What Is An Exacta In Horse Betting
If you are ready to win and win big, it might be time to calculate the perfect Exacta Bet. Exacta horse racing betting is popular, but not always easy. It’s more straightforward than most of the other exotic wagers, and it’s one of the simplest bets. Sure, it’s harder than a straight bet, but when you get it right, it can be a lucrative win with remarkable margins.
- An Exacta bet in horse racing is the wager placed on which horses which will finish the race first and second, in the correct order. What is the Minimum Stake on an Exacta Bet? The minimum stake is usually $1 for an exacta bet, although some tracks do have a $2 minimum. Online Exacta bets have the same minimum stake as betting Exactas at the track.
- 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.
What is an exacta bet in horse racing. An exacta bet is where you select two or more horses in the same race and bet on them to finish first and second. Depending on the type of exacta you use, you either give a set order to the horses involved or go with any order.
What Is An Exacta Bet?
An Exacta Bet, also referred to as an Exactor or Perfecta, is one where the bettor picks both the first and second place winners in exact order. In order to win an Exacta Bet, both horses must finish in the chosen order. If either prediction is wrong, the bet is off.
For example, in an Exacta Bet you choose horse #2 to place first and horse #5 to place second. If that happens, you win. But if horse #5 places first and horse #2 places second, you lose.
It’s an all or nothing gamble, which makes it difficult to accomplish but it’s easier than some of the other bets (such as Trifectas and Superfectas). This makes Exacta Betting extremely popular among horse racing enthusiasts. When you master it, the rewards can be great.
Different Types of Exacta Bets
There are two different types of Exacta Bets. A straight Exacta Bet or an exacta box bet. A straight Exacta Bet is exactly as described above, two horses chosen for first and second place. An exacta box allows you to choose more horse combinations in a single bet, but makes that bet significantly more expensive. Here’s a breakdown of how they each work:
Straight Exacta Horse Racing Betting
A bet on two horses to finish in first and second (Win and Place) in precise order. Minimum bet is $2. An Exacta Betting slip would show $2 Exacta (2-7). This means you have placed a $2 Exacta Bet on horse #2 to finish in first place (Win) and horse #7 to finish in second (Place).
Exacta Box Horse Racing Betting
An Exacta Box bet is more versatile, allowing multiple bets on a single slip. For example, you can bet on horse #2 and #7 and you win whether it’s a #2 Win – #7 Place, or #7 Win – #2 Place. This is actually multiple Exacta Bets and so the cost increases with each additional horse. If you want to add to your Exacta “Box” you can also add in a third horse. Each additional horse increases the cost of the bet. You can actually put as many horses as you like on the Exacta Box, but be aware that the price will continue to rise with each horse added.
Exacta Bet Calculator
Playing an Exacta increases your chances of winning, while also increasing your cost of playing. To calculate the cost of an Exacta Bet, multiply the number of horses used on top, or the win position, of the exacta with the number of horses used in the second position (less one if the same number is used on top in the exacta).
$2 Exacta Costs
- Basic Exacta 2 & 6: $2 (one combination)
$2 Exacta Wheel and Part Wheel: Choose one or two horses in first position, and cover multiple other horses in second position. It’s more efficient than the Exacta Box, and cheaper.
- Exacta Wheel 1 with all (ten horses in race): $18.00 (nine combinations)
- Exacta Part Wheel 2 with 3,4,5,6: $8.00 (four combinations)
- Exacta Part Wheel 2 with 3,4,5,6: $8.00 (four combinations)
- Exacta Part Wheel 3,4,5,6 with 2: $8.00 (four combinations)
- Exacta Part Wheel 2,3,4,5,6 with 2,3,4: $24.00 (12 combinations)
$2 Exacta Box: Any two of your horses must finish first and second. To figure the cost: Multiply the number of horses used by the number of horses used less one times $2 wager.
- Exacta Box 1,2: $4 (two combinations)
- Exacta Box 1,2: $4 (two combinations)
- Exacta Box 1,2,3,4: $24 (12 combinations)
- Exacta Box 1,2,3,4,5: $40 (20 combinations)
The more horses you add to an Exacta Bet, the more likely you are to lose money in the end. If you bet on 8 horses, you have more chances of winning, but you would be lucky to make $30, resulting in a loss of nearly $650. For this reason, Exacta Box horse racing betting is generally best left to experienced handicappers, or those who employ the services of a veteran handicapper.
What is the Minimum Stake on an Exacta Bet?
For most horse racing tracks, the minimum wager for an Exacta Bet is $2. There are some tracks that offer a $1 exacta wager.
How To Calculate the Payout for An Exacta Bet
Payouts for these wagers are calculated using the pari-mutuel system. This means you’re betting into a pool and there are no fixed odds involved. All of the money for Exacta Bets goes into one pool, that pool of money is distributed among the winning tickets. This means that if there is an upset in the race, you can win big – whereas if lots of people bet on the winners, the winning prize may be much smaller.
Let’s look at an easy example…
- A total of 3,000 $2 Exacta tickets are bought for a race.
- The proceeds from those tickets form the prize pool.
- 3,000 x $2 = $6,000, so the prize pool has $6,000 in it.
- 50 of the tickets sold have the correct finishing order of the first two horses.
- Each winning ticket receives an equal share of the prize pool.
- $6,000 / 50 = $120, so each winning ticket returns $120.
Of course, the track will take out its portion before the prize pool is calculated so the payout wouldn’t be exactly $120. But still, a $100 return on a $2 bet is amazing odds.
Whether it’s a huge race or an unexpected win, an Exacta payout usually gives a decent return, which is why it’s one of the most popular bets.
And They’re Off!
Well there you have it – an Exacta Bet!
The beginning of a horse race is so exciting because it’s anyone’s game. There’s no way to know which two horses are going to win. There’s always the possibility for a surprise win or a major upset. Whether you’re placing your first bet or you’re an old pro, at AmWager we want every bettor to be successful! That’s why we made our online betting platform so easy to learn and use. Even first time bettors will have no trouble navigating our platform. Sign up today to place your next winning bet.
What Is An Exacta Wheel in Horse Racing and Sports Betting?
by Doc's Sports - 10/11/2014
To understand an exacta wheel we need to start with a refresher on what an exacta is. It is one of the simplest kinds of exotic bets available in horse racing - only the quinella is simpler. What you have to do is pick the horses that are going to finish first and second in a race, and pick them in the correct order. An exacta can also be known as an exactor, perfecta or forecast bet.
How To Bet A Exacta
Winning an exacta isn’t theoretically difficult, but in reality it can be a real challenge. In an eight-horse field, for example, there are 56 different possible exacta combinations. Only one of them will be correct. To increase the chances of success, then, bettors will often look to bet more than one combination of horses in a race. One way they can do this is with an exacta box. They will pick a group of horses and bet every possible combination of those horses in an exacta. If you box three horses, for example, then you are buying six different exacta combinations. If one of your three horses wins and a second one finishes second then you are a winner, and you hope that the payout exceeds the costs of the bet. A four-horse box would include 12 different combinations. The problem with a box, though, is that you are buying some combinations that are less attractive than others. They aren’t likely to be a winner, and they are driving up the total cost of your bet and making it tougher for you to make a profit. Sometimes, then, you want to bet a group of horses, but do so with more refinement and selectivity. That’s where an exacta wheel comes in.
In an exacta wheel you pick a horse - or more than one horse - that you think is your key horse, and you combine them with several other horses. For example, let’s say that we really think that horse #1 is the clear choice in a race, but that #2, #5, #7 and #8 are relatively equal and will fight for second. We don’t want to box all five horses because we don’t think that four of them stand a real chance of winning - we would be wasting a lot of money. We could instead bet a wheel with #1 over #2, #5, #7 and #8. A $2 exacta box of the five horses would have cost $40. A $2 wheel costs just $8 and includes the combinations we think are most likely to be the winners. By reducing our bet cost so significantly we are in a much better position to win. If we like #1 and #3 to win we could easily include both horses on top of our wheel, too.
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