The straight trifecta is one of the most popular bets in horse racing due to its simplicity and high profit potential.
Trifecta betting involves selecting three horses to finish first, second, and third place in that order. Predicting the top three finishers is not enough to win; the bet only pays when the bettor correctly predicts the top three finishers in exact order.
Winning a trifecta in horse racing is difficult, but when it does hit, the resulting payout is very generous.
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Straight Trifecta Horse Racing Betting Example
Consider a race with eight runners, Horse #5 is the overwhelming favorite, and the others are priced at odds ranging from 3-1 to 25-1.
The bettor in this imaginary example decides to take a shot at a big payday and places a trifecta. The bettor could pick three longshot horses for an even bigger payout, but in this case, he decides to play it somewhat conservatively by choosing Horse #5 to finish in first place, followed by Horse #3 in second place, and Horse #7 in third place.
The bettor places a $2 trifecta on 5-3-7, and the bet happens to be right on the money. Horse #5 is the first past the line, Horse #3 takes second, and Horse #7 finishes third, precisely as the bettor predicted. For his trouble, the bettor earns a payout of more than $600.
It’s a big win for a $2 wager, but $600 is not unheard of for a winning trifecta. The horse racing trifecta tends to yield large payouts due to its popularity (large betting pools) and difficulty (fewer winning tickets to split the prize).
How to Place A Horse Racing Trifecta Online
Placing a trifecta horse bet begins with logging in to your online racebook and selecting a race. Horse racing betting apps and websites typically show users a list of races starting soon immediately after logging in.
Clicking or tapping on any upcoming race opens the program, where users can see a list of runners, betting options, current wagering pools, and so on. The layout varies from one racebook to the next, but they typically provide a menu of available bet types prominently near the top of the program.
For example, the following image shows BettingUSA building a $5 trifecta wager on horses Martha Max, Penny Girl, and Caesar’s Shot in that order:
Looking at the menu just above the list of runners, one can see that BettingUSA created this wager in four steps:
- Selecting “TRI” for trifecta
- Selecting “straight” to keep it simple as opposed to boxing or keying the bet
- Selecting “5” for a $5 wager
- Using the selectors on the right to designate Martha Max in first place, Penny Girl in second place, and Caesar’s Shot in third place
And finally, BettingUSA placed the wager by hitting the submit wager button (not shown). The process varies somewhat across different horse racing betting sites, but it always involves choosing the wager type, bet amount, and designating three horses.
Average Trifecta Payout
So, how much does a trifecta pay?
Pinning down the average trifecta horse racing payout is difficult due to the diverse payouts the bet generates from one race to the next. Trifecta odds are usually tempting, but they can vary wildly.
Total betting action, the number of runners, and how the public perceives each runner all impact the payout. However, it is safe to say trifecta bet horse racing odds make it one of the sport’s most (potentially) lucrative wagers.
For example, consider the Kentucky Derby. The Kentucky Derby trifecta has paid anywhere from $173 to $22,951 on a $2 bet in recent years. Even at the lower end, netting more than $170 on a $2 bet is a terrific outcome. When longshot horses manage to place, trifecta payouts can increase exponentially.
Bettors can aim for lottery-tier payouts by picking three longshot horses for their trifectas, but the odds of winning with such a bet also resemble those of the lottery. Trifectas are challenging to win as it is, and the payouts are never small, so the best play for bettors is to take a little time to make strategic picks and accept the resulting payout, whatever it is.
Trifecta Box Betting
The trifecta box bet allows bettors to select three or more horses and bet on every possible combination of a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place showing for those horses. If the prospect of picking exactly three horses and predicting their finishing places in order sounds daunting, the trifecta box is the answer.
Trifecta box bets cost more than straight trifectas because they cover every winning combination, but they significantly increase the bettor’s odds of winning. For example, a $2 three-horse trifecta box costs $12. Adding a fourth horse bumps up the price to $48. These are not cheap bets, but they are effective and can potentially yield a large payout for winners.
Read more: Trifecta box bets
Trifecta Key Bets
A trifecta key bet allows the bettor to select one horse as the “key” horse to finish in first place, and two or more additional horses to finish in second and third place in any order.
If the straight trifecta seems too hard to win, but boxing it is too expensive, consider the trifecta key. Trifecta key box bets occupy a happy middle ground between both ends of the spectrum by letting bettors cover the likeliest outcomes only.
The trifecta key provides more winning combinations than a straight trifecta but not as many as a standard box bet. With this bet, bettors can eliminate the least likely outcomes from the wager and only pay for the likeliest combinations.
For example, a bettor who believes Horse #2 is by far the best of the field could key that horse with three other horses that look likely to place. This bet would pay if Horse #2 finishes first and any of the other selections finish in second and third place in any order.
Read more: Trifecta key bets
Trifecta Horse Racing Betting FAQ
Mike Murphy is the founder of BettingUSA.com and has over 10 years of experience in the legal gambling industry. A regular attendee of industry trade shows and conferences, Mike is a strong proponent in the idea of a well regulated online betting industry.