Making a bet can be confusing. Follow these simple steps to figure out how much to bet. Select a bet amount in the left column. Select a bet type in the right column. Select the horses to include in the wager. The total cost of the ticket will appear next to the words Ticket Cost. Contrast this to betting each race in the daily double separately and having to pay the takeout on each race. For example, if you bet a horse to win in the first leg of the daily double, the win bet is subject to a 13-15 percent takeout. If you bet a horse to win in the second leg of the double. 1 day ago  Daily Racing Multiple: Ozzy and Ravenhill can deliver each-way Doncaster double Daily Racing Multiple: A chaser and a Southwell specialist for today's 7/1 double More Horse Racing. What is a Daily & Running Double? A Daily Double/Running Double requires you to pick the winning runner of two of the nominated double races on the race card. Doubles pay the nominated tote dividend. Sportsbet offers Daily & Running Double's on selected races (not all).

What is a Daily Double Bet?

Daily double betting requires you to pick the winners of two consecutive races. Traditionally offered on the first two races on a card at most racetracks, the daily double is also offered by some tracks on the final two races of the day. Some tracks even offer rolling doubles, which means you can bet the daily double on any two consecutive races throughout the card.

A $2 daily double of 2-3 on the first two races would require that horse 2 win the first race and horse 3 win the second race in order for you to cash a ticket. Many tracks also offer the daily double as a $1 minimum wager, allowing bettors to play $1 double wheels. For example, a $1 daily double wheel of 1 with 4,5,6 would cost $3 and would require that horse 1 win the first race, and any of horses 4,5,6 win the second race. Because this bet is a $1 wheel, rather than a full $2 daily double wager, you would only collect half the listed $2 daily double payout if it came in.

Daily Double Takeout Value

Like other multi-race wagers, the daily double has its own separate wagering pool, subjecting bettors to only one pari-mutuel takeout rather than the two separate takeouts that would be applied if you bet each horse to win in each race. This is the main reason why the daily double usually pays more than a win parlay would return on the same two horses.

For example, if you bet a horse to win the first race, your win bet is subject to a track takeout of anywhere between 14-20 percent. When you bet a horse to win the second race, your wager is again subject to the same takeout of 14-20 percent. This basically means that your two bets are taxed at a rate of 28-40 percent in total. Contrast this to betting the daily double on a single ticket and being taxed on the bet only once at a rate of between 17-25 percent. Obviously, the daily double is a better wager if you have two solid selections.

Other Reason to Like This Wager

There are a variety of additional reasons that make the daily double a good bet. It is the oldest of the exotic wagers, having been introduced at Connaught Park in Canada in 1930; thus, it has a loyal following among both casual bettors and horsemen. And because of its longevity and simplicity, it has been passed from one generation of bettors and horsemen to another.

In its early days, before probable daily double payouts were displayed on electronic tote boards, horsemen loved to use the double to bet their horses – simply because it allowed them to hide their intentions from the betting public. If the public saw a big win bet on a horse before a race, they would jump all over it, but with the daily double, horsemen could wheel their horses with a number of others in the next race without alerting the public as to what was going on. If their horse won the first leg of the daily double they were almost certain to cash tickets, and big tickets if they’d kept their horses and their daily double bets quiet.

In those days some tracks required you to bet the daily double anywhere from 15-60 minutes before the first race ran, making it difficult if not impossible to spot the inside money. But even now, with the probable daily double payouts available on the tote board, overlays still exist in the daily double pools, and both bettors and horsemen still love the bet.

Both old and new money is always flowing into the daily double betting pools, and this is especially true in the case of the early double, which bettors like to use to get the day off to a winning start. So you’re almost always guaranteed a decent betting pool.

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Daily Double Betting Strategy

Many bettors like to “get” the early daily double so they can have extra cash to play with for the remainder of the card. They also like to hedge their bets, meaning they will often play multiple horses with multiple other horses including the favorites in a $1 daily double wheel. For example, they might play a $1 double wheel 4,5,6 WITH 2,3,4, which includes nine possible $1 combinations at the cost of $9. If the two favorites come in, there is an excellent chance that they will lose money on their bet or barely break even.

Basically, by playing multiple combinations including the favorites in the double, the bettor is lowering their rate of return and losing the very edge the single daily double takeout would have given them. Of course, if you are absolutely certain the favorites will finish out of the money in both legs of the daily double, a wheel play might be justified. Or, if you can find a value play in one leg of the double, you can wheel it with a number of other horses in the other leg of the double – just like the sharp horsemen used to do – and still do!

One thing to keep in mind when playing the early daily double - the first two races at most tracks on any given day are often for the worst horses – making the races extremely tough and possibly impossible to handicap. This does not stop casual bettors from pouring in money on daily double wheels using the three favorites in each leg just so they can have it – which is to your advantage. All that extra money lying around in the pool you - and some of these favorites have no chance of winning.

As in all horse betting situations, the key to betting the double is to find value plays and combine them with each other and in some cases with the favorite. For example, if you like a horse in the first leg of the daily double that is listed at 10-1, and you have determined its chances of winning to be more like 3-1, you may have found yourself a great play in the double. If you think the favorite is solid in the second leg, a straight daily double ticket will pay handsomely. If you think the favorite might be beatable in the second leg, you can wheel your horse with a few others and still come out ahead.

The main thing to understand is that if you wheel multiple favorites with multiple favorites in the daily double, you will cash more tickets but lose more money than if you were to concentrate on finding value and beating the favorites in at least one leg of the double. If you can’t find value – if the favorites don’t look beatable or reliable – pass the early double. You can always wait for the late double when bettors who have lost money on the early double and throughout the card come swinging for the fences with crazy multiple wheels looking to make up their losses.

The lazy crazy wheel betting in the late double creates inefficiencies in the betting pools that can work to your advantage even if the favorite wins one of the legs of the double. Because numerous combinations in the late double are bet with a “get out for the day” attitude instead of by probability, you can find value even in the shorter priced horses. Add this to the fact that the first leg of the late double at many tracks is often one of the higher class races of the day, making it easier to handicap and allowing you to spot real value that will perform to expectations.

As with other exotic wagering strategies, betting the daily double works best if you find the value plays and stick with them – limiting you wheels to solid combinations. You will cash fewer tickets with this daily double betting strategy, but assuming your handicapping skills are sound – you will make more money.

And that’s the idea, right?

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How to Bet on Horses - Multiple-Race Wagers - Pick 3 Betting

Pick 3 betting is offered at all major racetracks and requires you to pick the winners of three consecutive races on one ticket. Most racetracks offer both early and late Pick 3 wagering, and some tracks offer rolling Pick 3 betting throughout the entire racing card.

Like the Daily Double, the Pick 3 is one of the best value bets in racing, mainly because it has its own separate betting pool. This means that only one takeout (a percentage of each dollar wagered which is removed from the betting pools to pay the racetrack and various levels of government taxes), usually in the range of 20-25 percent, is applied to the betting pool before calculating the payoffs.

Contrast this to betting each race in the Pick 3 separately and having to pay the takeout on each race. For example, if you bet a horse to win in the first leg of the Pick 3, the win bet is subject to a 13-18 percent takeout depending on the track. If you bet a horse to win in the second and third legs of the Pick 3, you again pay the 13-18 percent takeout on each bet. Why pay the takeout three times when you can bet the Pick 3 and pay the takeout once.

Additional factors that make the Pick 3 an excellent bet

Studies have shown that betting a win-bet parlay on all three races in the Pick 3 usually pays less than a Pick 3 ticket including the same horses. Add to this the fact that Pick 3 wagering is often offered on some of the better races on the card and you have the ultimate wagering situation for handicappers adept at spotting value. And depending on the races involved, the probability of picking the winners of three consecutive races is often higher than that of correctly picking your favorite exotic wagers in the same sets of races, and obviously better than selecting all of the winners in the Pick 4 or Pick 6.

Also, while the pools can be substantial in the Pick 3, they are generally not large enough to attract the syndicate bettors, who prefer to spend their money tying up every possible combination in the Pick 6 with hopes of a six-figure payday. The absence of big syndicate money in the Pick 3 pools means less money is bet on combinations that might only be spotted by sharp handicappers - which subsequently allows those handicappers to collect higher payoffs.

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An additional advantage to betting the Pick 3 is that while the payoffs can be lucrative, they are usually not large enough to be subjected to the instant federal and state withholding taxes.

Types of Pick 3 Bets

The $1 minimum Pick 3 wheel offered by most tracks makes it affordable for the average bettor to tie up numerous horses without having to spend a fortune.

A $1 Pick 3 wheel combining horses 5,6 to win the first leg with horses 2,3,4 to win the second leg with horses 7,8,9 to win the third leg represents 18 possible combinations (2 horses * three horses * three horses) at the cost of $18 and would appear as:

$1 Pick 3 wheel 5,6 with 2,3,4 with 7,8,9 = $18

A straight Pick 3 that includes one horse in each leg can also be bet for a minimum of $2 at most tracks. For example, a $2 straight Pick 3 selecting horse 5 to win the first leg, horse 6 to win the second leg and horse 10 to win the third leg would appear as:

$2 Pick 3 5 with 6 with 10 = $2.

Profitable and Unprofitable Pick 3 Wagering Scenarios

The most profitable scenarios regarding the Pick 3 occur when you have identified weak favorites in the first two legs. The majority of bettors like to be alive after the first leg of the Pick 3 and they often over bet combinations that include the favorites in the first two legs. If you can get the favorite beat in the first leg of the Pick 3 with one of your value plays you are generally on your way to a good payoff. If you can also get the favorite beat in the second leg of the Pick 3, you are looking at a good payoff even if the favorite wins the final leg.

The best payoffs obviously occur when favorites do not win any of the races in the Pick 3, but excellent payoffs do occur when second-favorites win in combination with medium-priced horses. Combinations of favorites and non-favorites in the Pick 3 can be profitable, but combinations of medium-priced winners often pay much more than they should. Good payoffs can also be had when two of the three Pick 3 races appear wide open on paper and lack heavy favorites.

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The worst Pick 3 payoffs occur when odds on favorites win any of the races in the Pick 3 or when a low-priced favorite comes in with two additional low-priced contenders. If favorites win two of the three legs in the Pick 3, the payoff is likely to be low even if a longshot wins the remaining leg.

The Pick 3 wager is most attractive when you really like a horse you know the public won’t bet or when you really hate a horse the public loves. Even better, if the horses you like in each leg of the Pick 3 races are not favorites, you have found yourself a prime betting opportunity. Now you just have to structure your bet in a way that ensures maximum profit if your top selections win.

Betting the Pick 3 for Maximum Profit - Multiple Ticket Method

Wagering strategy and ticket structuring are crucial when playing the Pick 3. One of the best Pick 3 wagering strategies is to find one or two key horses in each leg and tie them up with your key horses plus value-play contenders in the other two legs. For example:

In the first leg of the Pick 3 horse 5 (3-1) is your top selection and horses 1 and 6 are contenders.
In the second leg, you like horse 7 (5-1) to win with horses 1,2 and 4 as contenders.
In the third leg of the Pick 3 you like horse 6 (4-1) to win with horses 8 and 9 as contenders.

If you were to do what most unsophisticated bettors do and bet a $1 Pick 3 wheel combing all your selections on one ticket as follows: 1,5,6 with 1,2,4,7 with 6,8,9 = $36, you would cash one winning ticket if one of your horses won each of the races.

Assuming you are a decent handicapper with a slight edge on the public, you would be much better off keying your main selections on separate tickets - giving you the opportunity to cash multiple tickets if your main selections win. Multiple separate tickets designed to maximize profit would be played as follows.

$1 Pick 3 wheel 5 with 1,2,4,7 with 6,8,9 = $12
$1 Pick 3 wheel 1,5,6 with 7 with 6,8,9 = $9
$1 Pick 3 wheel 1,5,6 with 1,2,4,7 with 6 = $12
$2 straight Pick 3 5 with 7 with $6 = $2

Total Cost of Multiple Pick 3 Tickets: $35

Using the multiple ticket method above and keying your main selection in each leg of the Pick 3, you would cash a $5 Pick 3 ticket if all your main selections won. Contrast this to cashing only a $1 ticket using the previously mentioned strategy of combining all your contenders on one ticket for $36.

Using the multiple ticket method you have a chance to cash even if two of your main selections lose - yet you retain your edge of cashing multiple tickets if they win! You can also add a small win bet on each of your main selections to increase profits and provide saver backup just in case you miss the Pick 3.

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Read our Race Betting Guide to get insight on all of the types of wagering options in horse racing. Dig deeper below to get tips on the most popular exotic wagers with winning strategies provided by expert Kenneth Strong.