Why Place betting is better than each way

Win and Place Bets

Many people like to back EW when they think a horse is too big a price to back to win only and a place will give them some returns for their bet.

Other punters look for the great value in backing horses to place, but do we really need to waste money with the win part of the bet?

For many a year, I have been backing win & place instead of ew as you can use any stake you want and are not risking losing half your stake if your horse doesn't win.

For those that are risk-averse place betting also negates the "worry" of the horse missing out on 1st place.  

The OLBG betting school has a full rundown of available bet options in their comprehensive types of bet article. 

Denman Chase Example

Let's look at the Denman Chase on Saturday 9th February and look at the betting from Paddy Power.

They were offering the following prices at 10.45 am -

• Silviniaco Conti - 4/6
• Menorah - 13/2
• The Giant Bolster - 7/1
• Mail De Bievre - 8/1
• Weird Al - 20/1
• Junior - 22/1
• Master Of The Hall - 28/1
• Little Josh - 33/1

The Each Way terms were 1/5 odds for 1,2,3.

Let's say you fancied Weird Al and wanted to invest £20 so decided to back him £10 ew at 20/1.

He grabs 3rd place and you get £50 return, 1/5 of 20/1 is 4/1 and you had £10 on it.

Realistically you only got 6/4 for your place as your initial stake was £20, £20 on a 6/4 would return £50, ok the horse might have won, but are you happy to back a 6/4 shot that was actually 20/1 to win the race.

That's where place only betting comes into play, he was priced up at 5/2 to be placed and you still want to back him with £20.

You could, therefore, place all of your stake on him at 5/2 and get returns of £70, much more than if backing ew or you could risk a small £2/£3 on him to win and stake the rest on the place.

£2 win at 20/1 & £18 place at 5/2, the £18 place would still return £63.

So now your thinking what if he won, ok so you win less but what're the chances of you picking a 20/1 horse winner for every race?

Eventually, you will pick a winner but the amount of money your winning on the place bet will offset any eventual returns of backing a winner.

When I go racing I like to stake £20 a race and I always back with the tote and I place £5 win & £15 place on my bets.

What's the chance of going through the card picking winner after winner, I am more than happy to stake £20 a race and get evens for my place and make a £10 profit per race.

I could leave the track with £60/£70 profit this way and yet not picked a winner.

Wouldn't you be more than happy to make £60/£70 profit per meeting (using £5/£15 stakes), if your staking plan is higher then your returns will be greater.

Something to think about when backing bigger priced horses in big fields.

Place Percentage Chance in 2020

In 2020 depending on the position of your selection in the market the following place result was returned. 

So the 1st horse in the betting placed 60% of the time, the 2nd horse in the betting placed 48% of the time etc. 

Now obviously you need to take the prices into consideration when betting on a place finish + the each-way terms - 1-2 or 1-2-3, or 1-2-3-4. 

1st Horse in Betting = 60%

2nd Horse in Betting = 48%

3rd Horse In Betting = 38%

4th Horse In Betting = 31%

5th Horse In Betting = 25%

6th Horse In Betting = 20%

7th Horse In betting =16.5%

8th Horse In Betting = 14%