In years gone by, In-Play betting on the likes of football or rugby was possible, but the technology wasn’t good enough to allow you to do it on something fast-moving such as horse racing. That has changed in recent times, however, and nowadays you are just as able to have a flutter on a live horse race In-Play as you are a Premier League game. This, of course, leaves itself open to clever bettors taking advantage of the ups and down of a horse race, such as betting on a horse that tends to start well and fade late-on.
Markets are usually quick to lockdown before it gets to the stage of the run-in, or if a horse has a huge lead and is unlikely to be caught. That is obviously where the difference between flat races and National Hunt events comes in, give that jump racing can still see a change of leader right up until the final fence has been successfully negotiated. With many bookmakers, it is possible not only to Cash Out but even to opt for a Partial Cash Out, which is a new thing offered by some bookies that punters can take advantage of.
Betting In-Play
The invention of In-Play betting essentially revolutionised the world of only bookmakers, given the manner in which punters could suddenly place bets not just before events got underway but even once they were in full-flow. This was most easily done on football matches, simply because of their natural stop-start nature. The likes of horse racing was simply ignored by many bookies because it was too fast-flowing and the technology that allowed them to adapt to the changing circumstances simply wasn’t up to scratch.
That is no longer the case, though, and betting In-Play has become possible even during horse races. It is much more common in longer races, with the likes of the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Aintree Grand National being obvious examples. It is possible to bet In-Play on flat races, but many of them are over so quickly that less confident punters will try to avoid doing so a lot of the time. It is still possible, though, and that is what you’ll want to find out from your bookie of choice before depositing a load of cash and not being able to use it.
Cashing Out
The Cash Out function is another popular one with many bettors, especially when it comes to horse racing. It is not uncommon for people to place their wagers on the biggest races ante-post, meaning that they’ve placed the wager well ahead of the event getting underway and all sorts of information could have been gained since then. As a result, the horse that they’ve bet on could have lost form and so they want to try to get at least money back from their bet and therefore opt to Cash Out. Not all bookies will offer Cash Out on ante-post bets, but some will.
Some people will use the Cash Out function when they notice that the horse that they’ve bet on isn’t performing as well as they hoped and they want to try to recoup some of their investment. Alternatively, the Cash Out function allows for the possibility of their horse doing much better than expected during the initial part of the race, but with the likelihood that it will fall back. As a result, punters can Cash Out when their selected horse is out in front and the offer from the bookmaker is more generous than it will be later in the race.
The Strategy Of In-Play Betting In Horse Racing
One of the best things about In-Play betting in horse racing is that you can use it to your advantage if you know the horse that you’re betting on well. One of the most common traits, particularly in young horses, is taking the lead in the race before dropping off through either fatigue or inexperience. Clever bettors will place a bet on the horse before the race when their odds are low and then look to Cash Out when the horse is ahead in the event and before they start to drop back into the rest of the pack.
Other punters will do things in the reverse. Often the best horses will hang around towards the back of the pack before making a sprint for the front towards the end. Sensible bettors will avoid the poor prices ahead of the race getting underway and instead wait until the In-Play markets are open. There is a likelihood that the price on said horse winning will go up the longer it stays at the back, giving punters that know it will have a late sprint the chance to place a bet on it without the pre-race premium reducing their possible winnings.
Things To Be Wary Of
The world of In-Play betting is such that what you’ll be seeing on your phone or computer isn’t going to be up-to-date. Bookmakers and professional bettors will have the best possible facilities at the racecourses in order to take advantage of punters that are behind the curve in terms of what they’re betting on. Even if you’re two seconds behind what’s actually happening, you’ll be missing out on a wealth of information that other people will already know all about. For this reason, betting In-Play on the exchange can be dangerous.
Bookies will lock down markets once something has happened that means that they’re likely to lose money, but they’ll leave markets open if they are likely to make money on it. Imagine, for example, that the favourite in a race has fallen at a fence. Bookmakers know that, but punters at home watching via a stream or even through a satellite or TV aerial won’t have the same information. You think the favourite has been running well and so you go to put an In-Play bet on it two seconds after it’s fallen in real time. That is the sort of thing that you need to be careful of when betting In-Play on horse racing.