Greyhound betting rules decide what happens to your bet when a dog is scratched, a reserve comes in, a box runs empty or the Stewards declare a no race. The Greyhounds Australasia Rules (GAR), effective 1 January 2026, govern the race together with each state's local rules, which prevail where the two conflict (GAR rule 4). The bet is settled by the tote's rules, a state's betting rules, or your bookmaker's own terms.
Money on a scratched dog normally comes back (all-in bets are the exception), winning fixed-odds bets struck before a late scratching can carry a deduction, and the tote and state betting rules refund a no race that is not re-run. Greyhound racing betting covers the race and the bets on offer.
Which rules settle a greyhound bet
| Rule book | Who writes it | What it decides |
|---|---|---|
| Greyhounds Australasia Rules | Greyhounds Australasia, adopted by each state's controlling body | Scratchings, reserves, vacant boxes, a no race, the result |
| State local rules | Each controlling body; NSW's are published by the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission | Scratching times, reserve allocation, and in NSW the betting rules for on-course greyhound bookmakers |
| Tote rules | The tote operator; the 2010 version gazetted in WA is the one cited | Refunds, substitutes and dividends on tote bets |
| WA Rules of Wagering 2005 | WA law, for WA bookmakers | Fixed-odds deductions and re-runs |
| Bookmaker terms | Each bookmaker | Everything else about your fixed-odds bet |
Scratchings before and after the appointed scratching time
A scratching is a dog withdrawn with the Stewards' permission, and the appointed scratching time is the deadline each controlling body sets for applying. In Victoria, scratchings close at 4 pm on the eve of a morning or day meeting, and at 8:30 am on race day for a twilight or night meeting (Greyhound Racing Victoria grading guidelines, effective 5 August 2026).
Before that deadline a reserve can take the scratched dog's place. After it the scratching is late, no reserve can come in (GAR rule 85(6)), and the box runs empty. Late scratchings can come from checks at the track: a veterinarian at kennelling finds a dog unfit (rule 92(2)), or its weight is more than 1.0 kg away from its last race or satisfactory trial without the Stewards' permission (rule 101(1)).
What a late scratching does to bets:
- Money on the scratched dog is refunded, all-in bets aside; on the tote that is rule 9.1.
- Winning fixed-odds bets on other dogs struck before the scratching can lose part of their payout to a deduction the Stewards declare in cents in the dollar. Bets struck after it keep their full price.
- With NSW on-course bookmakers, the Stewards can declare a dog withdrawn after betting opens a non-starter, call off on-course bets on it and order a deduction from the scale in LR184V. If two or more dogs are declared non-starters before the race, every on-course bet is off and betting starts again (LR184U(3)).
Example: Illustrative prices and deduction, not a real race. Box 7, at $8.00, is scratched at kennelling for weight after scratchings have closed, and the Stewards declare a 12c win deduction. Box 2 wins.
| Your bet | When struck | What it pays |
|---|---|---|
| $20 win on box 2 at $3.80 | Before the scratching | Face value: $76 x (1 - 0.12) = $66.88. Winnings only: $20 + $56 x 0.88 = $69.28 |
| $20 win on box 2 at $3.35 | After it, at the re-priced odds | $20 x 3.35 = $67.00, no deduction |
| $20 win on box 7 | Before the scratching | $20 refunded |
Your bookmaker's terms say which reading applies; scratchings and deductions sets both side by side, and the deductions calculator runs your own figure. A floor protects short prices: NSW's greyhound rules stop an on-course deduction leaving a winning win bet with less than the stake plus 5%, dead heats aside. With an illustrative $20 at $1.30 and a 28c deduction off the face value, $20 x 1.30 x (1 - 0.28) = $18.72 becomes $20 x 1.05 = $21.00.
Reserves: when one runs and what happens to bets on it
GAR rule 85 allows one or two reserve greyhounds for a race. A reserve starts only if a dog is scratched by the appointed scratching time, wears rug 9 or 10, and jumps from the box of the dog it replaces.
The GAR settles which of two reserves starts by ballot unless the controlling body decides otherwise (rule 85(10)). At NSW TAB meetings the first reserve takes a single withdrawn dog's box, and after two or more withdrawals a ballot of the free boxes decides where reserves start (LR85A).
| What happens | Who starts | A bet on the scratched dog | A bet on a reserve |
|---|---|---|---|
| One dog scratched before scratchings close, at an NSW TAB meeting with two reserves | The first reserve, from the scratched dog's box | Refunded | The second does not start: refunded on the tote |
| Two dogs scratched before scratchings close, two reserves | Both reserves, boxes by ballot | Refunded | Both start: stands |
| One dog scratched late | Nobody: the box runs empty | Refunded | Neither starts: refunded on the tote |
On the tote, a scratched double, quaddie or BIG6 pick, a reserve that never starts included, moves to the substitute: the runner with the most money on it in the operator's win pool, or BIG6 pool (rules 9.2(a) and 9.3); in a Feature Double the investment is forfeited instead (rule 9.2(b)).
Vacant boxes and what an empty box changes
GAR rule 85(3) names the boxes that run empty when a draw has fewer than eight eligible dogs: box 5 for a field of seven, boxes 3 and 6 for six, unless Greyhound Racing Victoria rules otherwise (local rule 41). After the draw, a dog scratched late leaves its own box empty and the rest keep theirs (rule 85(6)), unless the controlling body orders a redraw (rule 85(7)).
A vacant box changes no rule on your bet by itself. It changes the field size, which can decide how many places are paid, as greyhound place betting works through.
No race, false start and non-starter
The Stewards can declare a false start or a no race when human intervention, a mechanical issue or another extraordinary circumstance stops a race being completed (GAR rule 110(1)), or when the lure's position affected the result (rule 109(3)).
A race put off to another day keeps its boxes, and its scratchings reopen until the new appointed scratching time (rule 111). A non-starter is one dog, not the race: a dog kept from taking part on equal terms by a fault with the boxes, or whose chances an extraordinary circumstance materially prejudiced (rule 110(2)).
| What the Stewards decide | Tote bets (2010 rules) | NSW on-course greyhound bookmakers | WA bookmakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| No race, re-run the same day | Stand: rule 10.3 refunds only a race not re-run | Stand, unless more than one dog is withdrawn or fewer than three remain (LR184T) | Bets on dogs that started the first run stand, with a deduction if one cannot start (r 59(1)) |
| Postponed to another day, or abandoned | Refunded (rule 10.3) | Off (LR184T) | Off and refunded (r 59(2)) |
| A no race in a leg of a double or quaddie | Every selection in that leg counts as a winner, re-run or not (rules 10.5 and 10.6) | Second leg put off to another day: off, with a first-leg winner paid at the Stewards' average last price; both put off: void (LR184AB(3) and (4)) | r 59 makes no exception for doubles: stands on a same-day re-run, off and refunded if postponed or abandoned |
Example: Illustrative price and deduction. You have $10 on box 6 at $4.00 with an NSW on-course bookmaker. The first run is a no race after a lure fault, and box 4 is withdrawn from the same-day re-run. One withdrawal leaves your bet standing, and with a 17c deduction off the face value, as LR184V applies it, a win pays $40 x (1 - 0.17) = $33.20. Had two dogs been withdrawn, every on-course bet would be off and your $10 refunded.
When a greyhound result is official
All Clear comes once the Stewards have confirmed the identity of the first four dogs (GAR rule 115). A dog found before then to have been ineligible, or to have started from the wrong box, can be declared a non-starter, or the race a no race (rule 115(2)).
Found after All Clear, it is disqualified and the placings amended for prize money (rule 117), while rule 116(2) keeps betting on the All Clear placings. The tote rules agree: a result amended after dividends are declared and payment has begun leaves the original dividend standing (rule 7.1(f)).
How to check your bookmaker's greyhound rules
Search its racing rules for "scratching", "deduction", "reserve", "no race", "re-run" and "all in", then answer five questions:
- Does it take deductions off the face value or off the winnings only?
- Does it price reserves before scratchings close, and how does it settle one that does not start?
- Are its early markets all in? NSW on-course bets struck before the box draw are all in where the ticket says so (LR184S).
- Does a bet stand on a same-day re-run, and what happens to a postponed race?
- Does it settle on the All Clear placings, and does it re-settle after a correction?
Mistakes that cost money under greyhound rules
- Expecting a bet on a scratched dog to follow the reserve into its box: it is refunded instead, and the reserve is a runner you have not backed.
- Forgetting the deduction. In the late scratching example, $76 of face value paid $66.88, $9.12 less than the slip showed.
- Taking an all-in price before the box draw: a dog that does not start costs the whole stake.
- Betting again after a no race when your first bet still stands on the re-run, which doubles your stake on the same race.
Risk: Betting involves risk. Knowing the rules changes what a bet pays when a race goes wrong, not how often your dog wins, and there is no guarantee of profit. See responsible gambling for limits and support.
Where B337 fits
B337 is software, not a bookmaker: it does not take bets or hold your betting funds, and your bookmaker settles each bet under its own rules.
The Terminal lines up 40+ bookmakers across racing and sports against Betfair back and lay, and each dog's price history shows the field being re-priced after a late scratching. The board refreshes in cycles, so check the bookmaker's own price before you bet. A free account opens a limited view of the Terminal with live odds. Bookmaker and exchange names are trade marks of their owners, and B337 is not affiliated with them.
Risk: Betting involves risk. A price comparison shows where a price sits, not which dog wins, and a late scratching can cut a winning bet after you place it. See responsible gambling for limits and support.