Betting to Win: A Professional Guide to Profitable Betting

Author: Leighton Vaughan Williams
Publisher: High Stakes
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BETTING TO WIN

Return on second-placed horse = win return + place return.

Win return = 0.

Place return = £10 at 0.25 (5 to 1) plus stake returned = (1.25 x £10) + £10 = £22.50.

Total return to each way backers = £105.

Compared to the win bet, where you broke even, this time you have lost £15.

What Are Fair Place Odds?

For the win bet and the each way bet to represent equal value, the place odds would in this example need to have been about two-fifths rather than a quarter of the win odds.

This can be demonstrated as follows:

£20 to win at 5 to 1 on six horses costs £120.

Return whichever horse wins = £120.

£10 each way at 5 to 1 on six horses costs £120.

At place odds of 0.4 of the win odds, a £10 each way bet on each horse yields the following:

Total cost = 6 x £20 = £120.

Return on winning horse = win return + place return.

Win return = £10 at 5 to 1 plus stake returned = £60.

Place return = £10 at 0.4 (5 to 1) plus stake returned = (2.0 x £10) + £10 = £30.

Return on second-placed horse = win return + place return.

Win return = 0.

Place return = £10 at 0.4 (5 to 1) plus stake returned = (2.0 x £10) + £10 = £30.

Total return to each way backers = £120.

In other words, for each way odds to represent the same value as win odds, the place part of the bet should be calculated as 0.4 times the win odds.

In actual fact, the place odds in this example are calculated as a quarter (0.25) times the win odds.

In the case of six-horse races at current place odds, therefore, win bets would seem to represent better value than their each way equivalents.

For each level of win odds, the following table shows what fraction of the win odds the place odds should be in a fair book, and what

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