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Different Ways of Betting Whether you are novice or not when it comes to betting on horse racing, I think you’ll find this article and the others in this section, a useful guide to get you started on your way. To kick off, this article will explain three of the different available means for betting on horse racing, that is to say the different methods of betting. Don't worry if this confuses you already, it will become clearer as you read on and if you're in any doubt then please drop me an email. I am going to look at three different means of betting on horse racing today, those being; standard or traditional betting, spread betting, and Tote betting which is more frequently referred to as betting on the Tote. I should also put in a quick mention for a recently fashionable way of betting called matched betting, as this has also risen in popularity. I won't be covering it in this article, but I will cover it in a separate article. Standard Betting - What Is It? The first means of betting that we'll look at today is standard betting. This is still easily the most popular way of betting on horse racing and the one that most people tend to use when they start out betting. In fact, this is still the very same way I continue to bet today, due to its simplicity and relative profit versus success ratio. To explain this in simple terms, when you place a standard bet, whether its a bet for a horse 'to win' - that is to say that the horse must win the race for you to win your bet, or what is called an 'each way bet' - which is where the horse can finish in the first three or four places, the risk and odds are set by the bookmaker. You know, Ladbrokes, Betfair, Stan James, those guys. Oh, and of course the hundreds of individual bookies who gather at racecourses around the country each and every week. With these guys, odds will fluctuate and change depending on how much money is being placed on the individual horses, but the prices are always determined by the bookmaker. So to place a standard bet you simply select your horse, see if the odds appeal to you in terms of getting good value, and if they do, you place your bet. Once you have placed this type of bet, as a punter you know exactly what you are going to win (or lose) right from the start. This is very important, and id probably why most people are comfortable with this type of bet, since you can manage your money more effectively. And that's it, quite simple and as I say, I still bet like this today and so highly recommend it. What is Spread Betting? Spread betting has only really become popular in horse racing in recent years, but its by no means as popular as standard betting. It really started out as being more popular in sports such as American football and cricket; sports where there is the potential for a large winning margin, and this margin is whats called 'the spread'. It is also a popular method of betting for those who trade the financial markets. Spread betting on horse racing is, in my opinion, definitely not for the beginner, or the faint hearted. The major drawback is that there is a possibility that you do not know how much you stand to lose, and so money management is a problem. It can get quite complicated, so I'll try To explain this as concisely as possible. Spread betting on horse racing generally looks at the jockey index, the winning distance of a horse who's won a race, or indeed the distance of places between individual horses that finish 2nd, 3rd and 4th. As you can now see, this potentially involves more guessing on the margin than science, which is why I am not keen on this type of betting for horse racing. On the flip side, it can be a very lucrative way to bet on horse racing, but still the problem exists that you're never entirely sure exactly how much you stand to lose. I preach on a regular basis that having a betting bank and monitoring your funds is all important, something that's extremely difficult to do with this type of betting. Betting On The Tote I would hazard a bet that anyone who's been to a racecourse has bet with the Tote. Betting on the Tote, also known as Tote betting, is a relatively safe way of betting on horse racing as there are very low minimum stakes that are not generally available from track-side bookies. In Tote betting, all of the monies from all of the bets placed on individual races are collected into what is called a 'pool'. Once the cost deduction of the The Tote is taken out, the remainder is divided out amongst the total amount of winners for that particular horse. So its shared out amongst the winners. As with standard betting, from a budgeting point of view its good, because you know exactly how much you stand to lose if your horse loses. The Tote is unique however, as you may also potentially win more than you would have through the 'traditional' racecourse bookies, as depending on how big the overall pool was for the race, it possible to win more than you think you will. The Tote is able to offer this as it calculates its prices differently to traditional bookmakers. This I guess is another reason why the Tote is as popular way of betting on horse racing. Its a good starting point for the novice, because you can bet with very low stakes and so it enables you to get used to placing bets, without the fear factor of losing a lot of money.
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