Exacta Strategy

[dav4463]

I would like input on this exacta strategy. Suggestions for improvement, etc.....

Narrow the race down to three horses. (that's the hard part!) Make sure the payout on any combination is decent. Play these combos. "A" horse is your lower odds most likely winner. "B" should be highest odds horse, "C" should be middle odds horse.

For example at 2 or 3 mtp.....your horse #4 is 3/1, #7 is 19/1, and #11 is 5/1.....your "A" horse is the 4, "B" horse is the 7, and "C" horse is the 11.

$2 AB box.......cost $4
$3 BC box.......cost $6
$1 ABC box.....cost $6
$2 A w BC......cost $4
$2 BC w A......cost $4

Total cost $24

If it comes in AB or BA, you hit 5 times
If it comes in BC or CB, you hit 4 times
If it comes in AC or CA, you hit 3 times

[HUSKER55]

I assume your strike rate supports that. looks good to me. My problem is picking the three horses to bet on. I generally get 1 & 3 or 2 &3 but get 1&2 enough time on a card to show a profit is a bit tough. (sad..but alas,...true)

If you can get an exacta 3 or 4 times a card then you should do alright.


JMHO

but then again..I play horses :D

[davew]

couldn't you get the same combos betting

$5 AB box $10
$4 BC box $8
$3 AC box $6

$24 bet ?


not sure what tracks you bet, but would be hard on 6 or 7 horse races

what is you criteria for good odds or good pay-offs?

[OTM Al]

Don't get so locked in on the winner. I've always felt the most important horse to find is the 2nd place animal. I try to find the horse that can finish second but isn't going to win. Most commonly I'll play

A/B,C
AB box

Where A is my most likely winner, B is a longer shot who I think can win, and C is the one that isn't going to win, but can finish second. Take nothing less than 15-1 payoff on the worst paying option.

[pondman]

not sure what tracks you bet, but would be hard on 6 or 7 horse races

what is you criteria for good odds or good pay-offs?

I have the same questions.

dav4463: What is your criteria for passing on races?

[maddog42]

3-1, 5-1, 19-1? If you think the 3-1 should be 2-1 and the 5-1 should be 4-1, then according to Barry Meadow the exacta should pay $29 or more. If in a hurry or unsure, the only real overlay is the 19-1 shot hooked up with the other
two. I like to make sure I am getting value. The 3-1 shot over the 5-1 shot; I very rarely make an exacta bet like that. The 5-1 shot over the 3-1 MIGHT be a moneymaker in the long run.

[PhantomOnTour]

Don't get so locked in on the winner. I've always felt the most important horse to find is the 2nd place animal. I try to find the horse that can finish second but isn't going to win. Most commonly I'll play

A/B,C
AB box

Where A is my most likely winner, B is a longer shot who I think can win, and C is the one that isn't going to win, but can finish second. Take nothing less than 15-1 payoff on the worst paying option.
Basically, you are playing an AB w ABC ticket with a bigger emphasis on A winning...or

AB w ABC
A w B

[Robert Fischer]

In general asymmetrical exacta wagering is more advanced than boxing.

The simplest form is re-betting the lower paying probables.

The actual hit% of individual combos within your group of contenders can also be considered.

[dav4463]

I have the same questions.

dav4463: What is your criteria for passing on races?


I pass the races where I cannot confidently eliminate one of the first two morning line favorites. I normally try to pick only three or four playable races on a card.

[dav4463]

couldn't you get the same combos betting

$5 AB box $10
$4 BC box $8
$3 AC box $6

$24 bet ?


not sure what tracks you bet, but would be hard on 6 or 7 horse races

what is you criteria for good odds or good pay-offs?


Wonder why I didn't see that? !

[Greybase]

Narrow the race down to three horses. (that's the hard part! ) Make sure the payout on any combination is decent. Play these combos.
Hard Part indeed.. Sure, some races fit a Box-3 setup. Other races have TWO Key horses, with several contenders. But "Pickin Winners" (to quote Beyer:) is still the name of the game.. Your most common race scenario is a single KEY, then figuring out who will finish behind him. When you have a strong "A" horse, why waste money on the BC combo? You're better off to pyramid and Dutch part-wheel Exactas.

In my 20 years of working in racing, I have noticed this. People get locked into a "One size fits All" strategy for Exotic betting. The worst bet at the track, of course, are Tri and Super boxes!! :D

[Valuist]

Don't get so locked in on the winner. I've always felt the most important horse to find is the 2nd place animal. I try to find the horse that can finish second but isn't going to win. Most commonly I'll play

A/B,C
AB box

Where A is my most likely winner, B is a longer shot who I think can win, and C is the one that isn't going to win, but can finish second. Take nothing less than 15-1 payoff on the worst paying option.

Agree 100%.

One of my favorite exacta plays is to key horses in the second slot, preferably at 10 or 15-1 odds minimum. One way to play would be:

(A,B,C) with (D,E).

The key is to not box and play the likely underlaid combinations.

[rufus999]

Try this... Box three horses in the field with odds 3-8-15. Use the morning line to determine overlays and underlays. In case of ties, knowledge of the racetrack community of trainers and jockeys will help.

Try this... take your two logical favorites and bet them over and under with two 'bombs away' horses to finish second.

No DRF, no experience, no nuthin'.

I've got more but its late...:)

rufus999

[lamboguy]

what i need to do is learn how to make good win bets and then graduate into perfecta's.

for me i have been at it for 40 years now and i am still in first grade.

[Scrambler]

what i need to do is learn how to make good win bets and then graduate into perfecta's.

for me i have been at it for 40 years now and i am still in first grade.

Same Here Friend, 40 years and Still Learning every Day...

Myself I Play A Race or Two Per Card with WIN , PLACE Bets, That gives me The Extra Cash to Play, It Always better to Play with There money...

Remember The Ole Saying, You Can Beat A Race, You Can't Beat The Races..

Here is What A Couple Buddies and I Do, I Capp The Logical one, Or What I Figure to Be Winners,Second, Without Looking at The Odds, They Capp The Races for The 2nd, 3rd, & 4th Horse ONLY, Then when we get to the Track, throw them together, We Have Hit A Few Nice Pay outs this Way..

Remember The Ole Saying.. !!!

Good Luck & Good Cappin...............:ThmbUp:

[Investorater]

An exacta strategy that I sometimes employ is to identify those horses representing the (2) lowest odds choices in each race.

If the favorite has post-time odds 3-times less, or more, than the second lowest odds choice, that horse is sometimes considered the winning selection, depending upon what I thought of the field as a whole.

F'rinstance - those who lurk:

Favorite has odds of even money 1/1.

Next lowest horse has odds of 3/1.

1/1 is three times lower than 3/1.

[burnsy]

exactas are my favorite all time play. mostly everyone commenting seems to be on the same track that i use......if it looks like a two horse race with the two chalks. i'll skip.......my strategy is i have to like anyone that is third choice or higher, then i key them. i bet more key boxes than boxes trying have the horse i see as an overlay come first or second. i don't bet every race (on the card) so it works pretty good....people cry about short fields but sometimes those are the easiest exactas if you don't like ONE of the favorites. the payouts are usually in the 20 to 50 dollar range doing this depending on odds and field size. but as someone else stated you can hit them pretty regularly.....and every once in a while you will catch a big one if your horse is the right price. especially if you can key box the horse into another "fuzzy". the exacta is the best exotic bet for the money...if you want to cash tickets on a regular basis.