1. Kentucky Derby Exotic Bets
2. Kentucky Derby Exotic Wagering
3. Kentucky Derby Exotic Bets

What to expect from exotic wagers. In horse racing, there are many standard terms that you will hear when it comes to placing a bet. For example, the types of exotic wagers are superfecta, trifecta, exacta, pick six, pick three, and the daily double. All of these are variations on the standard wagers that are called win, show, and place.

Newcomers or once-a-year visitors to the racetrack can easily figure out straight wagers like Win, Place, and Show, but what about so-called 'exotic' bets?

1. Let’s take a look at some exotic bets and strategies that are appealing in this year’s Kentucky Derby. In an exacta wager, all you have to do is pick the top two finishers. This is easier said than done in a field of twenty horses. One strategy with an exacta.
2. Exotic bets provide bigger payouts, but require a better understanding of the field. The minimum bet for most wagers is $2, though it’s lowered to $1 on a Box Trifecta and Box Superfecta. Straight Bets (Minimum Cost) Win ($2)- Horse must win race to win bet. Place ($2) – Horse must finish 1st or 2nd to win bet. Show ($2) – Horse must finish 1st, 2nd or 3rd to win bet.

The number of intra-race and multi-race wagers has exploded in the last several decades. Once limited to just Win, Place, Show and one Daily Double on a card, bettors now have numerous ways to play a single race or multiple races.

Intra-race wagers, such as the Exacta, Trifecta, Superfecta, or Super Hi-5, require the bettor to pick the top two, three, four, and five finishers in order, respectively. Multi-race wagers, such as the Double, Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, and Pick 6 require bettors to pick the requisite number of winners in consecutive order.

If you're a first-time exotics bettor, be sure to find out the minimum cost of each wager (usually $1, but 50 cents or less for some multi-race wagers). For intra-race wagers, you can 'box' a number of horses to finish in any order or 'wheel' one or more horses to finish in front or behind one or more horses.

Here are examples of what a wheel and part wheel would look like for a $1 Exacta in a six-horse field and its total cost:

WHEEL: $1 Exacta 1 with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 = $5

PART WHEEL: $1 Exacta 3 with 1, 2, 4, 5 = $4

PART WHEEL WITH MULTIPLE HORSES: $1 Exacta 1, 2, 3 with 1, 3, 4, 5 = $10

Wheeling is also the preferred method of play in most multi-race wagers. Not only does it give you a better chance at cashing, but each combination only costs the posted minimum amount of the wager.

Using the TwinSpires app is a quick and easy way to play exotics. Deposit the amount you want to spend into your account, and then choose which bet you want to wager. It will then tell you the minimum cost for each combination. Whether you choose the bet minimum or a higher denomination, you will then be able to select your horses for each position or leg.

Kentucky Derby Exotic Bets

Exotic wagers might seem intimidating and can be challenging to hit, but actually placing them isn't.

Based in large part on a stunning victory in the San Felipe (G2), Life Is Good closed as the 2-1 overall favorite in Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 4, cementing his reputation as the horse to beat on the first Saturday in May.

Conditioned by six-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Bob Baffert, Life Is Good was the individual favorite in the first three future pools as well, offering odds between 5-1 and 7-1. But Life Is Good’s eight-length romp in the San Felipe encouraged bettors to drive his odds even lower than usual, leaving the typically favored “All Other Three-Year-Olds” option as the distant 7-1 fourth choice by the time betting closed on Sunday.

The undefeated two-year-old championEssential Quality (5-1) and Fountain of Youth (G2) winnerGreatest Honour (6-1) were also popular at the betting windows, albeit without challenging Life Is Good for overall supremacy.

Kentucky Derby Exotic Wagering

The low prices on the three favorites understandably drove up the odds on the remaining betting interests. Rounding out the options in Pool 4 were Caddo River (16-1), Mandaloun (17-1), Concert Tour (17-1), Prevalence (29-1), Collaborate (29-1), Keepmeinmind (30-1), Highly Motivated (36-1), Medina Spirit (39-1), Proxy (41-1), Risk Taking (42-1), Midnight Bourbon (52-1), Hot Rod Charlie (53-1), Spielberg (63-1), Candy Man Rocket (71-1), Dream Shake (71-1), The Great One (79-1), Freedom Fighter (84-1), Roman Centurian (94-1), Rombauer (109-1), and Hush of a Storm (146-1).

Helium and Weyburn, the respective upset winners of the Tampa Bay Derby (G2) and Gotham (G3) over the weekend, were not offered for individual betting, instead being grouped with the All Other Three-Year-Olds option.

All told, $322,477 was wagering in Pool 4, including $90,844 in exactas.

Kentucky Derby Exotic Bets

Coinciding with the Kentucky Derby pool was the annual Kentucky Oaks Future Wager, which saw the well-bred Rachel Alexandra (G2) winnerClairiere settle as the 7-2 favorite over “All Other Three-Year-Old Fillies” at 5-1. Considering the Rachel Alexandra has produced five Oaks winners since 2010, bettors appear to have made a well-informed choice.

Rachel Alexandra runner-up Travel Column closed as the third choice at 6-1, followed by Malathaat (7-1), Will’s Secret (14-1), Simply Ravishing (15-1), Vequist (19-1), Pass the Champagne (20-1), Dayoutoftheoffice (22-1), Kalypso (23-1), Wholebodemeister (28-1), Zaajel (28-1), Pauline’s Pearl (28-1), Search Results (31-1), Li’l Tootsie (35-1), Crazy Beautiful (39-1), Obligatory (40-1), Moraz (47-1), Sun Path (55-1), Bow Bow Girl (56-1), Lady Mystify (63-1), Coach (67-1), Willful Woman (103-1), and Souper Sensational (110-1).

The Oaks pool attracted $78,290, including $20,771 in exactas. In addition, a Kentucky Oaks/Derby Double Future Wager—tasking bettors with selecting the winners of both races—drew $70,727. The All Other Three-Year-Old Fillies/Life Is Good double was the preferred combination, projecting a return of $19.90 for every $1 bet.

The fifth and final Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool will take place from March 26-28, five weeks before the first Saturday in May.