A leg is one selection inside a bet that combines several: each game in a multi, each outcome in a same game multi, or each race in a quaddie. Every leg has to come in for the bet to pay, so one losing leg loses the lot, while a void or dead heat leg changes the payout rather than ending it.
Leg also has a second meaning in darts, where it is one game within a match; darts betting covers leg and set markets.
Legs in multis, same game multis and quaddies
The word means the same thing in each bet, but the legs combine differently:
| Bet | One leg is | How the legs combine |
|---|---|---|
| Multi | A selection in a separate game or race | Prices multiply: return = stake x each leg's price |
| Same game multi | One outcome in the same game, such as a team to win and a player to score | Priced together by the bookmaker, since outcomes in one game move together |
| Same race multi | One outcome in a single race | Priced as one bet; under the fixed-odds rules of Racing and Wagering Western Australia (RWWA), a scratched leg refunds the whole bet (rule 62O(2)) |
| Quaddie | The winner of one of four nominated races at one meeting | A tote pool: each leg can hold several runners, and the dividend is declared after the last race |
How one leg's result changes a multi
With illustrative prices, $10 on a four-leg multi at $1.45, $1.80, $2.20 and $1.62:
| What happens | Effect on the price | $10 returns |
|---|---|---|
| All four legs win | 1.45 x 1.80 x 2.20 x 1.62 = 9.302 | $93.02 |
| Any one leg loses | The whole bet loses | $0.00 |
| The $2.20 leg is void | It counts as 1.00: 9.302 / 2.20 = 4.228 | $42.28 |
| The $1.62 leg is void | 9.302 / 1.62 = 5.742 | $57.42 |
| One leg dead-heats with one other selection for its place | That leg pays half its price: 9.302 / 2 = 4.651 | $46.51 |
That gives a quick rule: a void divides the payout by the void leg's price, and a two-way dead heat halves it. On a leg priced above $2.00 a void costs you more than a dead heat; below $2.00, a dead heat costs more. The multi bet calculator runs the same sums on your own legs, void and dead heat legs included.
NSW's Bookmaker Declared Betting Events Betting Rules, for bookmakers licensed there to take sports bets, work the same way (clauses 5.1.9(a) to (c)). A losing leg loses the whole bet, a tied leg is cut by the dead heat method, and an abandoned leg drops out. In WA, a scratched leg in an RWWA fixed-odds racing multi leaves the bet standing at the prices of the remaining legs (rule 62O(1)). Other bookmakers set their own rules, and multi bets explained covers more of them.
How SGM and quaddie legs settle differently
A same game multi takes its legs from one game, and the bookmaker prices them as a whole, so a void leg is settled under its SGM terms, which can re-price the remaining legs or cancel the bet.
In a quaddie each leg is a race, and the combinations are the runners in each leg multiplied together. If one of your runners is scratched, the tote rules RWWA adopted, as gazetted in WA in 2010, switch it to the runner carrying the most money in the win pool when betting closes (rules 9.2 and 9.3). The quaddie calculator works out the combinations and the flexi percentage.
Pricing each leg before you combine them
Because the legs multiply, a few cents on one price carry through to the whole payout: with $1.50 instead of $1.45 on the first leg, the same $10 returns $96.23 (1.50 x 1.80 x 2.20 x 1.62 = 9.623). That is the case for checking each leg before you combine them.
B337's Terminal sets out a game's head to head, line and total markets with one column per bookmaker, and the sports betting guide explains each market. In all, the Terminal shows prices from 40+ bookmakers across racing and sports. Prices refresh on a cycle, so confirm a leg's price in your account. A free account opens a limited view of the Terminal with live odds.
Bookmaker names are trade marks of their owners. B337 is not affiliated with them.
Risk: Betting involves risk. A multi pays only if every leg wins, the bookmaker's margin is charged on each leg, and a longer combined price comes with a lower chance of collecting. See responsible gambling for limits and support.