Is Betting on Horses With Betting Exchanges a Sensible Thing to Do? Part Two

In part one of this article series, I covered the basics about betting on horses with betting exchanges and showed why they have become so popular with punters.

I also went through three key reasons why you should use betting exchanges, whether you’re using a horse racing tipster service or backing your own judgment of the horses. You may have a friend giving you racing tips on the sly (and for free) or you may be using some of the many horse racing systems that are out there.

However you are selecting your horses, betting with betting exchanges is certainly something that you should be doing.

And so in this article, I will explain some of the more technical and detailed facets of using a betting exchange, that could enable you to profit even more from your horse racing exploits.

And when I use words like technical and detailed, you’ll be pleased to hear that I do not mean complicated. So let’s crack on and look at these four key elements that could enable you to make more profit from horse racing.

Reason One – Get Prices For Horses 24 Hours A Day

I don’t know about you, but one of the real frustrations I have as a punter is reading the newspaper or hearing on the television of a good early price for a horse, yet when you go on the internet to check, prices are not always available.

And of course there is not a bookie in the land that opens there doors at 7am, so that avenue is blocked off as well.

With a betting exchange however, you can place a bet whenever you want. This enables you to take advantage of the often advantageous early prices of horses, long before everyone else starts lumping their cash on, leading to the price coming down.

Some of my members actually place their bets as soon as I advise them in the morning, meaning that they can take the best priced odds available, or indeed as I mentioned in the previous article, by naming their own price to see if it gets matched.

Reason Two – No Limit On Betting Stakes

How frustrated would you be if you’d received information from your horse racing tipster, about a gem of a horse that was over valued in price and likely to win its race, only to discover that putting a substantial bet on at 20/1 was out of the question?

Well, it can and does happen. More so in the local high street bookies, where you may be given the option to have some of the bet at 20/1 and some of the bet at the Starting Price – which is likely to be far lower come race time.

By betting on horse racing using an exchange, this does not happen. If you place a request to back a horse for a large sum at 20/1 and another punter is willing to lay the bet at that price, then you are able to have your bet placed without any questions being asked

Reason Three – The Race Has Started, But You Can Still Place Your Bet.

If you’ve ever got to the bookies just as a race is about to start, only to be told by the ‘friendly’ assistant behind the desk that you’re too late to place your bet, then you’ll like this one.

Betting exchanges actually allow you to continue placing bets on horses in a race, even after the race has started. This is something that is both new and requires nerves of steel, as while the race is still going, the betting market for each horse is constantly changing as each horse jostles for position in the race.

Of course, in the longer races, say a two mile hurdle race, there is a little more time to think, but in a five furlong sprint race you do not have much time at all, in fact most races are over in 60 seconds or less!

I must admit that this is not something that I myself do, as it is simply too risky for my betting philosophy, however there are plenty that do like the excitement of it, and profit from it.

Reason Four – Trading Your Bets To Secure Yourself A Profit

I’ve deliberately left this one until last, as it is a kind of an underground betting tactic if you like, although it is now growing in popularity. It’s a tactic often used by traders who play the financial markets, but it can be used for betting on horse racing as well, and can guarantee you a profit on a given race.

Guarantee a profit I hear you say, never. Well, let me explain:

Imagine that you’ve chosen to back a horse at 5/1 in a race. You think the price will shorten come race time, and so you’ve done the right thing and taken the early price. Having secured your early price of 5/1, you place your bet of £50 on the horse.

As race time approaches, you notice that the price of your horse has come in from the 5/1 that you backed it at, to a price of 2/1. Due to the drop in price, you could also decide to lay the horse to lose and place £75 on that bet.

So, how are you guaranteeing a profit by doing this? Well, there are of course only two possible outcomes for the horse that you’ve selected –it will either win the race or it will not.

If your horse wins its race, your winning bet will profit you £250 (£50 at a price of 5/1) but your lay bet was not successful and so you will pay out £75 for this. Therefore your total profit is £250 less £75, which is £175.

However, if your horse loses it race, your lay bet will profit you £150 (£75 at a price of 2/1) but your ‘to win’ bet was not successful and so you will pay out £50 for this. Therefore your total profit is £150 less £50, which is £100.

So there you have it, it is possible to guarantee that you make a profit in a race, if you are able to back the horse at one price and lay it at another (lower) price. This can also be done in reverse too, so you could lay a horse to begin with, and if its price drifts out (increases) then you can guarantee profits by backing the horse at the higher price.

So this concludes part two, the final part of this article series regarding betting on horses using the betting exchanges. As you can see, there really is no mystique surrounding them and I highly recommend that you give them a go.