Each Way Bet Involves Placing Two Bets on Race

Published on January 18th, 2020 2:03 am EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


If you have ever placed a bet on a horse race, you have likely been asked the question: would you like to make this an each way bet?

With an each way bet, you are betting on two things:

1) Whether your choice of horse will win
2) Whether your choice of horse will "place"

If you choose to accept an each way bet, the size of your initial "win" bet will be doubled to include the "place" bet.

So, let's say that you like "Midnight Folly" to win a local race. Midnight Folly's odds to win are 4/1.

You decide to make it an "each way" bet. Your sportsbook shows a line of 1/4 for the each way bet, which means that you will be getting 1/4 the odds of the "win" bet. Remember, with this bet, you are wagering that your horse will "place".

The definition of "placing" changes depending on the size of the race.

If the race only has 8 horses, a horse may be considered to have "placed" if they finish in first or second place.

In a bigger field race like the "Grand National", a horse may be considered as "placing" if they finish in the top 4.

In the case of "Midnight Folly", your original £10 bet grows to £20 after you accept the "each way" stipulation.

"Midnight Folly" will pay out at 4/1 if he ends up winning the race, and 1/1 if he ends up placing.

So, if "Midnight Folly" wins the race, you will win your "win" bet (4/1 * £10) and your "place" bet (1/1).

Let's say that your sportsbook considers "placing" for this particular race to be a first or second finish.

If "Midnight Folly" finishes in second place, you will lose your "win" bet but win your "place" bet. In this scenario, you would break even on the total bet (you'd lose £10 on the "win" bet and win £10 on the "place" bet).

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Each way betting is quite popular with punters, as it means that you can still cash in on a bet even if you don't get the winner correct.