For many, having a bet on the horses is as simple as picking a fancy and then placing a bet on it to win!
However, the ‘good news’ for horse racing punters is there are many different types of bets that can increase your enjoyment of this sport and also potentially give you better returns from the bookmakers.
With that in mind, the Tote Placepot is certainly a bet that’s worth getting to know a bit better.
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Today’s Tote Placepot Tips
Thursday 3rd March 2022
Featured Tote Placepot Meeting: LUDLOW
Race ONE: 1.00 Ludlow – Trainer Olly Murphy has a 19% record with this hurdlers here so his MONEYKENNY is the first pick. Second at Perth last time but steps into a handicap for the first time today and doesn’t look badly treated off a mark of 100, especially with jockey Fergus Gregory taking off 3lbs.
The Twiston-Davies yard took this race in 2016 and they look to have another fair chance with their consistent MOVIT LIKE MINNIE, who is yet to finish out of the first two. Selection Numbers, 1 & 7
Race TWO: 1.30 Ludlow – A race that lacks depth and really looks between the first four in the market. Of that quartet, it will be a shock if the 120-rated pair of HIDOR DE BERSY and KNICKERBOCKERGLORY are not scraping this one out. Selection Numbers, 1 & 2
Race THREE: 2.00 Ludlow – Just the four runners here so we need to find the winner in what looks a tight little race it might pay to have three onside. Henderson has a 25% record over fences here so his BARBADOS BLUE can bounce back from her recent poor run at Huntingdon.
CD winner KARL PHILIPPE is the only proven winner at the track in the field and also heads here off the back of a good win at Ludlow, while the final selection here is KAKAMORA, who ran well to be third last time to a horse that has since franked the form to win again (Dorking Boy). Selection Numbers, 1, 3 & 4
Race FOUR: 2.30 Ludlow – Trainer Alan King likes to target this race – he’s won it in 2014 and 2021 – so his course winner WYNN HOUSE can go well here. A good winner at Wincanton two runs back and wasn’t disgraced at Cheltenham in a better race last time (4th).
A chance is also taken on the Henderson runner – GO CHIQUE. A poor run last time but connections have given him two months to freshen up and Nico de Boinville, who has won on the horse twice before, is back doing the steering. Selection Numbers, 1 & 8
Race FIVE: 3.00 Ludlow – It’s hard to ignore the good record in this race of the Henry Daly runner – HEAD TO THE STARS – as he’s won the last two runnings. Now 11 years-old, but he would have had this race as a target all season and showed he’s still loving his racing with a nice win at the track back in December.
Another yard that has done well in this race is the Evan Williams yard – winning it in 2012 and 2014 – they run GOLDEN WHISKY. This 9 year-old is into calmer waters after running in a better race at Ascot last time, but prior to that won well at Chepstow off just a 2lb lower mark than today. Selection Numbers, 2 & 3
Race SIX: 4.00 Ludlow – PICANHA ran in a better race than this at Cheltenham last time out (4th) but didn’t do badly after being hampered by a faller. Easier rivals here and jockey Daniel Hiskett is able to claim 3lbs this time.
TECHNOLOGIAL is also worth having on side after a fair third at Plumpton last time. The Milton Harris yard are doing well this season and with just two runs over hurdles you feel this former 80+ flat performer has more to come. Selection Numbers, 1 & 6
Total Lines: 2x2x3x2x2x2 = 96 lines
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Today’s Other Horse Racing Tips
• Andrew Mount’s Spreadex Analysis
• Today’s Lucky 15 Tips
• Today’s Daily Racing Tips
• Today’s ‘NAP of the Day’ Tip
Tote Placepot Introduction
- A pool (lottery-style) horse racing bet, with the amount taken (the pool of money) at a horse racing meeting, then divided by any winning tickets – meaning the less people that win the more money you win!
- To win the Tote Placepot you need to pick a horse to place in the first six races at any UK, Irish or selected International race meeting.
- In recent years, the Tote Placepot has an average pay out of £407, while it’s a superb way to win big off small stakes – at the 2019 Cheltenham Festival, one customer won £182,567.80 from just a £2 bet.
- Once the first six races (at each meeting) have finished the Tote will give a winning dividend (based on how many winning tickets there are). This dividend is to a £1 stake . e.g. – If the winning dividend is £200 and
- You can play the Placepot at tote.co.uk from 4pm the day before all UK and Irish meetings
What Is A Tote Placepot And How Does It Work?
The Placepot has become the most popular pool bet for UK and Irish horse racing punters as it means you’ve got a chance to have an interest in the first six races.
It’s appeal is that you don’t have to find the winner in each race, but just a horse that will be placed (depending on the number of runners) in each of the first six races of a particular meeting.
The Placepot is run by the Tote and through a pool betting style system, but several leading bookmakers – like bet365 – now also give the option bet on the Placepot on their site – these all still go into the same big universal pool for each separate horse racing meeting.
In short, the more people who have bet in the Placepot the bigger the pool will be.
Therefore, just like the lottery, the fewer people who have placed horses in the first six races at a given horse racing fixture, means the bigger the winning dividend return.
In contrast, should a lot of fancied horses win (or be placed) then there is a strong chance a lot of people would have picked these Placepot horses and the final dividend will be a lot small as it’s shared between more people.
How Does A Tote Placepot Work?
The simple way to play the Placepot is to just pick one horse in each of the first six races – then if ALL of these horses are placed (this depends on the number of runners in the race and race type – more below) you will have a share of the final dividend.
However, once you get familiar with the Placepot, you can also decide to have more than one horse per race – this will increase your chances of winning, but also mean the stake of the bet will be higher.
These are often referred to as ‘Placepot Lines or Perms’
It’s a fairly straightforward calculation to work out how many lines a Placepot with more than one horse in each races will cost.
Simply multiply the number of horses (lines) you have in race one by the number of horses (lines) in race two and then for race three, four, five and six.
For Example
Race One – 2 horses
Race Two – 2 horses
Race Three – 2 horses
Race Four – 2 horses
Race Five – 2 horses
Race Six – 2 horses
This will be 2x2x2x2x2x2 = 64 lines
How Much Can A Tote Placepot Cost?
The beauty here is that you can make it as cheap or as expensive as you want.
There are, however, two minimum stakes to take into account when it comes to the Placepot, the minimum stake per line and the minimum total stake.
The minimum stake per line is 10p, although some operators may allow 5p lines so be sure to shop around, while the minimum total stake is £1.
For example, if we played 10p lines on our example (above) 64-line Tote Placepot above, the total stake would be £6.40, or if we staked each line at 50p it would cost £32.
How Are Tote Placepot Places Determined?
This depends on the number or runners or race type.
1-4 runners – 1st place only
5-7 runners – 1st and 2nd places
8+ runners – 1st, 2nd and 3rd places
16+ runners (handicap races only) – 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th places
How Do I Work Out My Tote Placepot Winnings?
Tote Placepot winnings are universal with the final dividend normally given out around 30 mins after the sixth race has finished.
You can also now follow the progress of the pool at each meeting at the TotePoolLive.com site – this will display the final pool size and the amount of tickets on each horse as each race is run, meaning you can see how you are fairing with the rest of the players through the meeting.
The dividend is worked out at £1 stake, so if you only have a winning line at 10p then the dividend will be divided by 10 e.g. a winning dividend at £200 at 10p will mean a £20 return.
To work out how much your return is – multiply your stake per line by the amount of winning lines you have. Your winnings will then be either that percentage of the published £1-stake winnings or a multiple of the published dividend.
For example:
If the Placepot is paying £500 to a £1 stake and you have four winning 20p lines then you have a total of 80p in winning bets. You win £400, or 80p-worth of the £1 winnings published.
Or:
If the Tote Placepot pays £400 to a £1 stake and you have two winning £1 lines, your total of £2 of winning bets means you win £800.
How Many Lines Should I Have In My Tote Placepot?
Some horse racing punters will attempt just a single line, which means selecting just one horse in each of the six races. This ‘straight line’ bet can be a tricky ‘all your eggs in one basket’ approach, but if you do get through all six races with a horse placed then you are generally rewarded well.
On the opening day of the 2019 Cheltenham Festival, one punter staked one £2 line and managed to select four winners and two runners-up in the first six races.
As there were several big-priced horses placed on the card the winning dividend paid a staggering £91,283.10 to a £1 stake, meaning this punter bagged double the dividend – £182,567.80!!
That said, most Placepot punters often like to make multiple selections in the races with more horses in as this will give them a better chance of getting a horse placed.
Tote Placepot Top Tips
Banker Races
For the bulk of Tote Placepot punters, the balance is keeping an eye on the number of selections and the total stake – it’s tempting to put 4 or 5 horses in some races, but the perms on this can quickly add up which means your final stake will be very high.
With that in mind, if there are certain races with a hot favourite in, then many like to take a punt on just having this one horse in which will keep costs down.
Note though, if these hot favourites blow out then this will knock a lot of people out and, therefore, increase the final pool dividend a lot.
Take On Dodgy Favourites
As mentioned in the previous section, when a fancied horses fails to place this is where the Placepot final payouts can get massive.
Sometimes it’s a juggling act of playing safe and following the crowd or taking a chance of a hot favourite not running well and, in the process, increasing the final pool dividend.
Let’s be honest, it’s not hard to pick a favourite in each of the six races, but if they do all place, then the chances are that you’ll be sharing this Placepot
Have Multiple Lines In Big-Field Races
The beauty of having one or two banker legs though (1 pick in a race) is that this frees up space for a potential big handicap race later on in the card – meaning you can possibly have 3 or 4 picks in that race to increase your chance.
Remember though, if you have 3 or 4 picks in a certain race and two get placed then you get both lines going through to the next leg – which will increase your final payout.
A good example of this are races at the Cheltenham Festival as most days there is a mix of so-called Festival bankers and big-field handicaps, where 20+ runners or more are entered
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What Happens To Tote Placepot Pick Non-Runners?
If one of your Placepot selections is a non-runner, then that horse will revert to the SP favourite. If there are joint or co-favourites, the lowest racecard number carries your money.
So, if horses numbers 1 and 4 are joint-favourites, it is horse number 1 that will take place of your selected non-runner.
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