How Do Odds Work in Horse Racing?

Horse racing odds are fluid leading up to the race because they are dictated by the amount of money in the pools. Prior to every race day, a track official will release the morning lines. Those morning lines are a projection of where the odds for each horse will finish when the race goes off, and do not have any direct impact on potential payouts. Using those morning lines as a starting point, as more money comes in on certain horses, their odds will go down. Horses that aren't attracting a lot of money in the win pool will have their odds go up. Those odds will remain fluid all the way up until the moment the gates open and the race begins.

The most important thing to note is that the odds/payout you will receive are based on when the race starts, not when you place the bet. If you bet on a horse at 5-to-1 three minutes before the race and he goes off at 3-to-1, you're going to get paid based on those 3-to-1 odds. Conversely, if you bet on a horse at 5-to-1 and he goes off at 8-to-1, you're looking at a nice increased payout.

Online Sports Betting 101

Betting 101 Spread

Learn how to bet on football at VegasInsider.com. Betting Resources provided on understanding football odds, future wagers, parlays, prop bets, teasers and much more. Bet the Super Bowl, College Football Playoff at VegasInsider.com. SPORTS BETTING 101 Let's jump right in and use an example to learn the primary types of 'straight bets' and how to read odds. Here's an example of a sports betting 'line' on a football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Philadelphia Eagles.