Horse Racing Superfecta Bets

More and more punters are big on wagering on horse races, and the wide array of bet types they can decide between is indeed among the reasons why they have a liking precisely for that sport. Approaching the process is possible in a number of ways, and based on their level of experience and preferences, gambling enthusiasts might wish to play it safe and stick to traditional bets, or if they are not that risk-averse, exotic wagers are what they might have on their minds.

How Do Superfecta Bets Work Types of Superfecta Bets Superfecta Bets Payouts and Costs Partial Superfecta Bets Tips for Placing Superfecta Bets

Once punters have mastered straight bets and exotic bets like exacta, quinella, and trifecta, they might want to go even further still, and wrap their heads around superfecta bets. Superfecta bets are so well chosen for a reason because when compared to the amount punters need to wager, the potential returns are indeed handsome. Consistently placing such bets is not the key to long-term success because superfecta bets are exceptionally hard to get right. Here is everything gambling enthusiasts need to know before they add superfecta bets to their portfolios.

How Do Superfecta Bets Work in Horse Racing

Superfecta bets are one of the advanced exotic wagers that can be used by fans of horse racing and punters who are more interested in wagering on greyhounds. If punters are familiar with the logic behind exacta and trifecta bets, they will be quick to notice that superfecta bets take that concept further.

For starters, superfecta bets are a more complicated way of wagering on horse races as punters will be required to correctly predict the win, place, and show horses, but also the horse that will take the fourth position. It is important to note that gambling enthusiasts do not only need to predict the top four finishers in the race but also the order they will cross the finish line in. As they can see, when making a superfecta bet, punters will extend their picks over a single event and not several races at once, which is the case with some of the other exotic bets.

This is how punters’ betslip will look like when they want to make a superfecta bet:

$2 superfecta 2-3-5-9

Making such a bet means that punters think that horse #2 stands the best chance to win the race, horse #3 is expected to come second, horse #5 will come third, while horse #9 will cross the finish line fourth. If the order in which the horses cross the finish line differs from the one gambling enthusiasts have selected, their superfecta bet will lose.

It goes without saying that no matter how big the field is, accurately predicting the horses that will finish in the first four positions in exact order is a complicated task even for seasoned bettors. Yet, this is not to say that punters should steer clear of such bets as the healthy returns they tend to provide are indeed the biggest impetus to give them a try. Besides, punters should also take into account that there are several ways in which they can make superfecta bets.

Still, the biggest downside of superfecta bets is that making a correct pick is not at the least a walk in the park. Knowing as much as possible about the runners will undoubtedly increase the possibility of correctly assessing the chances of the horses taking one of the first four positions.

Making a superfecta bet is in no way different from placing another exotic bet, and the information gambling enthusiasts need to add to their ticket when betting offline includes the name of the track, the number of the race, the numbers of the horses they think will take the first four positions, and the amount they want to wager.

Making a superfecta bet when wagering on horse races over the Internet is even easier as all punters need to do is click or tap on the runners that will finish first, second, third, and fourth, pick the bet type, the amount they want to stake. Before they submit their exotic bet, punters will also be asked to decide if they want to make a straight, boxed, or wheeled superfecta bet.

Types of Superfecta Bets

Because the returns superfecta bets offer on the average are much higher than the payouts than exacta, trifecta, and daily double bets promise to bring, more and more punters grow interested in placing such bets. What total novices might not know is that there is not a single best possible way to make superfecta bets as there are three manners in which these exotic wagers can be wrapped up.

Straight Superfecta Bets

Straight superfecta bets are played by selecting the first four runners to cross the finish line in exact order, which was exactly the case in the example we described above. When betting superfecta bets straight, gambling aficionados will get a share of the pool, provided that the runners they have selected come in that exact order in the top four. In all other circumstances, they will lose the staked amount.

In most cases, straight superfecta bets will cost punters $2, but it is advisable to look into this before they jump into placing their bets.

In spite of the fact that the other two ways in which superfecta bets can be made are somewhat trickier, boxing and wheeling such bets go with its advantages that are worth taking into consideration.

Boxed Superfecta Bets

Most gambling enthusiasts who are keen on horse race betting consider that the easiest way to make a superfecta bet is to box it. Boxing your superfecta bet means that you will still be required to pick the horses to win, place, and show, along with the fourth runner, but the order in which these runners will cross the finish line will not determine the outcome of your bet.

When boxing their superfecta bet, gambling aficionados will effectively make several straight superfecta bets, and the cost of these bets will hike up because they will need to pay for each individual selection. In that way, gambling aficionados will increase their odds of winning because the number of combinations they will tie in will be considerably greater.

Gambling enthusiasts should keep in mind that even though their base wager is relatively small, the cost of their superfecta bet will quickly escalate, especially if they decide to cover all outcomes for five or more runners.

Cost of superfecta boxed bets based on the number of covered outcomes

As punters can see, boxing their superfecta bets can be quite expensive, and this is how the significantly improved chances of winning are made up for.

Wheeled Superfecta Bets

If punters do not feel like risking too much of their funds on a single bet but at the same time are looking for a way to include as many outcomes as possible, wheeled superfecta bets might work better for them. Normally, gambling aficionados prefer to wheel their superfecta bets over boxing them when there is a clear favorite in the race or when they are confident which horse will cross the finish line first but they cannot decide on the runners that will come second, third, and fourth, respectively.

Thus, when punters are not confident enough to know which of the other runners will show, place, and take the fourth position, they will merely key the horse they will think is odds-on to come first. In simple terms, when gambling aficionados key a horse, they make sure that the selection they are confident about will be present in all outcomes they will cover.

It is up to punters to decide how they want to key the preferred runner, and this will mainly depend on their bankroll. Thus, gambling aficionados will have the chance to key one runner, and then select four or five other horses they think have the best chances of crossing the finish line second, third, or fourth. Thus, depending on the approach, punters will go for partial or full wheel superfectas.

Bear in mind that the cost of your full wheel superfecta bet will be determined by the number of runners that will take part in the race. Thus, if we suppose that horse #7 is the runner punters think will win the race, while horse #4 will come second, they will effectively tie in several straight superfecta bets that all start with that horse.

Let’s suppose that gambling enthusiasts want to bet on a race with six runners, horse #7 is the favorite, while horse #4 is expected to be the runner-up, and they want to cover the rest of the field:

• 7-4-1-2
• 7-4-2-1
• 7-4-5-6
• 7-4-6-5
• 7-4-1-5
• 7-4-5-1
• 7-4-1-6
• 7-4-6-1
• 7-4-2-5
• 7-4-5-2
• 7-4-2-6
• 7-4-6-2
• 7-4-3-5
• 7-4-5-3
• 7-4-3-1
• 7-4-1-3
• 7-4-3-6
• 7-4-6-3
• 7-4-3-2
• 7-4-2-3

If punters have a favorite in the race but do not want to cover all possible outcomes, they might prefer to go for partial wheel superfectas. By doing so, all selections will contain the keyed horse and will tie it in with the runners punters think are poised to come second, third, and fourth. In this way, they will effectively exclude some horses from consideration, which can work to their advantage, especially when the runners in the field are ten or more. Of course, gambling enthusiasts should be rather cautious when eliminating horses because it is not uncommon to see a longshot in one of the top four positions.

Thus, if we assume that the favorite to win the race is horse #2, and gambling aficionados think that horses #1, #5, and #6 stand the chance to show, place, and take the fourth position, the combinations will look like this:

• 2-1-5-6
• 2-1-6-5
• 2-6-1-5
• 2-6-5-1
• 2-5-1-6
• 2-5-6-1

Punters should not necessarily pick just one horse to take the first place, and if they prefer, they can make part wheel superfectas with more keyed selections. Of course, if they choose to do so, gambling enthusiasts should be prepared to make a bigger bet.

Superfecta Bets Payouts and Costs

The cost of superfecta bets will vary from one track to another, but on most occasions, the least amount gambling aficionados will be required to put at a stake is $1. There are also tracks and betting platforms that allow their users to stake $0,10, $0,20, or $0,50 per selection.

As far as the potential returns are concerned, the payouts winning superfecta bets offer are determined according to the pari-mutuel betting system, meaning that the odds will not be available at the time when they are making their bets. Instead, the payouts of winning tickets will be determined by the total amount staked on the race, and more specifically, the total amount wagered on the winning combination, as well as the number of bettors who have made a correct pick.

If we suppose that the total amount the superfecta pool contains is $2,000, and the takeout of the bookmaker is 20%, then the remaining amount will be $1,600. Thus, if there is a single winning ticket, that punter will collect all funds the pool contains. If the winners are two or more, the amount will be divided between them.

Accurately predicting the runners that will win, place, and show, together with the runner that will take the fourth place, is extremely challenging, and, on certain occasions, those who have made losing superfecta bets might be offered consolation payouts. As just mentioned, the returns winning superfecta bets offer are based on the pari-mutuel system, and sometimes, it happens that the runners that take the first four places in the race have not attracted any betting action.

Since the track cannot retain the money, those gambling enthusiasts whose picks come as close to the winning combination as possible will be offered a payout, no matter that their predictions are not entirely accurate. Thus, if we suppose that punters have made a 1-3-4-9 superfecta bet, but the combination the race ends in is 1-2-4-7, for example, under normal circumstances, they will lose the staked amount.

Still, if no money is staked on the winning combination, the board will read 1-3-4 all, meaning that if your selection starts with these three runners, you will get a payout, no matter which is the fourth runner you have added to your ticket.

When this happens, hambling aficionados should not expect to get some whopping returns as normally, the number of winning tickets will be quite high. No matter how small the offered payout might be, they will at least not leave the race empty-handed.

Partial Superfecta Bets

When wagering on horse races over the Internet, gambling enthusiasts will notice that some betting platforms offer the opportunity to go for partial superfecta bets. In such cases, the amount punters will be required to stake in order to make a single selection will be reduced. Still, what they should bear in mind is that the minimum bet amount of $2 will still be in place.

The cost of superfecta bets at some tracks is $0,10, which means that gambling aficionados will have the freedom to make 20 different combinations in order to fulfill the minimum bet requirement. Of course, the payouts punters can expect to hit will be lessened too, and if a regular superfecta bet offers $200, the returns they will get if they pick the $0,10-cent option will be $10.

In fact, partial superfecta bets might come in different shapes and forms, and this only depends on the track or the betting site gambling aficionados have picked. Other widely available options include the $0,25 and $0,50-cent superfectas. Giving any of these opportunities a chance is worth considering if punters are looking for a way to improve their chances of getting a win. As we already said, the downside they should not overlook, however, is that the returns they will be in for will be cut down.

Tips for Placing Superfecta Bets

Superfecta bets are indeed an appealing option for punters, especially if they are eyeing more handsome payouts. Still, getting these returns is not that easy, but there are several pieces of advice punters should consider if they want to enhance the probability of making a correct pick.

1. First and foremost, being picky when it comes to the selections punters make is undoubtedly one of the keys to success. This advice applies to all wager types gambling enthusiasts can decide between but is especially true when making superfecta bets because, depending on the runners, not all races will be suitable for making these exotic bets.
2. Straight superfecta bets are so well-preferred mainly because punters think that this is the easiest way to make such bets. Yet, most seasoned bettors will urge novices not to go for straight superfecta bets because the chances of winning are relatively small since there is just one combination that can bring them a payout. Because of this, going for boxed or wheeled superfecta bets is the approach that might work better for punters.
3. Boxed superfecta bets will be punters’ best pick if they want to enjoy greater flexibility in terms of the horses they will bet on and the amounts they will put at a stake. This is not to say that gambling enthusiasts should never make straight superfecta bets because, under certain circumstances, they might be a better option.
4. As it turns out, many punters tend to overlook longshots when making their selections, but adding at least one such runner to your superfecta bet might be the key to coveted returns. Contrary to what many punters consider, it is not rare to see such runners in the top positions and because of this, fully eliminating them is ill-advised.
5. Another thing gambling enthusiasts should remember when making superfecta bets is that boxing five and more selections is rarely the right choice. Such an approach can be easily described as inefficient, and most importantly, punters will end up risking a large portion of their bankroll in the hope of getting a rather unimpressive payout.