2010 Kentucky Derby Betting Guide
America’s got Kentucky Derby fever! Millions of people are getting ready to place their bets on the 2010 Kentucky Derby this Saturday — will you be one of them?
If you want to get in on the action, but don’t know a thing about betting, we’ve got some basic tips to make betting on the Kentucky Derby fun, and possibly very profitable.
There are three easy ways to bet without getting too technical and risking your rent money:
Win bet: This is the simplest and most common bet. You bet on a winner at given odds. You collect only if your chosen horse is the first across the finish line.
Place: A wager for place means you collect if your selected horse finishes either first or second.
Show: A wager to show means you collect if your selected horse finishes either first, second or third.
Calculating payouts on horses is fairly complicated when you get into the technicalities, but as a casual bettor, all you really need to understand is the concept of win odds. Tracks display win odds for every horse in a given race, and they’re given as ratios expressing the amount paid out to a winning ticket relative to the amount you bet. Win odds appear as 3-1, 6-2, 12-1 etc.
Let’s explain further with a simple example. Say you take a long shot on a horse with 12-1 odds. This means you’ll win $12 for every $1 you bet. You were feeling bold (and maybe a little tipsy on mint juleps) and laid down a $20 bet — and your horse won. When you take your winning ticket to the window, you will be paid out $240 ($12 for every $1 you bet). Lucky you!
You don’t have to actually be at the race track either — you can place your bet (we suggest a $20 max for beginners) online at secure, popular betting sites, or head to your local sanctioned offtrack betting spot.
Here are the Kentucky Derby 2010 contenders:
Lookin at Lucky
Ice Box
Noble’s Promise
Super Saver
Line of David
Stately Victor
American Lion
Dean’s Kitten
Make Music for Me
Paddy O’Prado
Devil May Care
Conveyance
Jackson Bend
Mission Impazible
Discreetly Mine
Awesome Act
Dublin
Backtalk
Homeboykris
Sidney’s Candy
The favorites to win the 2010 Kentucky Derby are Lookin for Lucky at 3-1 odds, and Sidney’s Candy at 5-1. Other horses in the field are considered longer shots – but as we mentioned, the potential pay out on a long shot is huge.
So come this Saturday, put on your big hat, grab a mint julep and don’t be afraid to put some money down! You could win a bundle.
