It can be confusing to navigate the world of betting, especially when there are so many terms. This handy jargon-buster guide will help you to better understand common betting terms so that you can join the punting-talk next race.
Description of the term for betting
- Accumulator – You can place a bet that involves more than one selection. The winnings from each selection will go on to the next selection. To get a return, all selections must succeed.
- Ante – post A bet placed on a race before the race begins.
- Back – A bet on a horse winning (or each way). Lay is the opposite of lay and is the traditional type of bet.
- Banker – A is a supposedly sure bet.
- Bar – The betting forecast “20-1 bar” does not include horses with the lowest odds. This means that they are not listed as 20-1 or larger.
- Best Chances Guaranteed – Special offer: Your bookmaker will settle your bet at the start price (SP) if it exceeds the initial price you placed when placing the bet.
- Betting exchange This is a betting site where you can bet against other people and not against the bookmaker.
- Canadian – A Canadian bet consists of 26 selections from 5 events. This bet includes 10 doubles and 10 trebles as well as 5 fourfolds and an accumulator. To guarantee a return, a minimum of two must win.
- Cash out – A payout that your bookmaker offers before the end of a bet.
- Co favorite – A horse that leads the market with one or several horses.
- Dividend – Amount that a placed horse or winning bet returns for each PS1 bet. This term is often used in Tote pools.
- Drifter – A horse whose price increases before the race begins.
- Dual forecast – A reverse forecast, also known as dual forecast, is a wager where the goal is to predict the winner or runner-up in any order.
- Dutch – backing two or more horses in a race increases your chances of finding the winner, but it is generally at lower odds.
- Each way – Half of the stake is required to place the selection. The outcome of the bet will determine how it is settled.
- Edge – A punters have an advantage in a bet
- Evens – A price 1-1. Equal winnings are possible with your stake: e.g. PS10 staked at evens will win PS10 (total Return PS20).
- Favourite – The market leader and the shortest-priced horse in the race.
- Fold – A fold is the number of selections in an accumulation. A four-fold is a bet that has 4 legs and 1 bet. All of these must win to earn a return.
- Forecast – This bet is on the outcome of a race. Straight forecasts are the winners and runners-up in the correct order.
- Goliath – This bet consists of 247 wagers that involve 8 selections. This bet has 28 doubles and 56 trebles. It also includes 70 four-folds. 56 five-folds. 28 six-folds. 8 seven-folds. To get a return, you must win at least 2 of your selections.
- Hedging – To guarantee winnings or cut losses, you can place a wager on an opposing outcome to the original outcome.
- Heinz – This bet consists of 57 different bets that involve 6 selections from different events. This bet includes 15 doubles and 20 trebles as well as 6 five-folds, six four-folds, and an accumulator. To get a return, you must win at least two of your selections.
- In the frame – A term that refers to a horse that has completed in the places.
- In-running – A bet that is placed before or during the race.
- Joint favourite – Two horses are considered joint favorites if they have the lowest odds of winning in the betting.
- Jolly – An alternative term for the favorite on the market.
- Lay – Place a bet that a horse will not win (or place). This is the opposite of backing a horse.
- Longshot – A horse that appears unfamed on the market (20-1 shot, etc).
- Lucky 15 – This bet consists of 15 different bets that involve 4 selections from different events. This bet includes 4 singles and 6 doubles as well as 4 trebles and 1 fourfold. For a guaranteed return, only one selection must win.
- Market Movers – Selection that has a significant price change, either by increasing or decreasing the odds (drifting),
- Match betting – Fixed odds are a technique that is used by many to trade on the exchange market. This technique can cover multiple outcomes through either in-play betting, or by looking for differences in the odds offered by bookmakers. You can guarantee returns regardless of the outcome by backing Team X and when/if they win.
- Monkey – Slang for PS500
- Multiple – A bet consisting of multiple horses. This broad term could be used to refer to either a simple accumulator, or more complicated bets such as Lucky 31.
- Nap – is the best tipper bet.
- Odds – A chance to win. Also called price
- Odds compiler – The person who determines the odds of a race being offered by a bookmaker.
- Odds-against – A higher price than the evens. If the stake is higher than the possible winnings, you are betting odds.
- Odds-on – A shorter price than the odds. If the bet succeeds, the stake will be higher than the winnings.
- On the nose – A phrase that describes a narrow win margin. Often used for photo-finish winners. It may or not have been a win by a nose.
- Overround – A practice that factors in a profit margin on prices offered by a bookmaker.
- Patent – A 7-bet bet involving 3 selections. Include one on each selection plus 3 doubles or 1 triple. Only one winning selection will guarantee a return.
- Permutations – also known as combination betting. A permutation is a wager that includes a variety of choices.
- Place – to finish in the places, you must back a horse. The number of runners determines the number of places. There are two places for a five- to seven-runner race, three for eight to fifteen runners and four for handicaps with 16 or more runners. Bookmakers often offer additional place terms.
- Pony – is a slang term that refers to PS25.
- Price – is referred to simply as odds. A horse’s chance of winning the race.
- Return – If the bet wins, the amount of money that will be returned to the bettors.
- Round Robin – A series of three or more selections made in 2-fold accumulators. Round robin refers to 3 selections in various races in 3 doubles and 1 treble, with 6 single stakes around bets.
- Rule 4 – This rule, which is one of the most popular in betting, deals with deducting winning bets in case of any withdrawn runner from a race. This rule applies to winning wagers placed at certain prices (e.g. Morning prices, if any, that are placed before a withdrawal. The odds of the non-runner at the time of withdrawal determine the rate of deductions.
- Score – A slang term to describe the PS20.
- SP – The starting price. The starting prices represent the final odds at the start of the race and will be used to determine the payout to winners punters, unless the punter placed a specific price at the time they placed the bet.
- Spread betting – Similar to handicap betting. If you back a team that covers the spread, a team will win by no more than 5 or 6 points.
- Stake – The amount you wager on a horse.
- Steamer – A horse that has been significantly shortened on the market.
- Ton – Slang term to describe PS100.
- Tote – This is a type of bet that is often placed at a racecourse. The ability to back horses that win or place. A dividend is paid after winning bets, as all bets go into a pool. Other bets are also offered by the tote, such as the jackpots and placepot.
- Trixie – A bet that consists of four bets with 3 selections. This bet includes three doubles and one treble. To get a return, you must win at least two selections.
- Void bet – This bet is declared invalid. The stake is returned with no deduction.
- Yankee – This bet consists of 11 different bets that involve 4 selections from different events. This bet has 4 doubles, 4 triples, and an accumulator. To get a return, you must win at least 2 of your selections.