned its attention to other forms of gambling and spectator events. But thanks to the Internet and simulcast races direct from the track, the Sport of Kings has been making a resurgence worldwide. Today, horseplayers can wager with ease at Off Track Betting (OTB) shops, race books, online betting exchanges, and even via mobile phone.

In the U.K. alone, there are 59 different racecourses, offering 363 days of action from seasonal Flat Racing and National Hunt Racing to All Weather Racing, which is a year-long affair. Included are the five major classics of the Flat season, which runs from March through October—the 1,000 Guineas, the 2,000 Guineas, Epsom Derby, Oaks, and St. Leger. Great festivals are held, too, at Royal Ascot, Goodwood, York, Chester, and Newmarket. The National Hunt occupies the rest of the year, featuring Jump Racing and highlighted by the Cheltenham Festival and Aintree’s Grand National.

Add to these the many international venues offering Trotters, Standardbreds and Quarter Horses as well as Thoroughbreds, and you have almost limitless opportunity to wager and win. Major global horse racing events range from the Melbourne Cup in Australia and America’s Breeders Cup and Triple Crown to France’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, the Dubai World Cup, the Japan Derby, and more. Even the island nations of the Caribbean have their own race tracks: Barbados, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, and Trinidad.

When once only royalty could afford to “play the ponies,” horse racing has become an everyman’s wager. Straight bets—win to come in 1st, place for 2nd, and show for 3rd—can be made with most bookies and online race books for just a pound. Exotic wagers—Exacta or Perfecta for 1st & 2nd in order, Trifecta for predicting 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in order, or Quinella for the first two runners in either order—may have minimums starting at as little as 10p. One of the highest paying exotic bets is “Pick 6”—correctly identifying the winners in six consecutive races.

The most common form of wagering on horse races worldwide is called “pari-mutuel betting.” A portion of all wagers made, usually 15~25%, is put aside for course operating expenses, purses, and taxes. What remains is divided by the number of wagers made to calculate the return on each bet—the projected payoff or “odds.” At odds of “4-to-1,” for example, a winner gets £4 profit for every £1 wagered. Trackside, odds vary constantly as bets are made and they are recalculated instantly by the racecourse’s computer for display on a large board called the “Tote.”

The art and science of picking winners at a racecourse is called “handicapping.” It involves many variables, such as pedigrees, ages, jockeys, weights, schedules, track conditions, course length, early odds, and more. Some 35,000 Thoroughbreds are foaled each year for racing over distances of six furlongs (3/4 mile) to two miles or more. Keeping up with all the information available is a mighty chore, made easier by data sheets called “racing forms” and the power of the Internet.

At most courses, between six and eight races are conducted each race day, taking place at half-hour intervals. There are maiden races for newcomers, claiming races to sell horses, allowance races to move up in class, and stakes and handicap races for the best of the best. Most meetings have between eight and twelve horses in contention. Some are called “long shots,” with little chance of winning. The “favourites” are the safest bets, with low odds and heaviest amount of wagering.