Horse racing has become a multi-billion dollar currency company, employing hundreds of thousands of people every day, as the globe has shrunk thanks to social media and its variety of digital channels. Every day, races are run and gambled on worldwide, and as a punter, you could wager on and watch as many of these events as a punter would want to bet. Punters in the UK may wager on Australian horse racing in the early morning hours, then switch to South African racing before the UK offering begins and can conclude the evening in the USA.
How do Horse Racing Odds Change – Horse racing odds will also change based on how many people bet on each horse. If many people are betting on a horse, there will be more money in the overall pool, and you could expect that horse to have a higher percentage chance of winning, albeit at lower odds. The odds at horse races constantly change because each race is unique, so the factors that affect the outcome of a given race will be different from one race to another. The conditions of the track, the type of horses competing in the race, their experience level, and even what time of day it is at the track can all impact how likely it is for any particular horse to win or place in a given race.
The odds change as gamblers place bets on horses in a given race, which causes those horses’ likelihood of winning or placing to fluctuate based on how much money people are betting on them. If people are betting heavily on a particular horse, it will become more likely to win in the opinion of the betting public, and thus its odds will shorten than if no one has bet on that horse. So to ensure they don’t lose in a particular race, bookmakers will shorten or drift the odds of a particular horse so they can still make enough profit no matter the horse’s odds.
Why do the Odds on a Horse Change
Horse racing odds change based on the horses that entered a race and how they performed in their previous races. The odds of a horse winning a race can change daily, depending on how strong their competitors are and how well they’ve performed in recent races.
To succeed at betting on horse racing, the punter needs to know when to place their bets. While there are no hard-and-fast rules about this, some general guidelines will help the racegoer make a more informed choice.
- Don’t bet early in the day—if possible, wait until just before the race is to be run, as this is the point where bookmakers will try and entice punters to make a bet by making the odds on a horse more favorable, enabling punters to win more money by placing the same bet than earlier in the day.
- Pay attention to weather conditions—they can have an impact on how well each horse performs, so try not to bet on those races if there’s rain expected in the area where they’ll be running
Horse racing odds change based on how the horses perform, and they can change multiple times while the race is being run. Each horse in a race has a set of odds associated with it that determine how much money it will take to bet on that horse. The odds are determined by factors like the horse’s past performance, current health, and other factors specific to each horse’s entry into the race.
Equipment Used by Trainers to enhance their Horses’ Potential
Horse Equipment — Any headgear or equipment worn by the horse will be shown in brackets next to the horse’s name. These are presented in abbreviated form. A trainer could attempt to utilize many pieces of equipment or combinations for the horse to reach their peak during a race.
- Blinkers or Half Cups are a pair of tiny leather screens attached to a horse’s bridle to prevent it from seeing sideways and behind.
- Alumites are lightweight shoes that a trainer will put on a horse to assist it whilst running at high speed in a race.
- Compression Masks are added to a horse’s equipment, especially for horses who are nervous, unsettled, or distracted easily.
- Ear Muffs are a piece of equipment that covers a horse’s ears to prevent it from hearing distracting sounds.
- Pacifiers are blinker-style hoods with mesh eye covers, thought by some to calm horses.
Racecard Information available to Punters – To make more Informed Decisions when Betting
- Horses’ Age – The horse’s age is often listed to the right of the horse’s name on the Racecard. This is important to know, especially when the age of a horse is considered versus the remainder of the field it is competing against. In a Maiden Race (a race for horses that have not won a race), the younger the horse is, the more it will improve as it runs more races and strengthens its body. In Handicap Races, the same premise will apply to younger horses versus their older counterparts.
- Official Rating (OR) – The official rating is the handicap mark assigned to a horse. This mark defines the amount of weight a horse will carry in handicaps.
- Horse’s Weight — The horse’s weight is shown next to its age. The weight carried by a horse includes the jockey’s weight and any extra weight in the saddlebags. There are variations, but the rule of thumb is that the better a horse races through its career, the more weight it will be assigned by the handicapper.
- Jockey and Trainer — The jockey assigned to ride the horse is usually shown on the right side of the page, and the horse’s trainer will be shown beside the jockey’s name.
- Form – The most current form of a horse is generally posted next to or under the horse’s name. This may seem like a random collection of numbers to the untrained eye, but it is how the horse has fared in their most recent runs. This is the part of the Race Card where most horse racing tipsters and analysts spend the most time trying to ascertain which horse has the best chance of winning a particular race on that Racecard for the day.
All of the above factors and information are utilized by Professional and Amateur Horse Racing Analysts alike to make more informed decisions as to how to handicap a Horse Race. Once a race has been handicapped, punters will place different amounts of money on the racing horses once the betting opens on the bookmakers’ boards and the totalisator.
As more money is placed on the different horses, the odds will change and update second by second until the gates crash back and the race begins. The odds displayed once the race begins will be the final odds for that race, and once the result is official, those odds will be displayed for all the various bets available in the Horseracing Jurisdiction.