Exotic Bets

If you’re thinking about taking your horse racing betting experience up another notch, then exotic bets are certainly the way to go. The team at OnlyRacing provides exotics betting articles multiple times a week, so if you’re looking for tips, you’ve come to the right place.

Exotics betting is all about placing specific bets on the outcome of a race. It’s more than just simply placing a bet on the runner you think will win the race. Horse racing exotic bets are quite popular because even though they can be difficult to land, the potential payout can be a lot larger than the simple bets available.

These types of bets can be done across a single race, or across multiple races. It doesn’t matter if you’ve gone for a single race or a bet across multiple races, it can be an exciting (and lucrative) option for bettors. 

For single-race exotic bets, you have two options, they can be taken straight-up or boxed:

• Straight-Out - This is where you pick the correct result, in the correct order (i.e. making single selections only).
• Boxed - This is where you pick the correct results, in any order (i.e. making multiple sections).

Along with understanding the main options available for exotic bets, some other areas are important to be aware of before you start betting on exotics. This will ensure you have all the information and there aren’t any curve balls thrown when trying out something new.

Flexi Betting

You’ll find that flexi betting is available on all different exotic bet types. Flexi betting allows you to take a percentage of the dividend (also known as a full unit), which is a direct correlation between the amount of cash you are choosing to outlay.

For example, if a full unit costs you $100, you can take a percentage of that if you wish, say 25%, this means that you will be outlying $25. If a full unit is $1,000 and you wish to take 25%, the cost is $250. Flexi betting is a great way for you to get involved in bets that you may not have been able to previously.

Scratchings 

For exotic horse racing bets, you must keep an eye on scratchings. Scratchings happen all the time in horse racing and it can have a major influence on your bet. With exotics betting, if a runner in your bet is scratched, you will then automatically receive the nominated substitute.

The nominated substitute is the favourite on the tote that is relevant to the meeting you are betting on. Things can get a little tricky here, especially if you already have the substitute included in your selections. The rules for this will differ depending on which of the many betting sites you have placed your bet with.

You’ll find that some will simply adjust the percentage of the return you would receive, while others will refund a portion of your initial outlay. So, we certainly recommend understanding which path the bookie is going to take if this occurs, before placing any bets.

Understanding Bet Costs

The cost structure of exotics is pretty easy to understand if you think of it this way. One full unit equals the number of potential winning combinations that are included in your bet. It can sometimes be quite costly, so flexi betting comes into play as you can invest your desired amount (not needing to invest one full unit).

The calculation is a little different depending on if you are betting on a single race or multiple races. For any single-race exotic bets, this is done by multiplying the number of runners you have selected in each position. For multi-race exotics, this is done by multiplying the runners chosen in each leg.

There are so many different exotic bet types that are available for you to choose from. So, which one will you pick? Well, it’s a good idea to understand what each one specifically involves, then you can make your decision. Usually, live betting is not available for any exotic bet types in horse racing, so your choices need to be finalised before the race starts.

All the exotic bet types you should be across include:

If you want to go out on your own, there are some strategies and tips we can provide you, to hopefully make your experience a more profitable one. Remember, you don’t have to tackle exotics betting by yourself! We provide exotic tips multiple times a week and this includes reasoning and key stats as well.

Some of our main exotic betting strategies and tips include:

• Make sure you have a full understanding of the risks involved. Does the risk outweigh the reward? There is a heightened level of risk involved, so even though the odds are enticing, exotic bets are more difficult to land.
• Develop a solid understanding of all the different bet types available to you (which you can find in the section above).
• Read the form before placing any bets. You should understand each runner's performance at the track, distance, strike rate and more before finalising any bets.
• See if there are any betting promotions available as this can potentially counterbalance some of the risks involved. We have a full list of online bookmakers and go through some of the promotions available.
• Read more general horse racing tips to get an idea of who the experts are choosing. OnlyRacing offers heaps of horse racing tips and provides guidance on the best betting apps to bet with.

As we have already explained, exotics betting can be a high-risk strategy. However, there are certainly some advantages involved as well! With great risk comes even greater rewards. So, if you are brave enough, you could successfully reap the benefits.

Some of the main advantages of exotic bets in horse racing include:

• First things first, the opportunity to win more money! This is the most obvious advantage as you will usually find enhanced odds for exotics markets. 
• They can add additional excitement to your betting experience, as long as it is done responsibly.
• Exotics are available in all three racing codes. So if you enjoy placing bets on horse racing, harness racing and greyhound racing, you can take advantage of exotics for all three.
• Flexi betting is available to limit the amount of outlay required, meaning you aren’t required to have a massive bankroll to take advantage of exotics.

Got some more questions? Well, we’ve got some more answers! We’ve gone through all the most common questions people have about exotic bets in horse racing and answer them all right here in this section.