You betcha: The Sun’s primer on the many ways to wager on the ponies

Besides the traditional win, place or show, there are other combinations that could prove rewarding for punters

So you have heard of this super jockey Mario Gutierrez who flew out of nowhere onto the thoroughbred horse racing horizon and you want to place a bet on him when he rides for the Triple Crown in the Belmont Stakes on Saturday. But you have no idea how to do it. By now, you are probably well aware that he has won the Kentucky Derby and then the Preakness, positioning him and his horse, I’ll Have Another, to become the first team to win the Triple Crown in 34 years. Thursday’s morning line had I’ll Have Another as the 4- 5 favourite. Meaning you’d have to bet $ 5 to win $ 4.

Betting for the first time in a horse race can be powerfully intimidating. It’s an arcane world of win, place, show, exactor, trifector or triactor and superfecta bets and terms like “boxing” and “keying” horses. Matt Jukich, player development coordinator at Hastings racetrack, helped to come up with a simple how- to guide for the absolute novice. He should know as he has been traipsing around tracks since he was a boy with his father, Dan, who is the announcer at Hastings. The track is expecting as many as 10,000 fans Saturday to watch the Belmont live on a big screen — and take in the local races. The easiest bet is a win, place, or show which you can do for a minimum of $ 2. But try any number of these betting options at the Hastings Racecourse betting

window on Saturday:

• A win bet: You can place a minimum $ 2 bet on a horse to win. The payback will be determined by the horse’s odds which, in turn, depends on how popular the horse is. The less popular the horse, the bigger the win. That’s because you were smart enough to see something in a horse that few others saw. A horse with, for example, 15- 1 odds, will yield $ 15 for every dollar bet if he wins.

• A place bet: Again, minimum of $ 2. The horse must come first or second for a payback.

• A show bet: Two- dollar minimum. Horse must come first, second or third. The payback will be lower than a win or place bet because you are hedging your bet.

• Exacta: Pick the fi rst two horses to cross the finish line in the

exact order. A minimum $ 2.

• Triactor: Pick the first three horses to cross the finish line in the exact order.

• Superfecta: The first four horses to cross the finish line in the exact order.

• Box a wager: The term “box” is used when you place a wager on a number of horses to cover every possible outcome. When you “box” horses, you make multiple wagers on one ticket. It can be used in an exactor, triactor and superfecta. For example, if you boxed horses 3, 5 and 9 in an exactor, you would be betting on the combinations 3- 5, 3- 9, 5- 3, 5- 9, 9- 5, 9- 3. That bet would total $ 12. ($ 2 x 6).

• Daily double: A type of wager calling for the selections of the winners of two consecutive races, usually the first and second or the last two races on the card.

• Pick three, four or five: Try to pick all the winning horses in three, four or five consecutive races. Hastings off ers two pick threes a day, two pick fours and one pick five.

• Keying your wager: The term

“key” is used when you place a wager on three or more horses in a race, singling out one horse to win with the other horses to follow in any order. For example, if you keyed horse eight with horses three and four, you are making two bets on one ticket — eight and three and eight and four. If your base is $ 2, the total cost of the ticket will be $ 4. Hastings has staff on hand that is willing to guide the novice through the betting jungle. Don’t be afraid to ask. You can also ask questions on the track’s Facebook page (hastingsracecourse) and on its Twitter (@hastingsraces) account. The track has a helpful new- to-wagering section on its website at hastingsracecourse.com.