When you are new to the world of horse betting, you can get stumped trying to figure out the more advanced exotic wagers. However, you will soon see that exacta betting is an easy concept at the foundation of the exotic betting world. Once you understand the systems, strategies, and how to use a payout calculator you will be on your way to trying your luck at exacta betting.
How is exacta betting legal?
When it comes to gambling in the U.S. – or anywhere in the World for that matter – and working with horseracing, the scheme used is called parimutuel betting. This means that you are not betting against the house (casino, etc) but instead you are betting against other gamblers. The skilled information concerning the prediction of outcomes is called handicapping.
Independent off-track bookies, on the other hand, tend to be illegal in most countries. Bookies are not to be confused with internet gambling. The rebate shops that offer gambling on horses on the internet are regulated by your internet provider.
Defining an exacta bet
Sometimes, the exacta is referred to as the perfecta or exactor, and, although the information concerning exotic wager bets can be overwhelming, the idea of an exacta is fairly simple. Just like the name says, this is about exactness. What you are doing when you are placing the bet is determining exactly which two horses will finish in first or second place. Unfortunately, this means if your first place horse comes in second place, you lose the bet.
Quinella is an exacta with extras
While there is some disappointment with the sternness of exacta rules, there is an option to bend them. If you are not sure which one of your to favor horses are going to place first, you can choose this option by placing a quinella bet. Again, it is almost exactly like an exacta except that you are not locked into picking the number one or number two horse. Quinella is sometimes known as a “two box exacta”.
Exacta betting strategies
Once you master the general principles of the exacta, you can move on to the three different types of wagering options for exacta betting. Those are the straight exacta, exacta boxes, and the exacta wheels. There are also several strategies for exacta betting, but the most obvious one is the bets of opposites. In other words, either the horse is bound to be a success (a ‘favorite’) or it is unlikely to win (a ‘longshot’).
Most people will bet an exacta at a racetrack because those probabilities are usually posted on the tote board around the betting clerk’s window. The ability to see the high payoffs is a great incentive for anyone that is not well versed in betting.
Using exacta boxes for betting
With exacta betting, you will often see phrases like $2 5-7. That means you place a $2 bet and will win if horse 5 and horse 7 finish in order. If you are not sure which horse will come in first, you can “box” this exacta by paying $2 5-7 and $2 7-5. This way, you have all of your odds covered for those two horses. You will pay $4 for this 2 horse exacta box.
What about exacta wheels
In extreme terms, an exacta wheel will consist of betting horses in one race against more than one race. This is a complicated form of exacta betting that is difficult for newcomers to keep up with. For the meantime, focus on other types of exotic horse betting that will prepare you for using wheels like daily doubles.
In the simplest terms, an exacta wheel will place one horse to win and then second place is comprised of 2 or more horses. In other words, if you bet horse 5 to come in first and then either horse 8, 3, or 2 to come in second, it will win if horse 5 is first and horse 8 is second.
How much money will I win?
As a newbie, it is easy to understand that you might lose some money with horseracing before you master the systems and start winning. Regardless, you can still have some trouble figuring out how much money you will win using exacta betting.
After all, the exacta payoff matrix for each race often does not have a lot of dollar signs associated with it. While the olden days meant calculating it for yourself, today most horse racing fans use an exacta payoff calculator or use an app.
Saving money on exacta betting
Of course, many advanced horse racing bettors will tell you that takeout is a big part of winning. This means that the racetrack, casino, or website where you got your exacta ticket will take a percentage to cover taxes and expenses. If the ticket place has a lower overhead (like a website) their takeout will be lower. In some cases, you can pay upwards of 15 to 30 percent at a racetrack but only two to 5 percent at rebate oriented online horse betting websites.