Horse Racing Betting Rules

Horse racing betting rules govern every aspect of betting on horses, from how each bet works to the ways bets are settled, how the outcomes are decided in situations where there is no clear cut winner and more. While the basics are founded on the same principles in most countries, some nuances as to bet settlements, legal age for betting, and other things may vary per country.

In this article, we will go through some of the common racing betting rules, see how odds and payouts are calculated, what happens when a winner has to be determined, and what you can expect on your bet in different scenarios playing out on the tracks.

 

Common Horse Betting Rules Explained

To be able to bet on horse racing, you need to be legally of age. In the UK, this means you are allowed to place a bet on horse racing if you are 18 years or older. Always bet with a licensed bookmaking establishment that has obtained its license from an authorised regulatory body like the United Kingdom Gambling Commission. 

For a smooth betting process, you need to know how the bets work. Start with the most common bets and once you gain experience you can move on to more complex bets. Here are some of the most common horse racing rules explained.

• Win. You bet on the winner of the race. Choose a horse that in your opinion is the most likely one to come to the finish line first and place your stake on it.
• Place. You bet on a horse to come to the finish line within the winning top, which typically ranges between top two to top four, depending on the number of runners and type of race.
• Forecast. You bet on two horses to finish the race in first and second place. It can be either in the exact or any order.
• Tricast. You bet on three horses to finish the race in first, second, and third place. It can be either in the exact or any order.

There are other, more complex bets, usually combining several bets, but it is always a good idea to practice the basics first.

 

Calculating Odds & Payouts

Understanding odds is essential for making informed decisions in horse racing betting. Odds tell you how much you can expect to get if your prediction happens to be correct, i.e. how much value the bet will have in case of a positive outcome. They also tell you how likely the bookmakers see this or that outcome to take place. 

The majority of the UK sportsbooks offer fractional odds. They are fairly easy to read and understand. For example, if the odds on the win bet for the horse you chose are 5/1, it means that for each £1 that you bet, you will win £5 if the horse comes to the finish line first. So if you placed a wager of £10, your potential wins are £50. 

In case of fractional odds, keep in mind that they don’t include your initial stake. This means that if you bet £10 on 5/1 odds and win, you will get £50 in winnings plus your initial stake of £10, for a total of £60.

 

Each-Way Betting Rules Explained

One specific type of bet that gained popularity after online betting was introduced to horse racing betting is the each way bet. It is not a complex one and provides some interesting value to bettors, however you need to understand how it works before engaging in it.

For each way betting, you place two stakes on the same horse in one race. One stake is for the horse to come to the finish line first and win the race. The other one is for the horse to be placed. Your payouts will depend on the outcome of the race.

If the horse does win the race, you get a payout on both stakes. If it is placed, you will lose your win wager but will still qualify for a payout on your place wager.

Here is what a practical example on this bet would look like. Let’s say, you bet each way on a horse and place £10 on a win at 7/1 odds and £10 on a placement at a 5/1 odds. 

If your horse wins, you get:

£70 (win) + £50 (place) + £20 (both your stakes) = £140. 

With the deduction of your initial stakes, your profit is £120.

If your horse is placed, you get:

£50 (place) + £10 (your place stake) = £60. 

You lose your £10 win stake, so your profit is £60 – £10 = £50.

Of course, if your horse comes to the finish line beyond the winning top, you will lose both your stakes.

 

How Horse Racing Bets Are Settled

Most of the time, determining a winner in a horse race is a fairly straightforward thing. The horse who crosses the finish line first is pronounced the winner. Correspondingly, the horses who come to the finish line second, third, and so on, get placed. 

If the race officials notice any discrepancies or there is a situation where the winner is unclear, an investigation will be conducted before the final results are determined. The official results are always publicly announced after the race or after the investigation is over. 

Bettors should be aware that the bookmakers will only proceed with payouts after all the official results have been announced. If you were betting at a specialised facility at the racecourse, you can claim your winnings there. If you placed your wager online, it will be automatically settled by the platform within the timeframe they specify in their terms and conditions.

 

Common Horse Racing Betting Scenarios

Besides straightforward outcomes, where the winner is clearly obvious, horse betting rules govern other types of situations that may occur on the tracks, needing settlement. Below we will take a look at the most common ones.

Non-Runners

Non-runners are the horses that were initially announced to participate in the race but later withdrawn after the official declarations have been made. The reasons a trainer might decide to take their charge off the tracks vary and include health and safety concerns, changes in ground conditions, changes in weather, or anything else, if the trainer deems that would be the best decision. 

Announcing a non-runner has two major effects on the race. With the list of the runners at the start line now being one (or more) horse short, the chances for others to win or be placed can change, especially if the non-runner was considered a favourite and had short odds (i.e. a high probability of winning). This will affect the odds, which means your bet will change its value.

If the non-runner is the horse you initially placed your wager on, your bet is withdrawn from the competition. However, what happens to your stake will depend on a number of aspects. We will discuss it in more detail in the next section.

Disqualifications 

Like in any other kind of sport, an athlete, in this case, the horse and the jockey, can be disqualified from the race. This can happen due to a number of reasons, for example, carrying an incorrect weight (lighter than assigned), testing positive for banned substances, rider misconduct, or interference with another horse’s course.

Most of the time, for the bettors this means that you lose your bet if your horse was disqualified. If the disqualification happened during the race or before the official results were announced, there is no way around it. If the horse was disqualified post the official announcements, you still lose your bet, but some bookmakers may offer a “first past the post” payout. This means if your horse finished the race first but then was disqualified, you still get paid something. 

Results are recalculated after a disqualification is announced. The disqualified horse is removed from its position, and all other runners are moved up one position. What this means for the bettors is that if your horse moved into a winning position, you will get paid correspondingly. For example, if it finished fourth but was moved into the third place in a race with three paid placements, you will now get paid for a placement.

Dead Heats

If two or more horses cross the finish line simultaneously, the on-course judges and photo judges have to step in. The on-course judge uses their judgement while the photo judge reviews the footage from the track cameras to determine which horse was first to finish the race, even if by a fraction of a second. 

If it turns out that both horses indeed finished the race together, a tie is declared, and both are awarded first place. We will take a look at how this affects the payouts to bettors in the next section.

 

Non-Runners and Rule 4 Deductions

As we determined above, non-runners affect the odds for the remaining runners. Your stake, on the other hand, will entirely depend on when you made your bet. 

If you bet on a horse that was declared a non-runner after the official list of runners (but before the non-runners) was announced, you will simply get your stake back. This is typically the bets placed on the morning of the race.

Things change if it was an ante-post bet, i.e. you placed your wager early on. In this case, if your horse was later declared a non-runner, you will lose your stake. This is one of the risks of ante-post betting punters need to be aware of. 

In some cases, bookmakers will offer a “non-runner no bet” promotion, in which case your stake will be returned to you even if you placed an early bet, but that is not an obligatory rule and is entirely up to the bookmaker.

As to the changes in odds, this is where the Rule 4 deduction comes into play. It is only relevant for bettors whose horses are still in the race after all the withdrawals have been made. 

Withdrawing a horse from a race means increased chances for other horses as they now have fewer runners to compete against. This also means you as a bettor have a better chance to win. To keep things fair, the bookmaker will deduct a part of your winnings. The amount of the deduction fully depends on the odds of the non-runner. The stronger the withdrawn horse was, the higher the percentage of the deduction will be.

 

Dead Heat Rules in Horse Racing

It would seem logical that if two or more horses finished the race simultaneously, each punter who backed them should get the full payout like they would do if there was a single winner. However, this would mean way too much costs for the bookmakers.

Instead, a special rule applies to calculating dead heat winnings. The bookmaker will take your initial stake and divide it by the number of horses in the dead heat. Only one part of your stake will get a payout at full odds, while the rest will be lost. 

Let’s take a look at a practical example. If you placed a wager of £10 on a horse to win at the odds of 5/1, and your horse wins in a dead heat with one other horse, here’s what your winnings will look like:

The bookmaker will divide your stake by the number of winning horses: £10 ÷ 2 = £5.

Winnings will be calculated only for one part of your stake: £25. Together with your stake, you will get paid £30.

In regular circumstances, your payout on this bet would have been £50 + £10 = £60. 

 

FAQ

What happens if two horses come to the finish line simultaneously?

The on-course and photo judges will step in to determine which horse crossed the finish line first and award the win correspondingly. If the horses indeed did it simultaneously, a tie is declared, in which case your stake will be divided by the number of horses who finished at the same time.

When do I receive my payout?

All payouts to the winning bets are made after the official results of a race are announced. If you are betting at the tracks, you will get your payout immediately. If you are betting online you will get your payout within the timeframe specified by the bookmaking platform.

Will I get my stake back if the horse is a non-runner?

It depends on when you made your bet. If you placed a wager after the official runners have been declared, you will get your stake back. If you placed an ante-post bet, you will lose your wager unless the bookmaker offers a “non-runner no bet” promotion and you participate in it.

Betting is only available to participants above 18 years. Please bet responsibly. BeGambleAware.org