I’ve been wracking my brains for months now trying to come up with a systematic method of profiting from greyhound racing. Picking winners in greyhound races is difficult due to the inherent unpredictability. Why? Well, there’s no jockeys to influence. Once the traps fly open, it’s up to the dogs! Slow starters or dogs bumped and hassled at the first corner face a distinct disadvantage, as the races are over so quickly. One could also argue that prize money for owners is not high enough to motivate them to present dogs at the peak of their form.
I checked past results and noted the poor runnings, on a consistent basis, of the favourites. This led me to constructing a laying method where we could profit from this fact. However, the greyhound markets on betfair, on the whole, are poor. You see, lack of liquidity (interest) means that there are no market forces at work to make the greyhound prices competitive.
Time and time again, I came across a favourite who the bookies priced up at 7/4, being offered at 3/1 on Betfair. Now if there’s one thing I hope you’ll take from this month’s newsletter, it’s the fact that we should avoid, if at all possible, laying at over inflated prices. We risk a larger proportion of our betting bank in liability should the dog win.
Betfair’s greyhound market is a backers market- the prices are competitive for backers but are valueless for the layers.
So I turned to the market place, and the very fact that there are minimal greyhound systems on sale should tell you something – this is a tough nut to crack!
Types of Bet On Offer
There are a number of betting options available on greyhound races:
• Straight bet or Single or Win bet. Bet on a winner at given odds. You collect only if your chosen greyhound is the first across the finish line.
• Place. A wager for place means you collect if your selected greyhound finishes either first or second.
• Show. The third greyhound across the finish line. A wager to show means you collect if your selected greyhound finishes either first, second or third.
• Across The Board. You make three individual bets on one dog to Win, Place, and Show. If your selection wins, you collect on all three bets. If your selection runs second, you collect on Place and Show bets. If your selection runs third, you collect the Show bet. Your total wager will be three times the individual bet. For example; a £2 ‘Across the Board’ bet would cost £6.
• Combination Bet. Combinations cover from two to four greyhounds to win in chosen order.(see permutations later on)
• Reverse Forecast. A bet placed on two greyhounds to finish first and second in either order.
• Straight Forecast. A bet placed on two greyhounds but they must cross the finish line in exact chosen order. ( see permutations later on)
• Tricast/Treble Forecast. A bet placed on three greyhounds to cross the finish line in exact chosen order.
• Superfecta. A bet placed on four greyhounds to cross the finish line in exact chosen order. ( for American racing predominantly)
• Twin Trifecta. A multiple pool bet. Two trifecta selections in two races. You select the winning Trifecta combination in one race and exchange that ticket for a second Trifecta in the following race. One-half of the net Twin Trifecta pool will be paid equally to winners of the first half when those tickets are presented to be exchanged. The remaining half of the pool, along with any carry over will be to winners of the second half. If no one selects the second half correctly, the pool is carried over to the next racing performance. ( for American racing predominantly)
• Tri-Super. Similar to the Twin Trifecta. You select the winning Trifecta combination in one race and exchange that ticket for a Superfecta in the following race. ( for American racing predominantly)
• Titanic Tri-Super. This operates the same as the Tri-Super, except you must correctly select the Trifecta combination in the 5th Race and the Superfecta in the 7th Race. ( for American racing predominantly)
• Daily Double. Similar to an accumulator you select the winners of the first and second races on that day. You must place your bet before the start of the first race.
• Jackpot. Pick six winners in six races to share in a Jackpot prize. The rules and prizes will vary from race track to race track.
Parlay or Accumulator. A multiple bet. A kind of ‘let-it-ride’ bet. Making simultaneous selections on two or more races with the intent of pressing the winnings of the first win on the bet of the following race selected, and so on. All the selections made must win for you to win the parlay. If a race is a tie, postponed or cancelled, your parlay is automatically reduced by one selection; a double parlay becomes a straight bet, a triple parlay becomes a double. A parlay bet can yield huge dividends if won.
• Pick 3. Picking the winners of three consecutive races.
• Pick 6. Picking the winners of six consecutive races.