Understanding Parimutuel Betting Strategy

A very common system of gambling is used for most sports events, so learning parimutuel betting strategy is very important for making a profit off of them.

Origins and Definition

Parimutuel, a word that is derived from the French term for "mutual betting" is a system of gambling in which all bets over an event (generally horse racing, Jai Alai, greyhound racing, or other similar activities) are placed into one communal pool. After a small tax is removed by the house, payouts are calculated by dividing the remaining cash in the pool between all of those who held a winning ticket. In this system, the amount made by winners is entirely dependent on how many people participated, and how many people also wagered on the winning number. Unlike other forms of sports gambling, once the event being wagered on begins, the payout becomes fixed, and exchanging or purchasing further tickets becomes impossible. For this reason, it is advisable to research statistics and other factors that may affect the winner as thoroughly as possible before making a wager.

Profiting

Profiting over parimutuel betting strategy can be difficult, because there are no fixed odds, and those involved place bets against other gamblers, rather than against the house. Because there is so much unpredictability involved with this system, it is not a very reliable, consistent moneymaker. As well, it is impossible to change a wager during an event with parimutuel; the payout is something agreed upon at the time of purchasing a ticket. It is possible to wager at an online establishment that may include smaller taxes and, as a result, a higher payoff. These establishments, often called rebate shops, reduce their takes to as little as they can while still retaining their profit, and are the best options for making money back through parimutuel.

A Diverse System

For each event that can be gambled on in parimutuel, there are several different pools for different kinds of wager. Participants can gamble on the winner of an event, on the margin that a contender will place within, on the exact order of the first several places, on the winners for successive games, or any combination of the options. As a result, this system is diverse and able to accommodate various different forms of expertise, and can accommodate both the safest and riskiest plays with potential for enormous profit, but only if played very carefully.