online Horse racing betting

South Africa has a rich history in horse racing and horse racing betting is very popular. There are several racecourses in South Africa and horse racing events attract big crowds for the larger meetings. Horse Racing betting is a regulated and organised industry which is well established in South Africa and popular with punters across the country.

Major Horse Racing Betting Events

There is horse racing taking place almost every day, somewhere in the world, so betting opportunities are extensive. In South Africa, the Durban July Handicap is one of the most prestigious events in the racing calendar. This takes place at Greyville Racecourse in Durban and is as popular as a social event as it is for the racing! The race takes place on turf over 2200 meters (11 furlongs) and offers an impressive purse of R5 million.

The Betway Summer Cup is one of Gauteng’s major Summer horse racing events. Held at Turffontein racecourse in Johannesburg, this popular meeting attracts a field of up to 20 runners- all chasing the purse of R5 million. The race usually takes place in late November or early December, so racegoers are known to enjoy a festive atmosphere in the run up to Christmas.

The Cape Metropolitan Stakes, also known as the Sun Met and formerly as the J&B Met, is one of Cape Town’s biggest race days. Held at Kenilworth racecourse, and run over 2000m, it also offers a purse of R5 Million. The race is considered one of the three main feature races in South Africa, alongside the Summer Cup and the Vodacom Durban July and attracts the top horses and jockeys.

Finally, the Cape Derby is another major race held in Cape Town, again at Kenilworth. This race is for top class three-year-olds and has seen some exciting races over the past years. Register with one of our recommended online bookmakers today to place your horse racing bets.

The international horse racing calendar is extensive with top class racing in Europe, the US, the Middle East and Asia. Betting is available on all of these events so there is never a shortage of top class racing available.

Horse Racing Betting Promotions

There are numerous promotions available to horse racing betting enthusiasts which offer additional value. We have selected a few of our favourites below:

Some bookmakers will run happy hour style promotions, which sees them boost the prices of some horses between certain times. The Betfred Racing Happy Hour offers customers an odds boost across the entire field from a selected race at one of that day’s meetings. This is currently available between 11.00 and 12.00 every day! Be sure to check the terms and conditions for full details and maximum win restrictions.

Some bookmakers will also offer extra place specials. This means that for selected races, they will pay out on an additional place (paying on 4 places instead of the standard 3 places). A bit of extra value for customers betting on the place!

Another popular racing promotion is the runner up refund, offered by Betfred. There is nothing more frustrating that backing a favourite and seeing it beaten by a rank outsider. Betfred run a promotion on all local races in South Africa, where if you back the favourite, and it finishes second to a winner priced 25/1 or bigger, they will refund your stake up to R1000 as a bonus.

Of course, several top SA bookmakers will offer a deposit match bonus to new customers. The value is based on your first deposit and offers additional betting funds to play with. Check out our top-rated SA bookmakers and select the deposit match bonus which is right for you.

Horse Racing Betting Odds

Decimal odds are most commonly used in South Africa. These are simple to understand as they show the amount you’ll receive, if your horse wins, for every unit wagered- including your stake. So, if the horse has odds of 5.00, a winning bet of R100 would return a total of R500, including your stake. Your profit on the bet would therefore be R400.

Morning line odds are provided by some bookmakers in South Africa. These odds are an initial estimation of the odds for a horse and are subject to change based on various factors in the lead up to the race.

Tote Betting is also very popular in South Africa. Tote betting is a system where all bets are pooled together, and the payout odds are defined by the total amount wagered on each horse. The prices on the tote can be quite different from fixed odds betting, so check out tote betting odds to compare the best value.

Horse Racing Betting Tips

As with all betting, the first and most important tip for horse racing betting is to set a budget and stick to it. Gambling should be fun and for this to be the case, it must be affordable.

Horse racing is possibly the sports which has the most detailed form to analyse. Race performance, winning distances, quality of race/field and the quality of the jockey should all be considered before placing a horse racing bet. Extensive form analysis is available with the best SA bookmakers so do your research before placing your bets to improve your chance of winning.

Horse Racing Betting Markets

There are a number of betting markets available in South Africa, offering different ways to wager on horse races. The most common bet types are as follows:

Win Bet: This is the simplest and most common bet, where you are required to choose the horse you believe will win the race. Your horse must finish first for your bet to win – any other place means it is a losing bet.

Place Bet: For this bet to win, you must select a horse to finish in a place. This could be the top two, three or sometimes four positions, depending on the race type, the number of horses in the race and any specific rules of the bookmaker.

Each Way Bet: An each way bet is a combination of a win bet and a place bet. Effectively the bet is split into two parts – one on the horse to win and another on the horse to place. If the horse wins the race, both parts of the bet pay out. If the horse only gets a place (eg it comes 2^nd), you still win the place part of the bet.

Exacta Bet: This is a very popular bet but is much more difficult to predict. You are betting on the first two horses to cross the finish line, in the correct order. The potential payouts on this bet are usually quite high, but that is reflected in the fact that this is a difficult bet to win!

Trifecta Bet: This bet is similar to an exact but this time, you must predict the first three horses to cross the finish line in the correct order. This is obviously a difficult bet to predict, but if you get it right, the payouts can be very lucrative.

Quartet Bet: As above, but this time you must select the first four horses to finish a race in the correct order. Punters sometimes place multiple quartet bets of low stakes on the same race, using their 4 selected horses in different combinations.

Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 6: In these bets, you must select the winner of three, four or six consecutive races, respectively. Clearly the difficulty increases significantly with the number of races in the sequence, but so does the potential payout.

Swinger Bet: This is a more flexible bet, which requires you to select two horses to finish in the top three positions, in any order. It is more straightforward than an exact bet or trifecta bet, but the payout is usually less.

Place Accumulator: This bet involves selecting a horse to place in a number of consecutive races – usually the first six races of the day.

Always make sure you understand the rules and potential payouts of any bet before placing it.

Best for Horse Racing Betting

A number of the best SA betting sites offer an extensive horse racing betting product with simple odds layout, form analysis and sometimes live streaming. Hollywoodbets is well known as being a favourite with horse racing enthusiasts and as well as offering full market coverage and great odds, you can watch all races for free via their live streaming service. To register to watch free live racing streaming, visit  https://www.galloptv.co.za/ and complete the simple registration page. You can find results, replays and tips too!

Betfred is another favourite of the Top Betting team for horse racing betting. Again, their simple racecard and odds layout, coupled with daily horse racing promotions makes them a great option to place your horse racing bets. Above all, register today via this link to claim a welcome bonus of up to R5000! Horse racing wagers are included in the Betfred welcome bonus and it is one of the highest value new player bonus available in SA.

Good luck with your SA horse racing betting! Grab your horse racing bonus and get started today!