Triple bets are sometimes also called Trifecta bets. The bet requires that you correctly pick the first three finishers in the race in exact order. The track takeout on exotic bets, such as Triples, is huge. Depending on the track, the house cut of the betting pool ranges from 20%-35%.
Imagine if your poker game cut each pot by that much. It would change your betting style completely. The track take out is listed in the Daily Racing Form for each track, and usually at the track website. You can also call the indiviudual track to ask.
If the track takes out 30% or more, I advise that you stay away from betting the big takeout exotics completely. No matter what you do, you will almost never win a high enough percentage to overcome oa 30%+ track rake. Takeouts between 25% and 29% are borderline. You can still win, but you need to be very careful and selective in what you bet, and you need to make as few bets as possible. The more combinations you bet, the more a big takeout will hurt you.
The Belmont Stakes is coming up this Saturday. Belmont takes out a comparatively low 18.5% on Daily Doubles, Exactas, and Quinellas, and just 16% on the Pick-6 on days when there is no carryover. The takeout takes a giant leap up to 26%, however, on Triples, Pick-3's, Pick-4's, Superfectas, Grand Slams, and the Pick-6 on Days when there is a carryover.
Thus, in general, at Belmont this Saturday the exotics involving three or more horses in the result should be avoided, or played very carefully and only in the surest situations with a minimum number of comhinations.
Quinellas vs. Exactas
One more type of bet for you to avoid if you can't check comparative prices near game time is an exacta box in any race in which there is a quinella.
An exacta requires that you pick the first two finishers in the race in their exact order. When you box an exacta, you get all the possible exactas combining those horses. For example, if you bet a 1-2 exacta, the #1 horse must finish 1st and the #2 must finsih 2nd. If you bet a 1-2 exacta box, you are betting both the 1-2 exacta and the 2-1 exacta. You will win one of the exactas if the #1 and #2 horses finish 1st and 2nd in any order.
A quinella requires that you pick the first two finishers in the race in ANY ORDER. It is single bet covering both exactas in the exacta box. Since it covers both of two bets, it should, in theory, pay exactly half of the exacta amount AFTER deducting the losing exacta in the box from the win. Approximately 75% of the time, however, the quinella will pay more than half. The reason is that the quinella always includes the probability of the higher odds horse of the duo winning, and the lower odds horse will beat the higher odds horse better than 50% of the time.
There should be a quinella and an exacta in the 2nd and 4th races. If you bet a $2 exacta box, since there are two exactas involved, the cost would be $4. Simply bet the quinella for twive as much as you would bet each eacta. You get the same effect -- the #1 and #2 must finish 1st and 2nd in the race in any order, and both the $2 exacta box and the $4 quinella will cost you just $4. You will, however, win more money with the double bet quinella most of the time.
RULE: If you can't check the actual track payouts, you should always make a double bet on the quinella instead of a single amount bet on an exacta box.
As part of my Belmont Day Package, in addition to the Wall Street Syndicate's horse selections in the order they like them in every race they play, I give complete betting advice. I calculate for you when it pays to bet the exotics and which exotics and how to combine the horses. We are coming off a huge winning day on Preakness Day. It was so big that some thought it wasn't possible. You can get the Belmont Package HERE.