Kentucky Derby Odds – Place
So you’ve got a horse that you like a lot, but you’re not convinced he’s going to win. Maybe you’ve looked at his lifetime record and it has a number of second-place finishes mixed in with the victories. Then you might want to bet on your horse to place. When you do this, you are betting that your horse will finish at least in second.
This is a good way for horse players to lower the amount of risk they assume. In exchange, the possible payout is almost always smaller. Let’s take a look at an example race: the 2013 Belmont Stakes. Palace Malice came in at first place, paying out $29.60 to win or $11.20 to place. These payouts are based on the final odds before the starting gun, and are based on a standard $2 bet. The second-place horse, Oxbow, paid $9.90 to place.
There are specific situations where you might find it prudent to bet on a horse to place instead of win.
For example, if a horse has consistently posted both first and second place finishes in its recent races, a place bet is often a good choice. For example, Candy Boy finished first or second in his last couple of races going into the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity on December 14, 2013; he again finished second to pay out at $15.
There are also situations where the payout for place is so close to the payout for win that you might as well bet the former. Take Race No. 7 at Gulfstream Park on January 25, 2014. Onlyforyou won the race to cash in at $2.60, but the payout for place bettors was just a shade lower at $2.20. Look for these situations before you make your betting decisions and you can maximize your earnings while minimizing your risk.