What Is the Pick 4 Bet in Horse Racing?

The goal in horse racing’s Pick 4 is to bet four consecutive race day events and win. The Pick 4 in horse racing is like picking a four-team parlay in sports betting. The main aspect in picking four winners in a row (a horse race or a sports bet) is any loss ruins the whole bet.

Pick 4 in horse racing is available at most popular US tracks, including Churchill Downs, Santa Anita Park and Saratoga Race Course. In the 2000 Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Downs, the Pick 4 bet was introduced. Many US horse tracks today feature two Pick 4 bets in the daily race card.

Horse Racing Betting Sites

The most popular Pick 4 bet is the four races at the end of the card.

As one of the most valued multi-card race bets in the program, the Pick 4 bet has its own separate betting pool and the payouts can be $500 to $1,000 on a regular basis. Depending on the horse track, the Pick 4 bet can escalate to a $5,000 to $10,000 wager on the right weekend.

Pick 4 has only one takeout to pay the race track and all the taxes (20% to 25%). The one-time takeout is another reason why the value is so lucrative.

What Is a Trifecta Bet?

Types of Pick 4 Bets

The straight Pick 4 bet adds up to $2 for picks in all four races. You can pick all four consecutive races for a grand total of $2.

The $1 Pick 4 wheel is a combination of picks for all four races. You can pick two or three horses for each consecutive race. The total amount will be $1 for how many cumulative picks you might make.

One scenario would be picking two horse for the first two races and picking three horses for the next two races. However, the total bet would be $36 (2 horses Race 1 * 2 horses Race 2 * 3 horses Race 3 * 3 horses Race 4).

What Is a W/P/S Bet?

Horse Racing Pick 4 Bets Strategy and Tips

The best payout in the Pick 4 bet have live longshots winning all four races. The worst payout are four favorites winning all four races. One of the best strategy is picking the favorites in the first two races of the daily card and stretching the wager to pick horses at longer odds on the last two races of the day.

There are many ways to generate the Pick 4 bet. However, you want to win the Pick 4 bet no matter how you came up with the plan. The best bet is picking one horse in every consecutive race. If luck (or fate) is on your side, you will be a winner without the cost of multiple selections in each race.

The most likely times of playing the Pick 4 bet are popular horse tracks featuring major graded stakes on the race card. There are more than a few weekends in the year to generate this type of bet. However, Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May and the Breeders’ Cup on the first Saturday in November are two of the best times to play the Pick 4.