3/23/2022

Dog Racing Betting

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I’m going to be a bit controversial here, I may be in the minority but I actually prefer betting on the dogs more than I do betting on horses! Why? It’s fast and furious with a “blink and you’ll miss something” feel about it. Overall, I just find greyhound betting more exciting.

My first ever experience in a bookmaker’s was betting on greyhound racing. I had seen races on television in the past, but the excitement of potentially winning money brought me to new horizons, the online world. The best betting site for greyhound racing is the one below:

Like many who are new to betting, I would stick to the simple bets. Some of the terms and words used in greyhound betting can be a bit confusing but don’t worry as I will explain in detail and give examples to help you bet like a pro in no time. Once you are comfortable with the basics and looking for a bit more advanced information and detail, I recommend going into detail on this excellent greyhound racing betting site.

The Best 3 Greyhound Betting Sites

What are the top online greyhound betting sites? Stop and look no further. Below, you will find the ultimate list of three operators that provide everything you need at a bookie for the dogs. They are great examples of what you need.

Track racing uses an artificial lure (now based on a windsock) that travels ahead of the dogs on a rail until the greyhounds cross the finish line. As with horse racing, greyhound races often allow the public to bet on the outcome. In many countries greyhound racing is purely amateur and solely for enjoyment.

888Sport5.0Excellent
  • Live Streams Everyday
  • Great Odds
  • Hundreds of Markets
£30 FREE BETS
Ladbrokes5.0Very Good
  • Daily Price Boosts
  • Best Odds Guaranteed
  • Live Streaming
£20FREE BETS
William Hill5.0Excellent
  • Great for Dogs
  • Daily Races
  • Racing Outsider Special
£30FREE BETS

With these top greyhound bookmakers, you can find daily events, lots of different betting types and even live streaming. They offer the complete package for you to be really successful when betting on dogs.

A Selection Of Topics Relayed To Our Greyhound Racing Tips. On our regular blog posts, we will try to keep you updated with topics ranging from Greyhound Betting Tips to updates to our dog races website. A selection of these posts can be seen to the right on this home page and you also use the navigation bar above. Which of these dogs will be the first one to cross the finish line in your next race? Pick out a pooch and get ready to run in this 3D racing game. You can join Dalmatians, Rottweilers, Golden Retrievers, and more as they participate in three different and very exciting types of competitions. The racing sport has taken their endurance and agility and turned it into a betting market. In many countries, greyhound racing is a fun and recreational pastime. However, in countries such as Ireland, Australia, Macau, Spain, Mexico, the UK and the US, greyhound racing is considered a.

How to Bet on Dogs: Types of Greyhound Racing Bets Explained

You will probably already be aware of a “to win” bet and the chances are you have heard of the expression “each-way bet”, these are just two of the more straightforward bets when learning how to bet on dogs. There are lots more out there which will be explained in this greyhound betting guide.

Difference Between Early Prices and Starting Prices

In an effort to get you to bet with them, many online sports bookmakers will offer enhanced odds if you bet early. In the early days of betting, if you took an early price and then the price for the dog drifted, that was just hard luck!

However, bookies are a lot more forgiving now and many offer “best price” or “best odds guaranteed” deals which means that if the starting price is better than the odds you took, they will honour the higher price. It is worth comparing the early prices for different bookies as value can be found there.

Betting to Win Online

When it comes to greyhound betting explained, there is nothing easier! This is a straightforward bet on your chosen dog to win the race outright in first place.

Example: You bet £20 on Dog A at 5-1. If it wins, you receive £120 i.e. 5 x your £20 stake plus your stake returned.

Betting Each Way On Dogs

An each-way bet is in reality, two bets on the same dog. Half of your total stake is bet on the dog to win and half on it to be placed (the place requirement is dependent on the number of runners). If your selection wins, you win on both parts of the bet. The place part of the bet is paid out at a fraction of the win odds and will be shown in the betting slip.

The fraction of the odds on the place bet does vary and depends on the type of race and the number of runners. You need a minimum of five dogs to race to be able to bet each-way:

Number of DogsEach Way Fraction and Place
2-4 runnersWIN ONLY
5-7 runners1/4 odds, 1,2
8+ runners1/5 odds, 1,2,3

You bet £100 each-way (£200) on “Tracy’s Delight” at 10-1 with 8 dogs in the race.

If the dog wins the race you would receive £1100 for the win aspect (£100 x 10 & stake) and you would receive £200 due to the place part of the bet (odds of 10/1 ÷ 5 (due to the number of dogs) = 2/1 odds * stake (£100)) = £200.

Online Betting Strategy for Win and Each-Way

As a rule of thumb it is only worth betting each-way if the dog’s odds are long enough to justify it. If you took a dog at 4/1, the place part of the bet would be 1/1 (evens) and would produce no gain at all and just cover the bet if the dog finished 2nd.

Some bookmakers offer “place only betting”, this can be a useful tactic if you think a dog has a great chance at 2nd (or 3rd if there are more than 8 dogs in the race) but has very little chance of winning the race. It is difficult to recommend it as a tactic to use all the time as you do run the risk of backing a winner but only getting paid out at ¼ of the odds, which will be pretty frustrating if your dog finishes first.

Each-way betting is a common and very useful strategy for outsiders, rather than fancied dogs. I’ve had some great winners, backing rank outsiders in the past and for me the thrill of the occasional big odds win more than makes up for the infrequency of these wins.

Forecast Betting in Greyhound Racing

When it comes to greyhound betting online, you may come across the term ‘forecast’, what does that mean exactly? Well, in the table below, you can find out what all the different associated terms mean. I have highlighted all the most popular ones.

Forecast TypeDescription
Forecast and TricastBetting involves selecting dogs to finish 1st and 2nd or 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order. The odds for this are higher as this is harder to predict.
Straight ForecastThe Straight Forecast involves picking the 1st and 2nd dog, they must be in the correct order to win.
ExactaThe minimum stake to bet is £2 and this bet is the same as the Straight Forecast but the return will vary from race to race as it is based on the Tote pool dividend.
Trifecta Also to a minimum stake of £2, the Trifecta requires you to name the first three in the race and again in the correct order. This is incredibly hard to predict but the returns are also very high to reflect this.
Reverse Forecast/TricastBets allow you to pick the dogs in the same way as Forecast and Tricast betting but the difference is that the dogs do not have to finish in the same order as you have to predict on the Forecast and Tricast bets. This is because the reverse covers all possible permutations and as such the stake will be higher.

As you can see, these dog racing betting terms are very similar to what you would find on the horses. This is no coincidence, as the races are very similar, thus so are the bets. Once you get a hand of all these betting types, you can really utliise them effectively.

The Top Greyhound Betting Systems

Multiple bets are potentially your path to riches! You can make a life-changing amount of money for a relatively small stake. Here are a couple of examples of previous big winners using thus greyhound betting system;

In 2008, Fredd Craggs who lives in Yorkshire had a 50p bet on an eight leg accumulator, many of the horses he backed were outsiders and with names such as “Isn’t That Lucky”, “Racer Forever” and “A Dream Come True”, I suspect that he picked the selections from the heart rather than the head but his win at odds of 2 million to 1 shows that sometimes we need to listen to intuition.

Although this was done on the horses it is also one of the more popular greyhound betting systems. We will go into the various ones below.

In 1996, Darren Yeats of Morecambe in Lancashire was a huge Frankie Dettori fan and placed a £59 bet on Frankie’s 7 races that day, when the near impossible happened and all 7 rides resulted in victory, Darren picked up a staggering £550,000.

Switching the focus back to the best greyhound betting systems, here are some of the multiple bets you can make;

Double – 2 dogs combined, both have to win for you to receive a return on your wager.

Treble – 3 dogs combined, all three must be successful.

Trixie – 3 dogs in combined in 3 doubles and 1 treble, 4 bets in total. With the Trixie bet you only need 2 dogs to win to get a return. Remember as it is 4 bets, your stake will be x4.

Dog racing betting sites

If 2 dogs winning sounds like a stretch to you then you can place a “Patent” which also includes 3 single win bets so you only need 1 winner to claim a return. A patent is 7 bets so your stake will be x7 (for example a £1 stake patent will cost £7), this is an essential part of dog betting systems.

Yankee – this is a trusted bet with 11 bets which include 6 doubles, 4 trebles and 1 accumulator. Only 2 winners are needed for a return. Again, if you prefer 1 winner to pay a dividend then you could try “Lucky 15”, this has 15 bets but with it also covering 4 singles, only 1 winner is needed.

For example, when placing a Lucky 15 on four dogs that are all likely to start at short prices, the advantage of the Lucky 15 is that you get a return on one winner, yet you are staking four extra points than you would for a Yankee. Therefore, you need odds of at least 3-1 just to cover your extra stake. Likewise, you need 4-1 for a Lucky 31 and 5-1 for a Lucky 63.

Super Yankee – 5 selections and covering 26 bets, the super yankee has 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 four-way accumulators and 1 five-way accumulator. This is a Channel 4 racing special for us here!

The Super Yankee needs 2 winners to pay, if need an enhanced version of this bet then the “Lucky 31” is the one for you, 31 bets which include 5 singles means you only need 1 winner to be quids in.

You would think the Heinz 57 bet would have some reference to baked beans but it’s in fact the 57 variety aspect of Heinz that the bet is centred around, you get 6 selections and your bet includes: 15 doubles, 20 trebles, 15 four-folds, 6 five-folds and 1 accumulator. You need 2 selections to win.

The “Lucky 63” is the same as Heinz bet but with 6 singles added.

If you want to select 7 dogs then take a look at the Super Heinz bet, this involves every multiple combination and consists of 120 bets, this is broken down into 21 doubles, 35 trebles, 35 four-folds, 21 five-folds, 7 six-folds and 1 accumulator. A minimum of 2 of your selections must win to get a return.

One of the biggest and best multiple selection bets is the aptly named “Goliath”, you pick 8 selections and a goliath bet includes 28 doubles, 56 trebles, 70 four-folds, 56 five-folds, 28 six-folds, 8 seven-folds and an accumulator. 2 winners are all that is required to see a return, with 247 bets being placed, most punters use a small stake for these types of bets (for example 20p x 247 = £49.40).

Ante-Post Betting for Greyhound Racing

Ante-post betting can be a profitable market but it’s not without risks! The idea of ante-post betting is that bookmakers will offer highly enhanced odds for a race in the future. The biggest danger is that the dog you have backed may not even run in the race, if this happens your bet is settled as a loss. Ante post bets are accepted “all in” which means the stake will not be refunded whether the greyhound runs or not.

This is where research can help you greatly, seek confirmation from publications such as the Racing Post, online blogs or even the trainer’s own website.

There is always a danger that a dog may get injured nearer the time of the race, this would result in the loss of your stake. You will often see dogs listed for a race when in fact the owners have no intention of their dog being in the race. For example, the Irish Greyhound Derby 2016 at the time of writing this has over 80 dogs listed for this race, so the chances are that very few of these listed dogs will actually race.

Just for information, in the UK the number of dogs that can run in a race is 6, Towcester course is an exception as they have introduced races with 8 and Shawfield Stadium near Glasgow has 5 dog races. All other UK tracks have 6 dog races.

Special Bets on Greyhound Racing Betting

Online sports bookmakers offer promotions that change all the time, unfortunately as greyhound fanatics, we don’t get as many great offers as other sports such as football and horses but there are some interesting campaigns out there.Many bookies offer enhanced prices for certain trainers to win meetings and you can even bet on the total number of favourites that win at a meeting. Many of the televised greyhound races are incentivised with free bets and the best odds guaranteed is available on almost all sites that feature greyhound racing.

Tattersalls Rule of Racing

All bets are subject to the Tattersalls Rule of Racing (also called Rule 4 deductions) this governs what happens if a dog is withdrawn from a race. Let’s see an example to show how it works;

  • You have bet on “Merseycried” @5/1 in the 14:47 at Hove. There are three scheduled dogs in that race. Before the race “Ivanapugh” withdraws due to injury.
  • The race is now a two dog race betting and as a result the chances of you winning has now increased. It would therefore be unrealistic for you to expect the 5/1 you received.
  • Tattersalls Rule of Racing involves deducting an amount from any winnings. This deduction is determined by the price of the non-runner at the time the dog was withdrawn. Let’s imagine the dog that withdrew was priced at 7/4, looking at the table below a deduction of 35p in every £1 would apply.
Odds of the withdrawn dogTotal deductionOdds of the withdrawn dogTotal deduction
1/9 or shorter90p (in £)Evens (1/1) to 6/545p
2/11 to 2/1785p5/4 to 6/440p
1/4 to 1/580p13/8 to 7/435p
3/10 to 2/775p15/8 to 9/430p
2/5 to 1/370p5/2 to 3/125p
8/15 to 4/965p10/3 to 4/120p
8/13 to 4/760p9/2 to 11/215p
4/5 to 4/655p6/1 to 9/110p
20/21 to 5/650p10/1 to 14/15p

Live Greyhound Betting

An exciting and popular development within the online sports betting arena is the ability to bet “in-running” or “in-play”, or so-called live greyhound betting. Previously when a race started the book closed. Now however, when a race starts, you can see the odds changing in real-time to reflect the action at the greyhound course.

Another great thing about live dog betting is that you don’t need to be sat behind a computer to do it! Just about any modern mobile phone or tablet enables you to watch the action and place a bet even if you are out and about! If you have not tried it then give it a go, it’s great fun.

Free Bets on the Dogs

When you first join an online sports betting site you will usually receive an incentive such as free bets, enhanced odds or a matched deposit. If you don’t have accounts with many online bookies then I would recommend you sign up for a couple. You get a chance to try until you find one that is a perfect fit for your needs.

The only word of caution is to check if a bookie has a “wagering requirement”, this is a total amount that you have to bet before your bonus is shown as available to withdraw. Some bookmakers don’t have any wagering requirements at all and these are the best value ones.

So to put this into context, if you have a £100 bonus that you received and the offer has a 5x wagering requirement, you will need to stake a total of £500 for your bonus winnings to be transferred to your Cash Balance. If the wagering requirement is 10x, you would need to bet a total of £1000.

The bonus amounts vary quite considerably between bookmakers but are usually in the £10 to £200 range. Don’t expect free cash though! Most online bookies will require you to make an initial deposit and then they will match the amount you deposit.

Our Top Ten Dog Racing Tips for Beginners

  1. Know what the conditions are like – One of the best greyhound betting tips I can give is bet on the inside traps if the weather conditions indicate rain. Dogs on the inside traps are less likely to be affected by wet weather conditions.
  2. Best odds guarantee – As we mentioned earlier in this guide, if you take a price on a dog and the starting price later turns out to be better, if a bookmaker offers best odds guarantee then you will be paid out at the better price.
  3. Compare prices at sites – Another one of the good dog betting tips is to have more than one online sports betting account. This way you can see any differential in the odds being offered, taking advantage of even slight differences can add up over a period of time.
  4. Check the gender – There are subtle differences between dogs and bitches that can affect how they perform. Dogs overall are considered to be more reliable and tend to do better in short to mid- range races. Bitches tend to be harder to train and due to them going into season (when a bitch goes into season the rules state that a bitch must be removed from all race activity for at least 21 days) it can mean a gap from racing for about 10 weeks in a year.
  5. Study the form – It is quite normal for both dogs and bitches to have cycles of being “in-form” or subsequently “out-of-form”, finding these winning and losing indicators can often be the difference on how to win at the dogs.
  6. Know your totals – It is important that you keep a track of your betting activity, doing this will give you a clear picture of what markets, courses, trainers or dogs have boosted your bankroll and which events have not been so successful for you.
  7. Keep up-to-date – With every stat you could think of being just a Google away, it is so easy to get up-to-date with the latest greyhound related news. Many online bookmakers have blogs in which well respected trainers and experts share their hints and tips as well as predictions.
  8. Age does matter – The working life of a greyhound is pretty short and despite a lifespan of about 13 years, most greyhounds will be approaching retirement at the age of 4 years. Younger dogs are more likely to show swings on performance where as more experienced dogs tend to be pretty consistent with their performances.
  9. Racing Lines – In the formlines for previous races you will see comments on which line the dog took. You will see these as abbreviations, vw = very wide, w = wide, mid-w = middle to wide, mid = middle, mid-rls = middle to rails, rls-mid = rails to middle and rls = rails.

The line can have both advantages and disadvantages. Rails – a dog who runs on the rails has the shortest distance to cover but due to the sharpest of corners they may be unable to achieve top speed. Middle – the dog will reach top speed but also allows other dogs to pass easy. Wide – a dog running wide will have an advantage in wet conditions and also will avoid collisions but the distance is further than railing. Very wide – these dogs tend to avoid trouble but they are running quite a few more lengths than a dog that prefers a tight line. The skill here is matching the racing conditions, the competition and the course to predict who is likely to succeed.

  1. Never bet more than you can afford – It is the easiest thing in the world to feel frustration when your bets don’t quite go to plan, however, betting in anger is never a smart move! Walk away, reflect and then try again another day. If this doesn’t make you feel better or if you do feel like you may have a problem with gambling, then please seek help.

A great site that has information for anyone who feels they may have an issue with gambling is Gambleaware is, it is a free, impartial service and has a wealth of information and non-judgemental support.

Best Way to Bet on Greyhounds: Greyhound Betting Strategy

The best way to find how win at dog racing is an amalgamation of study and hard work. Of course, you will need luck too, but the more effort you put in on your end the more chance you have at success. See some top advice below.

NameDescription
Start with simple bets To familiarise yourself with the sport, it is best to place simple bets, such as the outright. Once you get used to doing this you can move on, but it is always a good idea to get the basics right.
Move on to exotic bets Once you are confident in your abilities you can then move onto the more exotic bets such as forecast. These will be harder to win, but you will find the rewards much more appealing.
Live streaming Dog betting has been revolutionised with the advent of live streaming. Now you can watch how the track is running and see which dog it will favour in the coming races. A great advantage.
Know the tracks All greyhound racing betting is not the same. Certain tracks can benefit certain dogs. So, it pays to know how each track runs. This knowledge will certainly benefit you in the long run.
Always use the dog’s name If you are using a betting slip, try and get the dog’s name on it. As if you just say trap 2, and that dog withdraws, you’ll be left backing its replacement! Not a good thing at all.

In the table above, you can see the very best greyhound betting strategy. It’s clear that there are a number of different things that can be combined to make you a winner. Follow these strategies and you will be on the path to success.

Most Popular Greyhound Races and Odds

When it comes to greyhound betting, there are a number of popular events. In the table below, we have highlighted the top races for you to bet on. I have also provided greyhound racing odds too for you to compare.

Race NameCountryFirst HeldDate HeldPrize MoneyOdds
Greyhound DerbyEngland1927June/July£175,00094.32%
Irish Greyhound DerbyIreland1928September€125,00093.22%
East Anglican Greyhound DerbyEngland1975September£15,00093.99%
Romford DogsEngland19285 per weekVaries94.01%
Greyhound Grand NationalEngland1927April£8,00094.11%

As you will notice, there is not much difference in greyhound odds, nevertheless, there is still lots of intrigue to be found. Placing the right bet can really make you a big profit. These races are just the beginning and there is a lot more out there.

Greyhound Bet App

To really enjoy your experience, you need to make sure you have a greyhound bet app. In doing so, you will be able to enjoy everything you can on a desktop right at your fingertips. Place bets quickly, and easily. A top download is listed below.

888sport has the best mobile app by far. You can watch streams and place the same kind of bets you would find on the desktop. They even have a greyhound bet app Android capable, so you can be sure all types of phones will be accepted.

The app has a smooth interface and demonstrates what is capable when a team of experts come together to develop something. It really is an enjoyable experience.

Overall, greyhound betting is best enjoyed on your phone. It provides you with the ultimate flexibility. You can watch and bet at the same time, or you simply don’t have to be tied to a chair. It has really changed the landscape of the gambling world.

Virtual Greyhound Racing

Another fascinating thing to look out for is virtual greyhound racing. This provides you with the opportunity to always find an available race no matter the time of day. In this day and age with rapid technological advancements, you may be forgiven for thinking you are watching the real thing!

There is a virtual greyhound racing strategy you can employ. Back the favourite! Of course, this won’t work all the time, but over a period of time, it will more than likely payout. Naturally, there are other ones you can pursue too, but we won’t cover them here.

FAQ

Now I have come to the end of this greyhound betting review, there should be no stone left unturned. Nevertheless, I have collected some of the most frequently asked questions below. Check them out now.

What is greyhound betting exactly?

Greyhound betting is when you bet on the outcome of a race featuring six to eight dogs running around the track. There are numerous bets to place, with the simplest being a win bet.

How to bet on greyhounds properly?

There are a number of strategies you can employ when dog betting. From the simple to the more complex. The main thing is to collect as much information and knowledge you can, before placing a wager.

What are the best dog racing betting sites?

There are some operators that are simply better than the others. The top three greyhound betting sites listed on this page simply outperform all the others, and are a brilliant selection.

What are the best winning greyhound betting systems?

There are a number of betting systems you can employ when it comes to greyhound racing. These range from accumulators to multiple bets. You can find a detailed description of them all higher up.

What is the best trap to bet on greyhound racing?

Depending on the weather, the trap can make all the difference. An example being, if it is wet, the dogs on the inside are less likely to be affected by the adverse conditions. This is essential knowledge to be successful.

The best way to bet on greyhounds is to know what you are doing. Although this sport might seem pretty straightforward, there are quite a few things you have to be aware of before even thinking about how to bet on dog races and win.

We’ll start by explaining the types of racing bets, the different types of races, starting positions, dog running styles, and how to use the knowledge to your advantage by accurately weighing the data.

Dog Racing Betting Guide

It’s worth mentioning that this racing betting guide doesn’t include staking methods; if you are unfamiliar with the flat betting money management strategy, please give our dedicated betting guide a good read.

Betting

We’re going to build a solid foundation on which you should develop a viable dog betting strategy. Although it is mostly a beginner’s guide, we’ve included a few pro tips for performing successful dog racing analysis in the last section.

Quickly navigate to your desired topic:

Types of Greyhound Bets

The types of bets in Greyhound Racing are practically identical with the types of bets in horse racing, but because not every punter is familiar with them, we’ll start by explaining the most common bet types in dog racing at a glance:

  • Win Bet – This is the simplest of all types of greyhound bets: you are backing the dog that you believe has the most chances of winning the race. The bet is going to win only of the dog you picked ends up victorious.
  • Place – A place bet is won when the respective dog wins or finishes second in the race.
  • Show – The selected greyhound should finish 1st, 2nd, or 3rd for the bet to win.
  • Each Way – This is a combined bet: half of your stake goes on the dog to win, and the other half goes on your greyhound to place, meaning that he should finish in the top 3 – although this can vary according to the number of participants, bookies preferences and so on. Usually, the odds for the place bet should be roughly ¼ of the dog’s odds for the win. This type of bet is often used on underdogs, as it can bring a profit even if the greyhound places.
  • Straight Forecast / Exacta – This bet implies picking the top two greyhounds in the exact finishing order. It is a risky bet that usually comes at long odds.
  • Reverse Forecast – This type of bet allows you to pick the top two dogs in either order. This involves a couple of Straight Forecast bets: half stake on each of the two possible outcomes.
  • Tricast / Trifecta – This bet works just like the Straight Forecast with the only difference being that you have to predict the finishing order of the first 3 competitors.
  • Combination Tricast – It is a type of bet that allows you to pick the dogs you reckon will finish on the podium without specifying the order.

Of course, the single bets are the simplest and the most popular wagers. However, each-way betting is very fashionable amongst bettors who don’t enjoy low prices. Bear in mind that each track sets the odds for their races minutes before they start. That is why some bookies offer you only SP – Starting Price, instead of plain odds. However, if you want to know the odds before betting, either wager with bookies that make their own odds or wait till around 10 minutes before they start to find out what the lines are.

Bookies that offer Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG) attract most punters. This means that if you take an Early Price on a race and the Starting Price turns up to be higher, the bookmaker will offer you the better odds.

Types of Greyhound Races Explained (Distance, Surface & Age)

Dog Track Bets

UK greyhound races have 6 competitors. There are between 10 and 14 races at each track, and they usually take place around 15 minutes between each other.

The greyhound racing tracks have an oval shape, 4 bends and a length of around 400 meters; however, there are different types of races (mainly according to distance):

  • Sprint – 2 bends (D)
  • Standard – 4 bends (A)
  • Stayers – 6 bends (S)
  • Marathons – 8 bends (M)
  • Hurdles – usually 4 bends (H), but involving the dogs having to jump over hurdles that are positioned on the track
  • Handicapping is the lesser common type of race that involves greyhounds of mixed grades that race against each other, with the lower tiers getting a head start according to their category.

If you want to know more about the history of Britain’s greyhound stadiums and tracks, take a look at Jon Henley’s post ‘Going to the dogs’ from theguardian.com.

Dog Racing Betting Explained

The surface is another important factor because the surface of the track dictates the pace. Although all greyhound tracks in the UK use a sand surface nowadays, the weather can have a significant impact on the race since all dog race tracks are outdoors. Greyhounds that are strong in Stayers usually perform better in wet condition – whereas railers might be affected by waterlogging. By contrast track, records are more likely to be broken in scorching weather, when the track becomes very hard, and the overall grip is excellent.

Age matters! Dogs under 24 months are required to take part in puppy races. Dogs between 21 and 30 months are considered to be most suitable for sprint races. Experts believe that greyhounds reach their prime between 30 and 36 months. However, experienced dogs (3-4-year-olds) will generally perform better in Marathon races. There’s no excuse for ignoring this matter as every dog’s age has to be written on the race card.

The grading system is a ladder ranking system that groups dogs of similar speeds in the same category, giving each of them a fair chance of winning: D – sprinters, A – runners, S – stayers, H – hurdlers. For example, the fastest sprinting greyhounds are competing in D1, the next in D2, and so on.

The most prestigious greyhound racing betting competitions are Grand National, English Greyhound Derby & Irish Greyhound Derby. Take a glimpse at the 2018 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby Final:

Greyhound Racing Lines: Best and Worst Post Positions (Traps)

The seeding system is meant to balance the competition by assigning competitors to traps they perform best in. These positions are called:

  • Rails (rls, pos. 1 & 2) – inside traps, the shortest distance around the track
  • Middle (mid, pos. 3 &4) – interior traps, position allows dogs to maintain their maximum speeds
  • Wide (w, pos. 5 & 6) – outside traps, favoured by wet conditions

Dog Racing Betting Terms

The post position assigned to a greyhound could be an important factor as some dogs perform better inside, in the middle or while running wide. However, this doesn’t mean that the greyhound will have to stick to that position, as they will most likely roam to their preferred spot as soon as possible, but certain punters tend to overrate the importance of the designated traps.

Dog Racing Betting Systems

Contrary to popular belief, the key here is to figure out how likely it is for the respective greyhound to get to his favoured position early on. This doesn’t apply for the late speed dogs though: it is convenient for these greyhounds to have a lot of speed dogs in the race because the 1st will slow the others. Anyhow, weigh the initial racing lines with a pinch of salt, because stats don’t always tell the whole story and may sometimes lead the punter to make poor decisions which are based on pure coincidences.

Dog Racing Tips For Beginners & Beyond

Now that you understand how they work let’s talk about how to bet on greyhounds to win. There is much more to greyhound races than people who don’t know the sport might think. Once you start watching dog races and betting on them, you’ll feel the taste of it.

Although you can follow the expert’s suggestions, we advise you to collect information from them and craft your predictions. Here are a few tips for dog racing analysis:

  1. Preferably specialise in one or two tracks unless you have a lot of time to spend doing this. Then if you watch the first two or three races at the start of an event, you may discover a temporary bias.
  2. Get to know their breeds (genetic analysis of racing performance) and age (dogs peak at 2, while bitches at 3) and take this into account when estimating probabilities.
  3. Very carefully analyse the suitability of the traps assigned to each dog and interpret how the competitors should roam during the race, and pay particular attention to the first corner. Remember that the post position is just one of the elements that need to be evaluated.
  4. Always inspect the track conditions. Heavier dogs (weight) and those running on the wide rails generally have an advantage when the track is wet. However, if the temperature is below zero and the track is frozen, inside rails become significantly faster.
  5. Make sure you know how the dog performs in the current grade he is racing in – he might have just promoted or dropped down a grade.
  6. Check out when was the last time the dog has raced – a 6-7 days break is always better than a month without running.
  7. Don’t mind the general form, but rather investigate how well each dog has done taking into account factors such as the race type, the grade, the trap and the track condition etc. At the same time, select only the trouble-free races when calculating the average times.

Dog Racing Betting Online

It’s now up to you to discover how to pick dog races that offer value and get better at visualising races before they actually take place. One last tip would be to start your decision-making process by eliminating the greyhounds that have little to no chance of winning. Good luck!

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Dog Racing Betting Tips

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