Each Way Bet


There is a betting component in a great many sports, events and other forms of entertainment. For many the betting makes the interaction with the event much more in-depth and enjoyable and for the sports and other events themselves it provides levels of interest and financial support they would not otherwise have without fans and others having a vested interest in the outcome. There are many ways to place a bet and compound or multiple betting options serve to either increase the chances of a return or increase the value of that return. Placing an each way bet is an option which increases the chances of a return.

Free Racing Tips Not all opportunities for betting are the same. Many people will bet on fruit machines, the national lottery or bingo, and these are games of chance where every outcome is equally likely for every time you play.

Other contests, between reality TV show contestants, horses or football teams for example may provide a set of outcomes with varying likelihoods. This is where fixed odds betting comes in and a bookmaker will assess the chances of any particular outcome and decide a value for that, presented as certain odds.

More likely outcomes will have shorter odds and by association poorer returns for an initial investment should that outcome arise.

An each way bet increases our chances of getting some money back and to understand how it works we need to look at how fixed odds are calculated and presented.

Different countries have different ways of presenting odds but in the UK they are generally offered as fractions and so odds of 10/1, described as ten to one and sometimes written 10 to 1, means the likelihood of that particular outcome is 1 in 11, e.g. if a horse were priced at 10/1 it would be expected to win once in eleven times given the same circumstances each time. What this means for the bettor is for every £1 you bet on that horse you will get £10 plus your stake of £1 back, a total of £11, should the horse win the race.

A bet based on these odds is a bet against a certain likelihood, that being the unlikely chances of the horse winning the race.

There are also 'odds on' bets as distinct from odds against, which describe a situation when winning is more likely than losing. 1/10 would be an example of odds on price and would often be described as '10 to 1 on'. In this case the horse would be expected to win 10 out of 11 times at this price.

Since winning is far more likely the returns for it are very small and for odds of 1/10 the return would be 10p winnings plus £1 stake, i.e. £1.10 for every £1 bet. In reality no horse would be such a dramatic 'odds on favourite'.
Each Way Bet, inside rail

In these examples the bets are bets to win. Each way bets comprise a bet to win in addition to a place bet and so £5 each way means £5 on each bet and will cost £10. You get a return on a place bet if your selection finishes within a predetermined place in the race which may be anywhere from first to fourth in certain races. The return is based on a fixed proportion of the winning odds, usually ¼ or 1/5, depending on the number of runners.

Each Way Bet, winner Place bets are not permissible for races with less than 5 runners. For between 5 and 7 runners ¼ odds are offered for first or second place only and for 8 to 11 runners 1/5 odds for first, second or third. In handicap races with 16 or more runners a place bet will generate a return of ¼ odds when your horse comes home anywhere in the first four.

So an each way bet incorporates two different bets and, using horseracing as an example, the first is a bet to win and second is a place bet. If the horse wins you get the returns for the win based on the odds given, and you also get a return on the place bet, since this is a bet for the horse coming first, second, and in some races third or fourth. If the horse does not win but is placed in one of these finishing positions then you get the return from the place bet only.

As an example, a horse priced at 10/1 to win in a race with 10 runners will have place odds of 10 x 1/5 = 2/1. If the horse comes in first, second or third then for a £5 each way bet the place bet will return £10 winnings plus your £5 stake back, totalling £15. If the horse wins the race then you get the place bet returns plus the returns on the win which in this case would be £50 plus the £5 stake = £55. Your total winnings would combine the two, 55 + 15 to give you £70 return for your initial £10 stake.

Of course if you had put the entire £10 stake on to win rather than £5 each way at 10/1 you would get £110 back but the beauty of the each way bet is it gives the effect of an insurance policy and used as a part of an overall betting strategy will generate returns for your money and for any bettor that is a good result.