Place betting means backing a runner to finish anywhere in the paid places, first included, rather than only to win. On the tote, a race with 8 or more runners at final scratchings pays the first three places and a race with 5 to 7 pays the first two. With 4 or fewer runners the tote takes no place bets at all. A $20 place bet at a fixed $2.40 returns $48 if the runner finishes in those places, winning included, and nothing if it finishes outside them.
Whose rules settle your bet matters as much as the field. The tote and the NSW on-course bookmakers work to written rules; online bookmakers publish their own place terms, which can treat small fields, late scratchings and dead heats differently. The place bet is also half of every each way bet, and horse racing betting sets it beside the win bet and the exotics.
How many places are paid
| Runners | Tote place pool | NSW on-course bookmakers | Online bookmakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 or more | First, second and third | First, second and third | Set in their terms |
| 5 to 7 | First and second | First and second | Set in their terms |
| 4 or fewer | No place betting | Not covered by BR 18 | Set in their terms |
| Field counted | At final scratchings | When the bet is made | Set in their terms |
So a field of 7 pays two places and a field of 8 pays three. NTD, short for no third dividend, is the name for that two-place case: a place bet on the horse that finishes third returns nothing. The tote column comes from the place bet definition in the tote rules Racing and Wagering Western Australia adopted (WA Government Gazette No. 149, 3 August 2010). The on-course column is BR 18 of Racing NSW's Rules of Betting, which covers place-only bets with NSW on-course bookmakers.
What a late scratching does to the places paid
A scratching before final scratchings shrinks the field: on the tote, an 8-runner race that loses a runner by then is a 7-runner race, and pays two places. A late scratching, one made after final scratchings, is where the rule books part ways:
- On the tote, the places stay as the field at final scratchings set them, "notwithstanding any late Scratching", so a race that had 8 runners at final scratchings still pays three places after a late scratching takes it to 7. If the field falls below 5 after final scratchings, the place pool is treated as abandoned and refunded (rules 10.2 and 10.3 of the 2010 gazette).
- Under BR 18, NSW on-course bookmakers count the runners when the bet is made. A bet struck while 8 were running pays three places; a bet struck after a late scratching cut the field to 7 pays two.
- Online bookmakers set their own rule for this. Read their place terms on late scratchings before you assume either answer.
A late scratching also brings a place deduction on fixed-odds place bets struck before it. The Stewards declare it separately from the win deduction, and it can differ from runner to runner. Racing Queensland's stewards' report for Eagle Farm on 21 September 2019 shows how. After a 1:29 pm late scratching, the stewards ordered place deductions of 16c in the dollar for the winner, 16c for the second-placed runner and 13c for the third. Scratchings and deductions explains how a deduction comes off a return.
What a place bet returns at fixed odds and on the tote
At fixed odds, the return is stake x place price, known when the bet is accepted: $20 x 2.40 = $48, a $28 profit. On the tote, the place dividend is declared per $1 after the result, stake included. Under the 2010 tote rules, the place pool, after the operator's commission, is split into equal shares, one for each paid place. Each share is then divided among the money on that placegetter.
That makes your runner's dividend depend on two things: the size of the pool, and how much is riding on your runner. Money for the other runners grows the pool and lifts your share; money for your runner splits your share among more tickets. Tote dividends works the arithmetic. With illustrative figures, say the tote approximate for your runner's place reads $2.60 shortly before the jump:
| Your $20 place bet | Price or dividend (illustrative) | Return if it places | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed odds | $2.40, locked when accepted | $20 x 2.40 = $48.00 | $28.00 |
| Tote, late money for the other runners | $2.85, declared after the race | $20 x 2.85 = $57.00 | $37.00 |
| Tote, late money for your runner | $2.05, declared after the race | $20 x 2.05 = $41.00 | $21.00 |
The fixed price gives up the chance of a higher dividend in exchange for knowing the return before the race. Neither is better in general; they answer different needs.
A dead heat for third, worked in dollars
When two runners dead-heat for the last paid place, the rule books that cover it pay half. BR 16 of Racing NSW's Rules of Betting pays half the face value of the ticket for a dead heat for third with 8 or more starters, and for second with 5 to 7 starters. That is the same as splitting your stake between the runners tied and paying it at full odds. Online bookmakers publish their own dead heat rules, so check your terms; the figures here are illustrative.
| Finish (illustrative) | Stake that counts | Return on $20 at $2.40 | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third outright | $20 | $20 x 2.40 = $48.00 | $28.00 |
| Dead heat for third, two runners | $20 / 2 = $10 | $10 x 2.40 = $24.00 | $4.00 |
| Dead heat for second, 8 or more starters | $20 | $20 x 2.40 = $48.00 | $28.00 |
The last row surprises people. BR 16 halves only a dead heat for first or for the last paid place. Two runners tying for second in a three-place race share second and third, and both place bets are paid in full. On the tote, the 2010 rules split the third-place share of the pool equally between the dead-heaters before dividing each part by the money on that runner. The dead heat rules cover win bets, exotics and other rule books.
Why a place price is not a fixed share of the win price
A place price prices one thing: the chance your runner finishes in the paid places. That chance is not a set fraction of its win chance. It depends on the field, meaning how many runners can beat yours into the places and how strong they are. A bookmaker sets each place price from its own view of that chance, plus its margin. Two bookmakers can therefore show the same win price and different place prices on one runner.
To check a place price, turn it into a chance with implied probability = 1 / price, then set it against the exchange's place market for the same runner. Use the market that pays the same number of places as your bet, because a 2-place market answers a different question. With illustrative prices:
| Source | Place price | Implied chance |
|---|---|---|
| Bookmaker A | $2.40 | 1 / 2.40 = 41.7% |
| Bookmaker B | $2.80 | 1 / 2.80 = 35.7% |
| Exchange 3-place market, back $2.66 and lay $2.74 | Midpoint $2.70 | 1 / 2.70 = 37.0% |
Bookmaker A's $2.40 implies a better chance than the exchange gives the runner, so it is the less generous price. Bookmaker B's $2.80 is longer than the exchange midpoint. The exchange charges commission on net winnings in a market, so its back price is worth a little less than it looks. Exchange place markets covers how they are set up and settled, and how place odds are calculated works a place chance out from the win price.
Doing this check by hand means opening each bookmaker's place market in turn. The Terminal lines up racing and sports prices from 40+ bookmakers and picks out the best available price on each runner, with Betfair back and lay beside them as the reference. Prices there are read on a repeating cycle, so a price on screen can trail the bookmaker's own; confirm it in your bookmaker account before you bet. A free account opens a limited view of the Terminal with live odds. Betfair is a trade mark of its owner, and B337 is not affiliated with it.
Risk: Betting involves risk. An exchange comparison is an estimate of value, not a forecast, and a place bet on a runner that finishes just outside the places loses the whole stake. See responsible gambling for limits and support.
Place, each way or a money back offer
Three different bets pay something when a runner finishes second or third, and they are easy to mix up:
| Bet | What you stake | If the runner wins | If it runs second or third | If it finishes outside the places |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place bet | One stake at the place price | Paid at the place price | Paid at the place price | Stake lost |
| Each way | Two equal stakes, one to win and one to place | Both halves paid | Place half paid | Both halves lost |
| Money back 2nd or 3rd offer | A win bet | Paid at the win price | Stake refunded under the offer, often as a bonus bet | Win bet lost, no refund |
The place half of an each way bet follows the same place terms, and the each way calculator works out its returns at any prices. A money back offer is a promotion on a win bet with its own terms and caps, valued differently, as money back racing promos shows.
Some bookmakers also pay extra places on selected races as a promotion. That is an offer under their terms, for those races, and it does not change the rule on any other bet.
Risk: Betting involves risk. A money back or extra places offer pays only on the races, finishes, caps and terms the bookmaker sets, and a refund often comes as a bonus bet rather than cash. A bonus bet that loses pays nothing, and if the runner finishes outside the places, the win bet simply loses. See responsible gambling for limits and support.
Mistakes that make place bets cost more
- Assuming three places in a field of 7. A third placing then returns nothing, and the whole $20 is lost.
- Taking a very short place price. At an illustrative $1.15, a $20 place bet makes a $3 profit when it places, and one unplaced run costs $20, about what seven successful bets make (7 x $3 = $21).
- Checking against the wrong exchange market. A 2-place market prices a top-two finish, not a top-three one.
- Forgetting the place deduction. After a late scratching, a fixed-odds place bet can be cut by its own deduction, separate from the win deduction.
- Reading the approximate as the dividend. In the table above, a $2.60 approximate was declared anywhere from $2.05 to $2.85.
- Betting place when you expect a win. If your view is that the runner wins, a place bet gives up most of the return; the win price asks your actual question.