Looking for a basic understanding of every type of bet you’re likely to encounter? This list will help you.
Article Contents
Basic Bet Types
Win
The ‘win’ bet is the simplest bet type to understand. You simply bet on a specific participant (sportsperson, horse, team) to win an event. If it doesn’t win, your stake is lost. If it does win, you’ll get paid out at the quoted odds.
Place
A ‘place’ bet, also known as a ‘place only’ bet, is popular bet type in horse and greyhound racing as well as ranked tournament sports such as golf. You bet on a specific participant to finish within the top places of a race or tournament, rather than to win it outright. If the participant finishes within the ‘places’ defined by the market, the bet wins. If the participant fails to finish within the places, the bet loses.
For the majority of races, places are set to the top 2 or top 3 positions. But for larger races with more runners, the top 4 positions qualify.
The majority of bookmakers only offer racing place bets as part of an each way bet (see below). However, place only markets are available at betting exchanges.
Learn more about Place only bets.
Each Way
An Each Way (EW) bet is essentially two separate bets of an equal stake: a win bet and a place bet. This means that you will receive the maximum return on your bet if your selection wins (therefore the win and place parts both win). You will receive a partial win if your selection fails to win but still places (only the place part wins). If your selection fails to place, then you will lose both parts of the bet.
Winnings on the place part of the bet are calculated according to an each way fraction (usually 1/4 or 1/5, depending on the number of runners). The fraction is multiplied by the odds available for the runner in order to set the place odds for the payout.
Learn more about Each Way bets.
Single & Multiple Bets
Single
A single bet is the most common bet type, because it’s the most simple. It’s when you bet on one single outcome of an event happening, rather than multiple outcomes which forms a double/treble/accumulator. For example, a football team to win a match, or a horse to win a race. Single bets can involve both simple or complex betting markets.
Double
A double bet is the simplest multiple bet type. It combines two different bet selections into one bet. Your betting double succeeds when both bets win, and fails when one or more of the bets lose.
Double bets are more difficult to win than the singles they’re comprised of — but the payout is higher. The combined odds are calculated by multiplying together the decimal format of the first and second bet. For example, if your bet is placed at odds of 3/1 (4.0) and 6/1 (7.0) you’ll create the combined odds as follows: 4.0 x 7.0 = 28.0. So if you place a £10 bet, the winnings will be calculated as £10 x 28.0 = £280 (£270 profit).
Treble
A treble bet is the same as a double, except that it combines three different bet selections into one bet. Your betting treble succeeds when all three bets win, and fails when one or more of the bets lose.
Treble bets are generally riskier than doubles and singles, because the chance of winning becomes lower as you add more bets. The combined odds are calculated by multiplying together the decimal format of all three bets. For example, if your bet is placed at odds of 3/1 (4.0) and 6/1 (7.0) and 2/1 (3.0) you’ll create the combined odds as follows: 4.0 x 7.0 x 3.0 = 84.0. So if you place a £10 bet, the winnings will be calculated as £10 x 84.0 = £840 (£830 profit).
Accumulator
An accumulator bet is the same as a treble, except that it combines four or more different bet selections into one bet. Your betting treble succeeds when all bets win, and fails when one or more of the bets lose.
Accumulators or “accas” are risky, because the chance of winning is low. The combined odds are calculated by multiplying together the decimal format of all three bets. For example, if your bet is placed at odds of 3/1 (4.0) and 6/1 (7.0) 2/1 (3.0), and 1/1 you’ll create the combined odds as follows: 4.0 x 7.0 x 3.0 x 2.0 = 168.0. So if you place a £10 bet, the winnings will be calculated as £10 x 168.0 = £1,680 (£1,670 profit).
Learn more about Accumulator bets.
Full Cover Bets
Trixie
A Trixie bet is a type of multiple involving four bets on three different selections on the same sport. The Trixie consists of 3 Doubles to cover each of the selections, and a fourth Treble involving all three selections in one. Your stake is always four times the amount you decide to bet, as there are four parts to the bet.
For example, if you choose horses A, B and C to win across three different races, then your Trixie bet will have doubles of (A & B), (A & C), (B & C). Then the Treble will be (A, B & C) combined. If none, or only one, of your three selections win their race then you lose the entire stake. If two horses win their race, one of the doubles will win and produce a return on the bet. If all three of your horses win, then all four parts of the bet win, producing a guaranteed profit.
Yankee
Originating in the USA, a Yankee bet is a multiple involving eleven combinations spread across four events. This consists of 6 double bets, 4 trebles, and a four-part accumulator bet. Two or more of the selections must be successful to guarantee a return.
For example, if you choose horses A, B, C, D then your Yankee bet will have Doubles of (A & B), (A & C), (A & D), (B & C), (B & D), (C & D). The Trebles will be: (A, B & C), (A, B & D), (A, C & D), and (B, C & D). The four-fold accumulator will be: (A, B, C & D).
Yankees are often used for backing a number short priced individuals.
Canadian or Super Yankee
A Canadian or Super Yankee bet works in the same way as a standard Yankee bet — but with five events. This means that it consists of twenty-six bets on five selections: 10 Doubles, 10 Trebles, five Four-fold Accumulators and 1 Five-fold Accumulator. Two or more selections must be successful to receive a return.
Heinz
A Heinz is a multiple consisting of 57 bets across six selections. The bets which make up a Heinz are as follows: 15 Doubles, 20 Trebles, 15 four-fold accumulators, six five-fold accumulators and one six-fold accumulator.
You will make some return if two or more of the six selections win. A single win is not enough to make a return because the Heinz not include any single bets.
Super Heinz
A Super Heinz bet is similar to a Heinz bet except that it consists of 120 bets, covering seven separate selections. It’s made up to: 21 doubles, 35 trebles, 35 four-folds, 21 five-folds, 7 six-folds and a seven-fold accumulator.
In a Super Heinz bet two or more your seven selections must be successful to receive any payout.
Goliath
A Goliath Bet consists of 247 bets on 8 selections. It is made up of: 28 Doubles, 56 Trebles, 70 Four-Folds, 56 Five-Folds, 28 Six-Folds, 8 Seven-Folds and an 8-fold Accumulator. Two or more selections must win to ensure any return is made.
The disadvantage of a Goliath bet is the large stake it requires. For example, a 10p stake would total £24.70.
Learn more about Full Cover bets.
Full Cover Bets With Singles
Patent
A Patent bet is a type of multiple consisting of seven bets on three different selections. It’s similar to a Trixie bet except it is built from 3 Singles, 3 Doubles and a Treble. Patent betting is used to cover all potential outcomes and will give a return even if only one bet comes in.
For example, if you choose horses A, B, C then your Patent bet will have singles of A, B & C, Doubles of (A & B), (A & C), (A & D), (B & C), and a Treble of (A, B & C).
Lucky 15
A Lucky 15 bet is a popular multiple bet, sometimes thought of as the ‘full coverage’ version of the Yankee (see above). The Lucky 15 involves 4 selections, amounting to 15 bets in total. It consists of 4 Singles, 6 Doubles, 4 Trebles and 1 four-fold Accumulator. In order to gain a return, the bettor requires just one of the four selections to be settled as a winner.
For example, if you choose horses A, B, C, D then your Lucky 15 bet will have 4 Singles of A, B, C & D, Doubles of (A & B), (A & C), (A & D), (B & C), (B & D), (C & D). The Trebles will be: (A, B & C), (A, B & D), (A, C & D), and (B, C & D). The four-fold accumulator will be: (A, B, C & D).
Lucky 31
A Lucky 31 is essentially a larger version of the Lucky 31 that contains 31 bets across five separate selections as a single wager. It consists of: 5 Singles, 10 Doubles, 10 Trebles, 5 four-fold Accumulators, and one five-fold Accumulator.
Lucky 63
A Lucky 63 is essentially a larger version of the Lucky 15 and Lucky 31 that contains 63 bets across six separate selections as a single wager. It consists of: 6 Singles, 15 Doubles, 20 Trebles, 15 four-fold Accumulators, 6 five-fold Accumulators, and one six-fold Accumulator.
Alphabet
An Alphabet is a more complicated bet type which contains 26 bets across 6 different selections. The bet consists of 2 Patents (which make up 14 bets), 1 Yankee (a further 11 bets) and a six-fold Accumulator (1 bet).
Learn more about Full Cover bets with Singles.
Any To Come Bets (ATC)
Up & Down / Stakes About
The Up & Down is a conditional bet described as an “any to come if cash” bet — meaning that each part of a the bet only proceeds if cash is left from the previous part. It consists of two conditional bets, each with a conditional second parts as outlined below.
Selection A (conditional on B)
- If sufficient cash is left (i.e. the bet wins), place another equal stake on selection B.
Selection B (conditional on A)
- If sufficient cash is left (i.e. the bet wins), place another equal stake on selection A.
Essentially the Up & Down wager splits your stake into a single on each of the two selections, whereby both bets stand provide they both produce a return. However, if either one bet returns sufficient funds to place another bet (e.g. it wins), then a second bet is automatically triggered. This is best understood with an example.
For instance if you bet £1 on an Up & Down with decimal odds of 2.0 (bet A) and 3.0 (bet B), then the total stake is £2.
- If both bets win, the initial return is (£2 + £3 =£5), but you re-use £2 to place 2 more bets on both horses. Total return £8 (profit: £6)
- If only bet A wins, the initial return is £2 (only one bet is placed), but you re-use £1 to place another bet on selection B. Total return £1 (profit: -£1)
- If only bet B wins, the initial return is £3 (only one bet is placed), but you re-use £1 to place another bet on selection A. Total return £2 (profit: £0)
- If both bet A and B lose, there is no return (profit: -£2).
Note: conditional bets can be applied retrospectively. So the timing of events doesn’t impact the bet type.
Round Robin
A Round Robin bet contains 3 selections which amounts to 10 individual bets. It consists of: 3 doubles, 1 treble and 3 Single Stakes About bets (which contain 2 bets within each).
For example, if you choose horses A, B, C then your Round Robin bet will have 3 Doubles of (A & B), (A & C), (B & C). The Treble will be: (A, B & C). The Up & Down will be (A & B), (A & C), (B & C) — which is six bets (see above).
Flag
A Flag bet contains 4 selections which amounts to 23 individual bets. It consists of: 6 Doubles, 4 Trebles, 1 Four-Fold and 6 Single Stakes About in pairs totalling 23 bets. It is similar to a Yankee bet with the added 6 pairs of Up & Down bets. You need at least one winning selection to get a return.
Super Flag
A Super Flag bet contains 5 selections which amounts to 46 individual bets. It is an advanced version of the flag bet (in which 23 bets are placed from four selections), containing 10 Single Stakes About bet, 10 Doubles, 10 Trebles, 5 four-selection Accumulators and one five-selection accumulator.
Rounder
A Rounder bet is made up of 3 singles and 3 ATC Doubles. If a single bet wins, the same stake is then used on a Double for the other two selections.
For instance if you bet £1 on A, B and C then the total initial stake is £3. Then there are other potential bets as follows:
- If A wins, you place a £1 Double on B & C
- If B wins, you place a £1 Double on A & C
- If C wins, you place a £1 Double on A & B.
Roundabout
A roundabout bet is made up of 3 singles and 3 ATC Doubles of twice the stake. If the single bet wins, twice the stake is used on a Double for the other two selections. However if one of the selections have odds of less than evens, the full return will be used on the additional bet.
For instance if you bet £1 on A, B and C then the total initial stake is £3. Then there are other potential bets as follows:
- If A wins, you place a £2 Double on B & C
- If B wins, you place a £2 Double on A & C
- If C wins and the odds are >=2.0, you place a £2 Double on A & B. If the odds are <2.0, you place a Double using the full return.
Note: most online bookmakers do not offer ATC bets, and instead focus on Accumulators, Bet Builders, and Full Cover bets.
Forecast Bets
Straight Forecast
A Straight Forecast bet (often referred to as a Forecast) is a two part bet where you predict which selections will finish first and second in an event, in the correct order. This bet type is popular in horse and greyhound racing. The combined odds you receive are based on an equation which takes into account the Win odds of the horses involved, as well the number of runners in the race, among other factors.
Reversed Forecast
A reverse forecast is a bet in which you predict the first and second-placed finishers in an event in any order. A Reverse Forecast is more likely to win than a Straight Forecast, and hence the payout is lower.
Combination Forecast
A Combination Forecast enables bettors to predict that any combination of 3-6 participants in an event will finish in the top two.
For example, if you place a Combination Forecast on three selections in a race on Horse B, Horse E and Horse F, the following six bets are made.
- Horse B to win and Horse E to finish second
- Horse B to win and Horse F to finish second
- Horse E to win and Horse B to finish second
- Horse E to win and Horse F to finish second
- Horse F to win and Horse B to finish second
- Horse F to win and Horse E to finish second
Note: a six selection combination forecast bet would have 30 bets.
Tricast
A Tricast is a three part bet where you predict which selections will finish first, second and third in an event, in the correct order. This bet type is almost the same as a Straight Forecast, except with three runners instead of two.
Combination Tricast
A Combination Tricast is a three part bet where you predict which selections will finish first, second and third in an event, in any order. A Combination Forecast is more likely to win than a Straight Forecast, and hence the payout is lower.
Learn more about Forecast bets.
Tote Pool Bets
Tote bets are a type of pari-mutuel betting that is popular in horse racing. In a tote bet, all of the bets placed by the players are pooled together, and the total amount of money in the pool is divided among the players who correctly predicted the outcome.
The amount of money that each player wins is based on the number of people who placed bets and the total amount of money in the pool. The odds on a tote bet are determined by the total amount of money in the pool and the number of people participating.
Learn more about Tote Pool bets.
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