When it comes to horse racing, your standard bet involves picking the runner you think will win a particular race. For some punters, this is a big enough challenge already and not something they would want to make any more difficult. For the ambitious gamblers among you though, the Tote offers something that may appeal with their Exacta and Trifecta bet options.
Both the Exacta and Trifecta bets add an extra layer of complexity as they require punters to correctly guess the finishing order of the top two runners (Exacta) or top three runners (Trifecta). It’s a tough bet because picking the right runners but having them in the wrong order is a losing bet. Effectively these bet types are the equivalent of straight forecast (Exacta) or tricast (Trifecta) bets which are often offered by bookmakers.
The only reason for the differing terminology is that the Exacta and Trifecta are operated by the Tote, rather than a traditional bookmaker. If you were to place a straight forecast or tricast bet with a bookie you would either place the bet at fixed odds at the time, or your payout would be calculated via a computer straight forecast or computer tricast. This is just a calculation that uses the number of runners plus their official starting price to calculate your return. As this is an industry-standard calculation, you should get the same payout regardless of where you placed your bet.
Things are different at the Tote though as they are a pool betting operator, meaning the payout depends on the total sum of bets and the number of winners. The Tote will collect all the Exacta bets and all the Trifecta bets (held in separate pots), take a cut for themselves, and then pay out all winners from the remaining amount. If very few punters picked the correct finishing order, the ones that did would get a large slice of the pie. If there were lots of winning customers though, then your returns might be lower than what a bookmaker would have provided.
Why Place an Exacta or Trifecta?
The main reason punters opt for an Exacta or Trifecta bet is simply because of their potentially larger payouts. It is a challenging ask to pick the first two or three finishing horses, in the correct order, but get it right and often the reward is substantial. That said, there are times when an Exact or Trifecta bet does not have to be such a gamble. Imagine if there is a race where there is a clear odds-on favourite who looks fairly certain to win the event. Rather than back this horse at a short price and win a small amount, an Exacta/Trifecta gives you a shot at a bigger payout.
So, for some punters, an Exacta/trifecta bet offers the most appeal when the betting is not too open and the top finishing order seems a little more predictable. Others, however, simply love the thrill of aiming for a big payout and will opt for these bet types even in large fields or those without any clear favourite. To get an idea of how big Exacta/Trifecta payouts can be, let us take a look at some recent results (9th Nov 2023) from an evening meeting at Chelmsford.
| Race | Runners | CSF | Exacta | Tricast | Trifecta |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18:00 | 9 | £148.83 | £166.40 | £4043.28 | £4665 |
| 18:30 | 12 | £43.77 | £69.00 | £291.60 | £369.10 |
| 19:00 | 8 | £60.12 | £62.20 | £287.61 | £330.50 |
| 19:30 | 7 | £14.09 | £17.10 | £101.68 | £105.70 |
| 20:00 | 10 | £44.85 | £58.80 | £631.79 | £641.30 |
| 20:30 | 9 | £55.98 | £56.30 | £233.50 | £242.70 |
CSF = Computer straight forecast
These are the payouts given for a £1 winning bet; if you were to bet £5 instead, your returns would be 5x higher. Not only is it interesting to see the frequently large amounts but also that the Exacta/Trifecta payouts beat the CSF and Tricast payouts each time at this meeting. Now, this is not always the case as CSF and Tricast bets can pay more. If we were to take the figures from Newbury instead, on two of the eight races a bet with the bookmaker would have paid out more when looking at CSF/Exacta bets. Similarly at Sedgefield, this was the case for two of the seven races there.
Generally speaking though, for this kind of bet you can be better off placing it with the Tote as payouts are slightly higher, on average.
How A Exacta/Trifecta Bet Works
Both the Exacta and Trifecta bets offer customers a decent amount of flexibility and ways of approaching it. You do not have to simply pick the two/three horses, select their order and that is it. There are actually three types of Exacta/Trifecta bets, as outlined below.
Straight Exacta/Trifecta
This is your classic bet in which you will select a horse to finish first, a horse to finish second, and in the case of a Trifecta bet a horse to finish third. There is only one line to your bet so it enables punters to have a flutter cheaply, especially as the minimum stake is only 50p. The downside is though that you are only covering one exact finishing order, so your prediction has to be absolutely spot on.
Banker Exacta/Trifecta
With this type of bet, you will lock in a horse (or possibly two if placing a Trifecta bet) for a position and select as many as you want to fill the rest. Usually, this will involve picking a horse for first place and then covering multiple options for second/third. You could, however, pick one runner to finish second and then select multiple options for first. In the above example, we are confident about Bahio Boum (number 1) winning the race but have three possible contenders for second, so we’ve backed them all. This means we will end up placing three bets (1-2, 1-3, 1-4).
Combination Exacta/Trifecta
For a combination bet, you will be taking advantage of the ‘any order’ feature. If you select ‘any order’ this is not you placing a different bet type, it just means the Tote will add extra lines to cover all possible combinations.
In the example above, because we are not sure of the first and second/third ordering, we have put ‘Any’ for Bahio Boum, Bruce Gobbler and Cawthorne Banker. This would create a six-line bet because we would be backing the following combinations: 1-2, 1-3, 2-1, 2-3, 3-1 and 3-2 for the Exacta. For the Trifecta this would be combinations of 1-2-3, 1-3-2, 2-1-3, 2-3-1, 3-1-2 and 3-2-1. This degree of flexibility within the bet enables punters to cover themselves for all possibilities they deem likely.
There is no limit on how many horses you can choose for a combination bet. If there was a particularly open field with lots of runners, you might end up picking four horses in any order. This would, however, create a 12-line Exacta bet or a 24-line Trifecta bet, meaning it would end up costing you a lot unless your stake value was incredibly low. Payouts are always proportional to the winning part of your stake as well, which is something to bear in mind with an extremely small unit stake size.
Rules
The key rules covering Exacta and Trifecta bets are outlined here.
Tote Deduction Rate
For races governed by the British Horseracing Authority, the Tote take a 25% cut from the total pool. In Horse Racing Ireland events (these include Northern Irish racing) the Tote’s deduction is 30%.
Non Runners
If your Exacta/Trifecta bet includes a non-runner, it will be void and your stake will be refunded. A horse will be considered a non-runner if it does not compete before coming under starter’s order. Any bets placed on horses that have come under starter’s orders will stand.
Walkovers/Void/Abandoned Races
If the race does not take place at the scheduled start time, Exacta/Trifecta bets will be refunded, unless it takes place later the same day.
Field Size
All Exacta/Trifecta bets are declared void if there are fewer than three horses in a race.
Dead-Heats
In the event that two or more horses finish joint first, second or third (Trifecta only), the net pool will be divided into as many equal parts as there are winning combinations. The calculation can get a bit messy but basically, your bet will still be a winner but your payout will be smaller than if there was no dead heat.
Finishers
If only one horse finishes the race (due to others falling, being pulled up, and so on), the dividend will be declared on that horse with any other runners permitted for second and third place. For a Trifecta bet only, if only two horses finish, any other runner can be selected for third.
Strategy
If the idea of an Exacta/Trifecta bet sounds interesting to you, we recommend you take a look at our strategy recommendations. By following these sensible tips you will able to place smarter Exacta/Trifecta bets. And though there are no guarantees, these basic ideas might help improve your chances of success.
Mix Favourites with Underdogs
Sticking with the top two or three favourites may make for an appealing Exacta/Trifecta bet but you have to consider the potential payout. Lots of punters will be picking these horses meaning that the dividend could well be relatively small. If you just want to pick the favourites in order, a straight forecast or tricast bet with a bookmaker may provide better returns.
Because the Tote is a pool betting operator, the best dividends come when picking a horse that few others fancy. There is no problem picking one well-fancied option, or even two in case of a Trifecta bet, but one runner should ideally be a bit under the radar. This means, should you call the race correctly, there will be a limited pool of winners and subsequently a sizeable dividend.
Balance Coverage With Cost
With some races, you may be happy just placing a straight Exacta/Trifecta and putting all your confidence in that one line. This is a fine approach in some races but others will just be too difficult to call and you will need to cover more combinations for a more realistic chance of winning. Whether you choose more than one horse for a position, or select some as ‘any order’ there are ways in which you can significantly increase your chances of making the right call.
The key is though not to place that so wide you end up having a huge number of lines. Yes, a 24-line bet gives you great coverage but your average punter is only going to a line stake of around 20p (£4.80). A 20p winning bet would mean receiving just one-fifth of the listed dividend amount and in some races, this may be little more than the losing portion of your stake. Ultimately, Exacta/Trifecta bets are designed to be fairly challenging so try to avoid turning it into something it’s not by covering an exceedingly large number of outcomes.
Do Your Research
This point may be obvious but the foundation of a successful Exacta/Trifecta bet lies in comprehensive research. Take the time to delve into the past performances of each horse in the race. Scrutinize factors such as recent form, track preferences, jockey-horse partnerships, and response to varying track conditions. You also want to see how a horse has performed at the upcoming distance and course, particularly in relatively recent efforts.
You do not need to spend hours weighing up your options but if possible, spend a little while browsing racing databases, form guides, recent race replays and so on to gain extra insight. You can, of course, follow tips from reliable tipsters although many only give their pick for winning the race, rather than outlining who they back for second and third.