Your Comprehensive Guide to Tote Betting

History Of The Tote

The organisation was founded in 1928 and was set up to provide a safe alternative to illegal gambling and to help fund horse racing.  In 1961 it was renamed the Tote. 

The firm offer pari-mutuel betting on horse racing, which is essentially "pool betting"

All bets are "pooled" together  and the odds are determined by the total amount wagered on each possible outcome, rather than being set by bookmakers. 

Before the dividend (payout) is announced deductions are made which includes the operators cut and taxes.  

Many of their bets are similar to what you can bet on with standard bookmakers (although payouts differ from race to race)  there are several bets that are unique to the Tote. 

The Tote has a strong presence at racecourses throughout the UK although it is also available online, we have comprehensive online review of Tote betting  which will include when available any free bets and bonuses.  

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Type of Tote Bets

So when you are at the racecourse you will notice Tote betting windows, they offer an alternative to the on course bookmakers. You can place a range of bets with the Tote and these are listed below.

Win

Tote win bets are pretty much exactly the same as standard win bets except your bet is settled by the Tote win dividend rather than the fixed odds you’d get at a bookmaker. You may see guide prices from the Tote but remember these are only a guide and the payout/dividend can differ significantly.

A few minutes after the end of the race the Win/Place dividend is declared and it may look something like this:

Place

The Tote allows you to bet place only unlike many bookmakers. 

Place bets are also settled by a place dividend and this sort of bet can be favourable when a horse consistently runs well without winning or if there is a hot favourite in the race that you think won’t be beaten but you fancy your selection to run well behind it.

The number of places paid reflect standard each way betting terms.

Each Way

Simply a combination of bets on the win and place pools, you can check whether it is a 1/4 or 1/5th of the odds on each individual race when adding your horse racing tips. 

Exacta

An exacta works in much the same way as a forecast bet, you are required to name the first two horses home in a race (in that order).

Should you wish to name two horses or more to finish first and second in any order you must place a combination exacta, two selections will cost two bets, three selections will cost six bets, four selections would be twelve bets, five selections will be twenty bets and so on.

Alternatively you can place a banker exacta where you specify a horse to finish first and then any number of horses to finish second. 

The number of bets will match the number of horses you back to finish second. 

If you pick a non runner in an exacta your stake is refunded.

The blog below was written by an OLBG.com member who likes forecast betting. 

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Swinger

The Tote Swinger is available on races with six or more runners where you have to name two horses to finish first, second or third. 

Three different dividends are paid on this, 1st and 2nd, 1st and 3rd and 2nd and 3rd. 

The dividends will be very low if you are backing two of the favourites as there are plenty of chances for you to win, but name two bigger priced horses to hit the frame and you’ll find the dividends very favourable.

Trifecta

This bet involves picking the first three home in a race just like a tricast with the bookies. 

Like an exacta, you can place a single (straight), combination or banker tricast. 

The Tote will select certain races with eight runners or more on each card to be eligible for this bet. 

If you pick a non runner in an trifecta your stake is refunded.

Placepot

The placepot is unique to the Tote and involves picking horses to be placed in the first six races on any card. 

You can make multiple selections in each race and the number of lines or bets you have selected can be worked out by multiplying the amount of selections in each race.

Whether a horse needs to win the race, come in the first two, three or four is calculated as follows:

• Races of 2-4 runners, your horse needs to win.
• Races of 5-7 runners, your horse needs to come first or second.
• Races of 8 -15 runners your horse needs to finish first, second or third.
• Handicap races of 16 or more runners your horse needs to finish in the first four.

The placepot bet is a mainstay when visiting the racetrack as it keeps you involved in that days racing. OLBG Betting Expert - Darren Brett looked into how to win the placepot in the blog below. 

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Placepot7

The Placepot7 is a new pool type which works in the same way as a standard Placepot but with two key differences. It has 7 legs instead of 6 It can be formed from races across multiple different meetings rather than just one, this makes it a “cross-meeting” pool, like the Scoop6.

To win, you must select one or more horses to place in each of the 7 legs according to the place terms of each individual race. 

Quadpot

Very similar to the placepot except you are picking horses to place in the last four races of the placepot.. 

It is aimed at those who feel more comfortable just selecting in four races or those that may have gone out of the placepot in the earlier races. 

Quinella 

Select two horses to finish in either order, this bet is similar to a combination exacta or reverse forecast. 

Jackpot

The same principles apply to the placepot except your horse has to win each race instead of getting placed. 

There is only one Jackpot meeting each day (usually the feature meeting) and if there are no winners the jackpot fund is rolled on to the next day’s Jackpot meeting. 

There is no jackpot meeting on a Saturday because of the Scoop 6.

Scoop6

The Scoop 6 takes place each Saturday and during the major festivals, and is a combination of the Jackpot and Placepot. Six televised races are selected in advance, usually across two or three meetings and those taking part must try and pick the winner of each race. 

The bet costs £2 per line with £1 going on the placepot part of the bet and £1 going towards the win fund. 

The Scoop6 has been known to rollover many times creating huge jackpots. 

Each week there is a bonus race, often the most difficult race on the day’s Scoop6, where winners from the previous week pick one horse in an attempt to win a bonus fund. 

The bonus fund is also rolled over whenever it isn’t won.

When To Bet On The Tote Over Fixed Odds

There is no set formula to this but it can pay to concentrate on the Tote at bigger meetings where there is plenty of on course Tote betting. 

Bigger shock results tend to also be rewarded on Tote as much fewer people predict the correct result. 

In big field handicaps the exacta and trifecta payouts can sometimes double the forecast and tricast payouts, especially when there are a couple of big priced runners hitting the frame.

Here is a random example of win and place on the Tote versus the bookmakers, this data was taken from the opening day of the 2024 flat season at Doncaster. 

Tips For Tote Betting

When betting into the Tote pool you have to remember that the more predictable the outcome, the more winners there will be and the lower the dividend will be. On occasions betting on certain Tote bets is not worth the risk. 

For example backing many favourites on the placepot is a risky strategy, one horse running below par can turn your bet into a loser, if all the favourites win the dividend will be very low.

In a given race there may be a short priced favourite that has more potential than any other in the field but also a horse that nearly always runs it’s race and often places. The latter may be better ‘value’ for your placepot as if that places but the favourite doesn’t you will be looking at a much bigger dividend.

 A horse sneaking a place is just as valuable as a ten length winner in the placepot, and that should be remembered when evaluating which horses to pick.

If betting on Tote bets that have bookmaker alternatives (win, each way, exacta and trifecta) it is worth always comparing what you would have won if picking the alternative bet. Keep a record of this and work out which bet would have been more profitable over a year or so.

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Keeping Betting Records

Depending on what sort of races you bet in and what priced horses you back you’ll probably find either the Tote bets or the bookmaker bets suit your needs much more than the other one.

There are some great bets on the Tote, there are some not so great bets, it all depends on your style of betting and what sort of horses you pick. Usually it simply takes trial and error to work out the best bets for each individual.

Here is a random example of win and place on the Tote versus the bookmakers

The World Pool

The World Pool is a collaboration between the UK Tote and other Tote organisations worldwide, including the Hong Kong Jockey Club. 

Because of this, the World Pools can grow to massive amounts. If you are still deciding about Tote betting or have not partaken before, these days would be an excellent place to start. 

The World Pool is available at selected meetings and races throughout the year; you can see the 2024 lineup below which includes Royal Ascot and the Guineas. 

You can bet on Tote Win and Place markets + Tote Swinger, Quinella, Exacta and Trifecta. 

FAQ

Responsible Gambling

Whether betting with the Tote or traditional bookmakers we advise that you always gamble responsibly. The OLBG Betting Experts have created articles that cover this subject. 

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Author

OLBG betting experts Steve Madgwick and Nigel Skinner created and formatted this Tote betting article. The information was sourced from various providers, including the Tote website.

Steve Madgwick

Editor-In-Chief

Steve is our Editor-In-Chief with over 20 years of experience creating and managing high-quality sports betting content for OLBG & multiple other publications. An avid traveller, Steve has lived and worked in Gozo, Malta, and more recently Spain before moving back to the UK in 2022. Today Steve manages all content on OLBG and oversees our SEO. He was brought up with horse racing, attending tracks in the South East, most frequently, Goodwood, Fontwell and Brighton, and his knowledge of online slot games is unrivalled. 

.👨‍🏫 Specialist Subjects🔬📚

🎱🏆 Steve is first a foremost a snooker nut, with a dedicated screen in the office for ensuring every event is showing when televised. A regular visitor to The Crucible for the World Championships, his favourite players are Dominic Dale and Judd Trump having followed the latter since seeing him play aged just 11. Fascinated with Statistics and the sport in general, he is also an amateur league player with a high break of 72

⚽ A Portsmouth fan for 40 years, Steve has seen action in every Division of English football and followed his team to Europe and the FA Cup final twice. 

🏇 A former leading horse racing tipster on OLBG, those days are long gone, but he still lives for National Hunt racing and of course the Cheltenham Festival.

Nigel Skinner

Blog Content Manager

Nigel is one of OLBG's senior editors with 19 years of industry experience. Today he specialises in researching and writing about the betting angles to political and mainstream news stories and being the OLBG in-house expert on 'next football manager' betting markets.

Specialist Subjects🔬📚

⚽️👨‍💼 Nigel is an Arsenal fan first and foremost but has an unrivalled knowledge of English football managers at every level. Meticulously putting together our Next Manager articles, Nigel can quite possibly name you every manager of every club in the land, not to mention a pretty good eye for predicting replacements when changes happen. 

📈📊📉 A long-time exchange trader and spread betting fan, Nigel is our go-to for advice on the subjects and uses them daily in his own betting activity. 

🗳️💼 Finally, Nigel loves his politics and [some would say] has an unhealthy interest in the day-to-day events in the UK's political landscape, contributing to all our Political betting content and new pieces.