Horse Racing
Horse racing has been around for ages, and people have been betting on it for centuries. That wagering tradition continues to this day but with one difference. Horse racing betting enthusiasts have more wagering options now than ever before. And the great thing is that when you bet on horse racing at the best online bookmakers, your betting options are even bigger. Luckily for you, we have the best horse racing sportsbooks right here. Read on to learn more about how to bet on horse racing and have winning horse racing bets in the process. Let’s start!
Table of Contents
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites
How to bet on Horse Racing
Betting on horse racing is slightly different from betting on other sports. However, that doesn’t mean that you cannot master the art of placing successful bets quickly. That goes double if you go with our easy-to-understand horse racing betting guide. Learn how to bet on horse racing in five simple steps.
Step 1: Find a top-tier betting site
First, find a reliable horse racing site. The betting site you choose must have a license and utilize the latest security technology. It must also offer competitive horse racing betting odds and markets.
The best and easiest way to find a site like the one we described is to pick one from our list. All horse racing betting sites we feature have passed the tests we have put them through. They are all tried and tested options for your horse racing betting experience.
Step 2: Sign up
Now that you have picked a site where you can bet on horse races, it is time to register with it. To do this, visit the site and click on a button that says Register or Join. When you do that, the bookmaker will take over and will guide you through the entire process. You will start by entering your personal information, and you will finish the process by verifying your new account.
Step 3: Deposit
The next thing to do is to fund the account you will use to place horse racing bets. First, go to a menu that says Deposit or Payments. Once there, choose your deposit method and enter the amount you want to transfer, as well as your banking details. Your betting money is on the way and should get to your account within seconds.
Step 4: Pick a race
Now comes the fun part. Click on the list of sports the bookmaker offers and pick horse racing. You should see a myriad of horse racing events in front of you. Depending on the time you access the sportsbook, you can choose from super-popular events like the Grand National, the Cheltenham Festival, the Belmont Stakes, the Kentucky Derby, etc. Pick the ones you want to bet on and choose the horse and betting market you will include in your bet slip.
Step 5: Place your bet
The last thing to do is enter your stake at the bottom of the bet slip. Make sure your stake matches your expectations. You usually need to back low odds with larger stakes and long-shot odds with more modest wagers. All you need to do now is submit your bet and cheer on the horse/horses you picked.
How to choose the best Horse Racing Betting Site
Choosing a reliable horse racing betting site is crucial for the success of your wagers. You need to pick a horse racing betting site that ticks all the reliability boxes and has a top-notch betting offer to boot. Read on to learn more about the key ingredients that make a top-quality betting site.
Licenses and security are paramount
Licenses and encryption levels are the first things to check. Only play with horse racing sites that have a valid license and use state-of-the-art encryption technology.
To check licenses, go to the bottom of the bookmaker’s page and see if you can find the name of the regulator. For instance, if it says that the sportsbook is licensed and regulated in Great Britain by the UK Gambling Commission, that’s a great sign.
Checking security levels is as easy as checking licenses. To do that, click on the padlock symbol in your browser and see if your connection is secure and your details encrypted.
Pick bookmakers with competitive horse racing odds
When you bet on horse races, you want to get the best racing odds. And to do that, you need to do your research. You first have to check the bookmakers’ edge and see the margins it works with, and then you have to compare those odds with other sportsbooks.
If that sounds complicated, it’s because it is. Finding the best horse racing odds can be tricky, and you often need experts’ help. And that’s where we come in. All horse racing betting sites we list offer competitive horse racing odds, meaning you will never be short-changed when betting there. Pick one from our list, and enjoy the fair odds you get.
The more horse races, the better
You want your horse racing betting site to offer as many racing events as possible. It should offer popular races like the Grand National, the richest jumps race in Europe, or the Queen Mother Champion Chase if you want to experience Cheltenham betting in all its glory.
However, the bookmaker you choose should also give you access to more obscure races from the UK, Ireland, Australia, and the USA. The best races are run on the Aintree Racecourse, Churchill Downs and at Belmont Park, and that’s a fact. However, there are also top-quality races at Los Alamitos, Laurel Park, and Golden Gate Fields. You want to have full access to those races too.
Pros and Cons of Horse Racing
Betting on horse racing comes with tons of perks and only a few drawbacks. Horse racing is one of those sports where the punter is king, and everything revolves around the bettor’s desires and needs. So, it is fair to say that the pros far outweigh the cons of horse racing betting.
The main advantages of horse racing betting include:
- Lots of events on offer
- Variety of standard markets (ante-post markets, horse wins wagers, each-way bet options, place bets, etc.)
- Tons of exotic markets (exactas, trifectas, superfectas, etc.)
- Enticing bonuses and promos
- Live streaming of many races
As you can see, there are quite a lot of advantages to horse racing betting. However, as with any other sport, there are a couple of drawbacks too.
The biggest disadvantage of horse racing betting is that the live betting options are very limited. But that is understandable. A horse race is much shorter than a football or cricket match, meaning there’s just no time for a lot of live wagering to occur.
Strategies in Horse Racing Betting
Using a tried-and-tested strategy can improve your success in horse racing betting. Horse racing pros know when to follow their instincts and when to go with a proven wagering approach. You should do too. Read on to learn more about two horse racing strategies you can use before when placing your bets.
Dutching Strategy
Many horse racing betting veterans Go Dutch. However, you should evaluate your betting budget and access to information before you start using the dutching strategy because it is quite risky.
In a nutshell, with dutching, you back more horses than one to get a profit regardless of the winner of the race. When you go dutch, you either place equal stakes on all horses you back or reduce your stakes on the horses with longer odds.
However, if none of the horses you backed win, you are in trouble. That’s why it is crucial to know how much you can stretch your budget because a losing bet can expose your dutching strategy. As a rule of thumb, it is best to start with more modest stakes until you get the hang of dutching.
Use Horse Racing Promos
There are lots of horse racing bonuses you can use to help the success of your bets. These range from the standard welcome bonuses bookmakers offer to best odds guaranteed promos. You will make a wise decision whichever one you choose.
Man looks at the horse racing betting bonus from Betfair on the iPad.
For instance, if you go with the best odds guaranteed promo, you will get the best odds for the horse you backed. That means if the latest horse racing odds are lower than the ones earlier in the day, you will get the better prices. Pretty neat, right?
The Main Bets
There are two types of horse racing bets – standard wagers and exotic bets. The standard wagers include the self-explanatory bets of win, place, and show. Exotic bets, on the other hand, are divided into single and multi-race exotics. With single bets, you predict the order in which horses will finish in one race. In contrast, with multi-race exotics, you pick the winners of two or more consecutive events. Each of these bet categories comes with its advantages. Let’s look at the main bets in horse racing and see which one is the best for you.
Winner
This bet is the easiest to understand. When you bet on the winner of a race, you pick one horse, saying that it will finish first. If the horse wins, you win too. If it loses, you have a losing wager.
Place Bet
A place bet gives you the safety cushion the winner wager can’t provide. When you go with a place bet, you win when the horse finishes first or second in a race.
Double or Triple Forecast
With a double and triple forecast, you predict the exact order the first two or three horses will finish. You also have the option to place a combination wager of this type. In that case, you pick two/three horses, and you are a winner if they finish in the top two/three positions regardless of their order.
Conclusion
Horse racing offers a myriad of betting avenues and options. However, to make the most of those betting opportunities, you need to play with the best horse racing betting sites.
And that’s where we come in handy. We give you the top horse racing bookmakers on a silver platter. You only need to pick and saddle up the one you fancy, and a world of excitement and potentially profitable bets will unfold. Make your betting choice now and start winning big on horse racing!