Opinions on best wagering site in the U.S.

[AutumnLotus]

Hey all,

I havent been back in the game for too long yet, only a few months at best really and during that time I have really been just familiarizing myself, pulling out old note books, researching the ever-loving hell out of everything.

Been trying out new systems and brushing up on my handicapping, etc...

I havent really been betting, hardly at all really, just a few small bets here and there.

I am however now ready to utilize my bankroll BUT before I begin to dive on in, I want to make sure I am making the right decision on the best wagering site
offered in the U.S. - residing in New York.

So, I will say that I have signed with Amwager about 2-3 months ago. I did quite a bit of research on people's opinions of wagering sites, and have read a few comparison side-by-side articles and it seems that Amwager and Twinspires are quite popular as well as "verified" safe a.k.a LEGIT.

Back in the day, around 2002, YIKES, I used Youbet.com, and I enjoyed the layout. It took damn near FOREVER to get a payout but I did like their layout.


Truth is, I am having 2nd thoughts on staying with Amwager. The layout isnt the best, it just doesnt jive with me. Customer service is amazing though, and the people they have answering the phones are extremely nice and always went the extra mile for me.

However, I cant, and still havent figured out how to utilize the ABC and Dutching wagering pad. I have lost time to make my bets because of the antiquated and confusing wagering pad. It is much more complicated than it needs to be.

I keep hearing wonderful things about Twinspires, and another site that keeps popping up when researching wagering sites is Xpressbet. And then another that seems VERY popular with alot of resources is TVG / Fan Duel.

I want to make a solid decision as soon as possible and get to wagering.

I have my bankroll ready and I would like the opinions of you fine folks as to what YOUR wagering site is and why or why not you use it and would/would not recommend it.

Thank you!

[Poindexter]

I would suggest multiple accounts. The reason being they all offer different promotions at different tracks. On big days I think all of the adw’s will offer you on a $10 win bet, a refund if your horse runs 2nd or 3rd. $10 limit isn’t very much but if you can do it at 3 or 4 adw’s, now you are up to $30 or $40 bets or bet 2 horses if you prefer. You don’t get these offers often but when you do it is basically free money. Hit and splits are common. Basically if you play the pick 5 at xyz downs on say a Friday and you hit, you usually share $2000 or so with whoever else at the adw hits it. They all run different promotions as well. Also what past performances do you use.? With TwinSpires you get free Bris ultimate past performances with any bet. I believe drf bets gives you a free drf. Xpressbet gives free past performances, but I believe it is equibase.

A number of years ago I used TwinSpires exclusively. At the time I was able to use their upload future to download my multi leg wagers However, ever since they updated their software and got rid of that option I switched most of my betting to xpressbet. I personally liked the xpressbet software much better since the TwinSpires “upgrade”.

Money in and out of your bank acct is a click away with both xpressbet and TwinSpires. I believe it may take a couple of days for your withdrawal. You don’t have any worries about getting paid with any of the big adw’s.

Off topic, but my advice to you is to start with a smaller bankroll(maybe 1/2 and increase it with profits until you get to the bankroll you were planning to start with. For instance if you are planning on starting with a $4000 bankroll, start with a $2000 bankroll. Once you get to $2500 raise it to $2500, then $3000, then $3500 and then $4000. Once you get to the $400o slow the growth to maybe one third of profits.This way you will have a backup bankroll if things start off rocky. If things go well you are growing to where you want to start at eventually and you will have a ton of confidence when you do.

[MJC922]

I would second the idea of using multiple sites, it's kind of disappointing to say but none of them tick all of the boxes IMO. If you need replays Amwager is missing quite a few as well as missing some tracks, I know that's probably not really their fault but it is what it is. I need Amwager for the DD probables matrix which is simple to copy off the page and into a spreadsheet so you can easily see the projected odds for the next race. I've been able to even get all of that working with code so as to not even need to manually select anything, odds monitoring etc. Good luck trying to use the other ADWs for that type of automation.

With that said for replays, various stats and all of the other tracks twinspires is solid so I use both as needed. It would not surprise me if eventually other ADWs could be 'needed' besides those two as fixed odds options start to show up, hopefully in the form of match up bets say between the two horses closest in DD odds and even maybe the three horses closest in DD odds. That might be offered up with a money line at fixed odds with the pricing of the money line based upon the completed DD action from the prev race. We'll see. The industry really should be having a one stop shop for ADW which does everything 'right' but things are unfortunately all over the place at the moment. Depending upon what you do and what you need I think Amwager is best right now for most people.

I have not used the dutching tool or the other one you mentioned, someone out here probably has and could demonstrate it. Is anything on youtube about it?

[racenomics]

I prefer NYRA Bets layout, but most of them will give you random bonuses as well as the new sign up one so the I would say try em all and see what you like.
ADWs off the top of my head Twinspires, TVG, Xpressbet, NYRA bets, DRF bets, and DK horse. I know twinspires gives free brisnet PPs at any track you bet at for the day. Hope I helped

[MJC922]

An example of dutching several exactas on Amwager:

YouTube (Short URL)

Usage looks to be straightforward. For win bet dutching for example I would rather have it capable of being based upon DD probables of the previous race so then payoffs aren't bouncing all over the place in real time and plunging at the end after you've already submitted it, but it is what it is.

[MonmouthParkJoe]

NYRA bets, all others are running for place money

[Dave Schwartz]

Sure, the platform is important because you have to be able to get your bets in, right?

BUT... At the end of the day, it's about your MONEY.

And, when it comes to MONEY, that means WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG.

And that translates directly to CUSTOMER SERVICE.


I'd like to cast a vote for AmWager.





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[ScottJ]

My personal vote is for NYRABets.

I understand the issues being raised on the board regarding rebates and as consumers, we/you each have the right to choose one or multiple platforms that give the best rebate action we can get. But if I could bend your collective ear one more time on the ADW issue, please give me a paragraph of your time.

Wagering through an ADW that does not have a direct financial connection to operating a racetrack such that the takeout flows directly into the operating funds and purse account is slowly, quietly driving nails into the racing's coffin. We, the wagering public, have allowed parasitic platforms like TVG and DRFBets to insert themselves between us, the betting public, and the tracks themselves, similar to independently operated regional OTBs from the 1980s. Both platforms provide limited unique value and have effectively filtered handle away from directly flowing to the tracks, taking a major percentage cut of your wagering takeout. Think about it. When Andy says, "keep the dollars in the game", your decision is the heart of it.

[king kong]

TVG doesnt have live telephone clerks to handle customer issues.

[Poindexter]

Originally Posted by ScottJ

My personal vote is for NYRABets.

I understand the issues being raised on the board regarding rebates and as consumers, we/you each have the right to choose one or multiple platforms that give the best rebate action we can get. But if I could bend your collective ear one more time on the ADW issue, please give me a paragraph of your time.

Wagering through an ADW that does not have a direct financial connection to operating a racetrack such that the takeout flows directly into the operating funds and purse account is slowly, quietly driving nails into the racing's coffin. We, the wagering public, have allowed parasitic platforms like TVG and DRFBets to insert themselves between us, the betting public, and the tracks themselves, similar to independently operated regional OTBs from the 1980s. Both platforms provide limited unique value and have effectively filtered handle away from directly flowing to the tracks, taking a major percentage cut of your wagering takeout. Think about it. When Andy says, "keep the dollars in the game", your decision is the heart of it.

You should elaborate a lot more. If people are getting rebates they are getting rebates. Many are excluded from rebates and have to use one of the major ADWS. So the public should be aware of the differences between betting with one sight or another and what percentage of their handle makes it to the host track if there is a difference. If there is an article that explains all this link it. Why is TVg and Drfbets parasitic and why is Nyra bets so good. Present the numbers so people know. Where does twinspires and xpressbet and amwager or any others fit into the equation.

[classhandicapper]

I have 5 accounts. At various times each has been down or I've been unable to get good response time from 1 or more at the track on a high volume day. A couple have features I like that the others do not. 5 may be overkill, but IMO you need multiple accounts.

[ScottJ]

Originally Posted by Poindexter

You should elaborate a lot more. If people are getting rebates they are getting rebates. Many are excluded from rebates and have to use one of the major ADWS. So the public should be aware of the differences between betting with one sight or another and what percentage of their handle makes it to the host track if there is a difference. If there is an article that explains all this link it. Why is TVg and Drfbets parasitic and why is Nyra bets so good. Present the numbers so people know. Where does twinspires and xpressbet and amwager or any others fit into the equation.

The most succinct summary was a Paulick Report story from 2015.

Link : https://paulickreport.com/news/monar...rd-live-racing

Simulcast agreements are kept private, but it’s believed most tracks pay between 3 and 6 percent for the right to import a signal for wagering purposes, with premium tracks ... at the high end of that scale and smaller tracks ... on the low end.

That host fee is generally divided 50/50 between the track and horsemen presenting the live races, which means between 1.5 percent and 3 percent of every simulcast dollar wagered goes to purses at that track (the same amount helps the track owner presenting live racing pay operating expenses). The remaining 14 to 17 percent of the takeout (minus expenses) stays at the simulcast location (based on a blended takeout rate of 20 percent).

If that track offers live racing, half of the retained takeout goes to purses. So that’s 7 to 8.5 percent for purses at the simulcast receiver and 7 to 8.5 percent for the simulcast facility. That is IF the simulcast facility operates live racing.

So, the conclusion based on these numbers : A $2.00 wager through NYRABets would be result in about $0.40 for operating the business (based on a 20% blended takeout). The same bet through TVG would result in a $0.12 flow to NYRA's business.

That's the parasitic effect in numbers.

[ScottJ]

Here is an interesting side effect of these numbers which many do not understand when thinking about rebate programs.

Suppose that I bet $300 on a random Saturday on Aqueduct races through NYRABets while my buddy sitting next to me plays $900 on the same races through TVG. Which of us is a better customer from NYRA's perspective?

[racenomics]

Originally Posted by ScottJ

Here is an interesting side effect of these numbers which many do not understand when thinking about rebate programs.

Suppose that I bet $300 on a random Saturday on Aqueduct races through NYRABets while my buddy sitting next to me plays $900 on the same races through TVG. Which of us is a better customer from NYRA's perspective?

They may be getting slightly more money from your buddy but I would think they “like” you more as you may get other people using NYRA bets.

[Poindexter]

Not disputing your point Scott, but the article from 2015 that starts off with it is believed, is not going to drive many to choose one adw over another. It has baffled me for years that racetracks don’t give on track rebates to everyone. Would not help me any, but if folks are taking time out of their day to visit your track, you can at least give them 5 percent weekday and 3 percent weekend rebate(obviously just for that track). Might actually convince a few people to go to the track and bet at the track. I know novel concept. But i understand when the industry motto is to treat your customers as if they are degenerate gamblers or willing to pay any takeout for the “entertainment value” of the game it is sort of hard to come up with common sense marketing policies.

As it is, i heard one guy on the bet with the best podcasts say that he gets rebates and every time he goes to a track for the first time he offers to bet on track if they match his rebate, yet they always decline his offer. Go figure.

My honest reaction upon further reflection is the racing industry signed the contracts so live with them. Moreover why is the onus on the consumer to determine what adw is best for the host track. If NYRA bets gives more money to the host track than anybody else it should be front and center in their marketing. If contracts forbid such marketing whose fault is that?

I have been told very smart people run this industry. Sorry, I have seen zero evidence of that. The person choosing an adw needs to look out for themselves.
This industry doesn’t have a care in the world about them.