What is the equation used to calculate winnings from a horse race?

Question

Say if I bet 100 dollars on Bobbyjoe and he wins, what equation is used to get me my winnings?

Answer 1

First, take all money bet by all bettors on all horses for the same bet. In this case, the bet would be "win". Let's say that the total amount everyone bets is $11,000. That $11,000 represents the "mutuel pool."

From the mutuel pool, the state and the track take a cut off the top. The total of those cuts varies by state, but it usually amounts to something like 12%. After the cut, the mutuel pool would be $9680 in this example.

After the race is won and the winner determined by the track stewards, the remainder of the mutuel pool is divided up by all those who placed winning bets, according to the amount of each bet. Let's suppose that Bobbyjoe won, and that there were 100 bettors who bet $2 each on Bobbyjoe to win, and 2 bettors who bet $100 each on Bobbyjoe to win. The total amount bet on Bobbyjoe would be $400.

Now the math:

$9680 / 400 = $24.20
which is the amount each dollar bet earns.

But the track computes on the basis of a $2 minimum bet, so in the paper tomorrow it would say that Bobbyjoe paid $48.40 to win. And your $100 bet, representing the same as 50 bets of $2, would pay a nice $2420.

That's what happens when a 25-to-1 longshot comes in.

But if the winner happens to be a heavy odds-on favorite, it's possible that the mutuel pool will not be large enough to pay back all winning bettors, because the state's cut will eliminate the profit. In those cases, the track must add enough money to the mutuel pool to insure that a winning $2 bet will always pay at least $2.10.

Answer 2

If you bet $8 on a horse to win and the odds of that horse winning are 5 to 1, you will get back a minimum of $48.00. here's how it works... When you make an initial bet, you are giving the teller at the track your eight dollars to hold. If the horse wins you get your eight dollars back plus the odds of 5-1. 8 x 5 = 40 + 8 (the $8.00 you gave to the track is included in the final payoff) If a horse goes off at 2-1, and you wager $2.00 to win, you get back $6.00. The odds of 2 - 1 + your $2.00 = $6.00. The exact odds a horse goes off at is the moment just before the closing bell indicating no more bets, and as that famous race caller in New York in the 1950's and 1960's, (Aquaduct-Belmont-Saratoga) Fred Capposella used to say, 'the people are moving closer to the rail and that means one thing -it is now, post time'. The betting is usually rounded off to the nearest 10 cents, not dollar. A horse cannot pay less than $2.10 for win-place or show. If everybody bets a horse and there is no pool, or bet, on any other horse, and that horse wins, the track must dig into it's treasury to make the minimum payment of $2.10, for win, place or show. It also should be noted, the win, place and show pools and exacta and other types of bets may not be paid off in accordance with the win pool odds, and may pay off more money for place, than for win. Why...different pools, different odds. Most race tracks do not display the place-show-exacta-trifecta or other exotic betting pools, only display win-odds. When Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in 1973, and the win-place-show pool was finalized, the bettors received a greater return for their $2.00 for place, than for win: different pools...different odds.

Answer 3

Entirely dependent upon the odds. Not enough information here to answer your question. Most horses in each race have different odds of winning.

Answer 4

The system used to calculate your winnings is called the parimutuel system. Since in the parimutuel system you are betting against other gamblers, it is impossible to determine your winnings until the bets have been placed.

Answer 5

Sports betting systems are sets of events that when combined for a particular game for a particular sport represents a profitable betting scenario