How to make money betting on horse racing

THERE are many varying ways to make money betting on horse racing and we look at some of the more popular methods.

Due to the unpredictable nature of the horse racing game, there is no set way to make money betting on the Sport of Kings, but there are ways punters can increase their overall profit and limit their losses.

The difference between winning and losing over the course of a racing season can be a small margin and knowing how to get the best value out of your selections is a key aspect to maximising your profit.

Below are the best ways to ensure you make money betting on horse racing, but first and foremost, sign up to our recommended bookmakers for the best odds, horse racing promotions and horse racing form guides in Australia.

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Finding the right value price

Getting the right value for your runner is about as important as picking winners in horse racing.

We implore punters to frame their own market before the odds come out to see if you’re getting good value.

You might frame your desired runner at $4, but the bookmakers open it up at $2.80. In your assessment of the market, the $2.80 is more than a point shorter than what you should be willing to accept.

The reason why you should avoid taking “unders” is because over time if you continue to take lower odds than you have valued, you will lose.

If you pass on the $2.80 chance and it wins, don’t stress. There are better betting opportunities out there and you will miss out on plenty of winners because the odds didn’t represent value.

Many recreational punters will include a $1.50 chance into their multi-bets because it’s considered easy money, but does that $1.50 represent value? and if not, why are you betting on it?

The opposition might not have the same credentials as the odds-on runner, but punters need to assess the odds in every betting situation.

Irregardless of the odds, punters will know if they’re getting value or not. Winx paying $1.09 could be considered value to a punter that framed it at $1.05 – just the same as a horse paying $34 is value if it was framed at $26.

Punters will always hear the professionals talk about how they’re not prepared to take the odds available and there’s a good reason behind that.

Pick and choose the right spots

Falling in love with a runner is commonplace in the punting world, but it’s one way bookmakers turn over a profit.

Continually backing the same horse which has a poor win/loss ratio is a good way to lessen your value.

Bookmakers are aware of these “public” horses and quite often shorten their odds because they know punters will take the odds no matter what.

Punters need to pick and choose their spots and if you think the race won’t suit your runner, let it go and find a better betting spot.

“If I don’t back it, it will probably win this time” – how many times have we heard that? Too many for our liking and it’s just best to forget about the horse that always runs away with your money.

Waiting for the right spot is a good way to make money betting on horse racing. Punters might have numerous runners that they follow, but they’re not going to win every time, so making sure you know when best to strike is key.

Follow betting movement

Punters can get a great insight when following the bookmakers market movement.

It’s a nice feeling when you back a horse at $3 and it firms into $1.80. You have already secured value and it means there’s a great deal of confidence with a large group of punters.

It pays to make note of these moves and trying to predict when they will happen is a key to success. A 10-cent drift in the betting is all it takes for the confidence of a punter to take a hit and we often see horses drift significantly in the closing stages before the race.

When the $2 favourite drifts out to $4 you can all but screw up your ticket. There’s the odd runner that defies a betting drift, but punters should be taking note of which runners are attracting the late interest.

Not so much for the horses that drop from $26 to $16. It doesn’t take much money for that price to drop significantly, so target the more favoured runners when watching the market movements.

Know your bet type

There are many ways to make money betting on horse racing and playing to your strengths is one of them.

Punters should know what bet type is best suited to their strategy. If you’re focused on making with small margins over a long period of time then you will be best suited to win, place and each way bets.

If you’re comfortably knowing you can play the exotics and hit one with good consistency then bet types such as quinella, trifecta and first fours will be the way to go.

There is no set strategy to suggest, but we believe betting to win and place is the best way to ensure consistent profits when betting horse racing.

Betting on the place market gives punters a higher chance of winning, but the odds aren’t as high. Identifying good place value is a key aspect to making money and targeting the right meetings is one solution.

The bigger the pools the better the odds. Punters betting on a $4 chance at a low-key midweek meeting with a field of only nine runners might struggle to get $1.80 for the place, but increase the pool and scatter of money, and your place price could turn into $2.

That’s a significant difference and luckily for punters using our recommended bookmakers, fixed odds place betting is available so you can secure your profit to determine your potential profits.

Keep a plan and stick with it

Keeping a staking plan and sticking with it is important when betting on horse racing.

Punters don’t necessarily need to bet the same amount of every race, but knowing when to increase and decrease bet sizes is important and sticking with a strict strategy will ensure you don’t slip into bad habits.

Losing streaks are an unfortunate part of gambling, but we’re in it for the long haul and turning over a profit at the end of the week, month, year – that’s what counts at the end of the day.

Make a plan that you can afford and use your money management skills to bet accordingly and responsibly.

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