subject: 336 Ways to Win Trifectas in Eight Horse Races a Wagering Strategy [print this page] Did you know there are 336 ways to win a trifecta in an 8 horse race? In a race with 7 horses there are 210 ways to win. So it appears that playing a race with 8 horses is a good way to hit trifectas, as long as you know what those ways are. The ways, or wagering strategy, are simple enough, but unfortunately, so are the ways you can lose. You see, there are also 336 ways to lose a trifecta in an 8 horse race.
The reason is that there are that many possible combinations in an eight horse race. If you box the whole field for a dollar, it will cost you $336. You can't possibly lose, right? Well obviously you need a race where the dollar trifecta payoff is over $336 to make a profit. In a 7 horse field you need a dollar tri that pays at least $210. Those kinds of payoffs only happen when a long shot gets into the tri.
Once in a while a wise guy comes along and tries to beat the races by finding races that seem like they are wide open and then boxing all the horses. Sometimes they are even foolish enough to think they can't lose. The sad truth is that they usually do wind up losing all their money. Obviously, they don't lose it all at once because no matter what combination comes in they will get something back, they can't get skunked when they hold all the combinations, but they can get back less money than they spent.
That is the big problem when using that strategy. At the races, the biggest problem for long term profits is the vig. It is a really big problem when playing exotic bets like trifectas because they take a healthy chunk of your money, usually around 25% and that may not even include the breakage. Their are other wagering strategies that make more sense if you spot a race that appears to have some long shots that may win or at least get into the tri.
One way is to identify one horse that appears capable of finishing first, second, or third. To wheel it in all three positions will cost you 3 X $42 or $126. That is a far cry from $336. It still means you'll have to hit a pretty big trifecta, but if you are sure of your longshot, it may be worth a try. The obvious problem is finding longshots that really do appear to be live. If you can spot them, why can't the rest of the crowd?
336 Ways to Win Trifectas in Eight Horse Races a Wagering Strategy
