Placing a bet if you have never done it before can be daunting so let us show you how to bet in our betting guide.

Betting has been around as long as sports have been around and lets face it if you don’t know what your doing and you have been giving it the big I am your gonna look like a right joker in front of your mates come race day.

Read all of this article and soak it all up and once you have you will be teaching your mates a thing or two.

How To Bet

There are three ways to place a bet contrary to what you might think and these are :

• On Course/At The Match (Football and Horse Racing) – Also known as a satchel bookie
• In a Bookmakers shop
• Online
• On the phone (seriously who bets over the phone these days)

Decide on what your best option is however I personally would always go with online as you can get best odds guaranteed as well as free bets and other little boosts.

Now once you have chosen your betting service you want to know what kind of bet you are going to place…this is where it gets complicated so stay with me here.

There are many types of bet but here are the main types :

• Straight Win Bet (betting the horse to win only)
• Place Bet (betting a selection to come 1st 2nd or 3rd)
• Each Way Bet (betting a selection to win or come placed) Twice the stake on this one as your betting a win and a place.
• Forecast Bet (picking two horses for example to come first and second in the correct order)
• Reverse Forecast Bet (picking two horses for example to come first or second in any order)
• Tricast (picking three horses for example to come 1st 2nd or 3rd in the correct order)

I am using Horse Racing as an example to show you how to bet here however you can apply some of these bets to other sports such as Greyhound racing etc.

OK so lets say your looking at the field for the first race at Cheltenham and you find a horse that tickles your fancy lets say its called “Dead Eye Dick” and you think it will win 100%.

You would want to select the horse if betting online and enter your stake and select “win” and submit your bet. If you are betting at the course you would need to go up to a satchel bookie and say something along the lines of “Ey up guvna can I have a fiver on Dead Eye Dick to win?” he will then take your money and give you a slip (possibly with nothing on but a number though modern satchels these days it will show your selection and possible winnings).

Keep hold of that slip because if your horse wins your going to need to exchange that for your winnings..if any.

If you was in a bookmakers shop you would have to get a betting slip and a pen and simply right the race time, the meeting , the horse name, your stake (how much your betting) and simply write to win for example £5 to win.

How To Bet On Football

Its a very similar process to that of horse racing however there are different names for the bets but don’t get disheartened its relatively simple here are the types of basic football bets you will need to know :

• Straight win (one team or teams to win only)
• Correct score (selecting a team or teams to win by the score that you select for example Chelsea to win 3-1)
• Accumulator (multiple teams selected to win only for example if you pick 6 teams to win all must win to collect your winnings)
• First goalscorer (where you select a player to score first in a given football match)
• Both teams to score (where you select a match where you think both teams will score at least one goal)

The most popular type of football bet is the football acca (accumulator) thousands of football fans every week try there luck with acca bets. These bets are consisting of anything up to 15 teams plus that all need to win but pay out at massive odds.

What Happens If My Horse/Bet Is A Non Runner/Starter

If your selection does not run or does not play for example then you are eligible for your money back. If it is a straight win bet however if it is a multiple bet the stake will go onto another part of your bet.

Its best to check each bookmakers terms and conditions for such eventualities. If your horse is under orders in a horse race for example and refuses to race…your pretty much screwed as you wont get your money back.

If your bet is on a player to score first and they don’t start the match you will be entitled to your money back. However be sure to check as some bookies operate a policy where if there has been no goal scored and your selection comes on as a sub the bet still runs.

If your horse wins the race but is then demoted to second due to a stewards enquiry you may want to read my post about first past the post rules.

Collecting Your Winnings

Well welcome to the winners circle lad give yourself a pat on the back you have just picked your first winner.  So now you get to collect your winnings..wait you don’t even know how to bet so how are you going to know how to collect.

Its pretty simple really as long as you have kept your slip (for bookmakers and course betting) all you need to do is return to the place where you placed the bet, and hand over your ticket and your winnings will be paid.

If you placed the bet online give it a few minutes and your cash should appear in your account balance Boom!

Still Need Help?

Don’t forget when your mates are not looking you can ask the staff in any betting store for help on how to bet, and they will be more than glad to help you. I would not necessarily advise asking a satchel bookie no a race course for help, however as you may get made to look like a right wally in front of everybody at the track.