| Common Wagering Terms |
| Term |
Explanation |
| Abandoned |
When a meeting or part meeting is not conducted, generally
for weather and or safety reasons. All bets on abandoned races at the TAB are fully
refunded. |
| Apprentice Jockey |
A Jockey apprenticed to a Trainer. If the apprentice Jockey
has won less than a certain number of races he may claim a ‘weight allowance’ so
the horse carries a lighter weight to compensate for his inexperience. |
| All In |
TAB Sportsbet term for bets placed before the final field is
known. Bets can be placed on any competitor nominated to start in the race or compete
in the event however if the competitor does not compete in the event there is no
refund and the bet is a losing bet. |
| All clear |
The act of declaring the official result for greyhound and
harness races. All clear must be given before dividends can be paid on a race. |
| Barriers |
Races begin from a set of starting stalls that are referred
to as barriers. |
| Blinkers |
Equipment placed on the horse’s head that restrict vision to
prevent the horse from being distracted. |
| Checked |
When a horse is interfered with and has to change stride or
slow down. |
| Class of Races |
As in all sports, horses are put into various classes. A horse
which has not won any sort of race is referred to as a Maiden. When they have won
a maiden race they move into classes.
Class 1 is restricted to horses that have only won one race, Class 2 is for horses
that have won two races, and so on up to Class 6 for horses that have won six races.
Once a horse has won more than six races, it graduates to open company.
Open company includes categories such as Welters, Group and Listed Races etc. Two
and three year olds often race in events restricted entirely by their age. Similarly,
there are also races restricted to horses of the same gender. |
| Colours |
The racing silks worn by the jockey or driver. |
| Dam |
The mother of the horse or greyhound |
| Deductions |
The amount by which a TAB Sportsbet dividend is reduced in
the event of a scratched runner in a final field bet. |
| Derby |
A race restricted to three year old horses. |
| Dividend |
Payout from TAB betting. |
| Each way bet |
The common practice of backing a horse or greyhound to win
and to run a place. |
| Even money |
Odds that give punters the chance to double their money, e.g.
get $10 back from a $5 bet. |
| Favourite(s) |
Runner(s) with the most money bet on it, therefore considered
by most people as likely to be the race winner. |
| Field |
All of the runners in one race. |
| Filly |
A female horse less than four years old. |
| Fixed Returns |
Calculate your payout by multiplying the fixed return shown
on the TAB Sportsbet displays by the amount you want to bet. For example, if you
bet $10 on a fixed return of $4.00, the payout will be $40. And remember, the return
is fixed from the time you place your bet. It is important to remember that final
field dividends are subject to deductions in the case of scratching. |
| Form |
As found in a form guide, it consists of a listing of each
runner’s previous performances including wins, placings, whether or not the runner
has run at this track, and how it has performed under specific track conditions. |
| Gallops (also known as thoroughbred) |
In this kind of racing, horses are ridden by jockeys around
race tracks over varying distances. |
| Handicap |
Generally refers to the weight a horse carries. It is made
up by the weight of the jockey, the saddle and any lead weights added to the saddle. |
| Handicapper |
Race official who allocates specific weights which a horse
must carry in a race. The Handicapper takes into account current and past form,
so, in theory, each horse is allocated a weight that will give it an equal chance
of winning. |
| In the red |
Less than even money odds |
| InfoTAB Terminal |
Can be found in TABs and is a comprehensive and easy-to-use
screen that provides the latest TAB information on both TAB Sportsbet and Racing. |
| Legs |
Races nominated by the TAB to form the first, second, third
or fourth legs of a bet type involving more than one race, i.e. a Double, Treble
or Quadrella. |
| Light flashing |
A term race commentators use when a race is about to commence
as indicated by a flashing light above the starting stalls or boxes. |
| Length |
The measurement from the horse or greyhounds head to tail. |
| Lure |
Name of the piece of equipment greyhounds chase around the
course. |
| Maiden race |
An event restricted to runners which have not won a race. |
| Mare |
A female horse over four year of age. |
| Odds-On |
Same as "in the red" defined above. |
| Protest |
Jockeys, Trainers, Stewards or Owners may lodge a protest if
they believe that their runner has been interfered with during a race. Payouts are
suspended until race stewards, who may decide to change the order of winners and
placegetters, consider the protest. |
| Rating |
System to quantify past race results for a runner taking into
account the class of race, weight carried, beaten or winning margin, barrier position,
in-race interference and sectional and overall times. |
| Refund |
Refund of the bets on scratched runners in certain pools. Scratched
runners are not refunded in Double, Treble and Quadrella pools as the bet is transferred
to a substitute. |
| Return |
The dividend you receive on a particular bet |
| Runner |
Individual horse or greyhound in a race. |
| Scratching |
A runner withdrawn from a race before the starting time. If
your runner is scratched after you’ve placed a bet, your money will be refunded.
The exception is Multiple Leg Bets, in which case your bet will be transferred to
the TAB substitute. In the case of an All-Up bet, the base or accumulated bets are
transferred to the next race selection, simply skipping the race with the scratching.
If it is the last leg, the final dividend is the last race that was run and won. |
| Steeplechases & Hurdles |
Jockeys ride horses over various sizes fences placed at intervals
around the track. |
| Race Stewards |
Racing Officials who oversee the integrity and safety of races. |
| Substitute |
The runner at race jump with the most amount of money in the
Win pool i.e. the favourite. Only applies to Double, Treble and Quadrella betting. |
| Tip |
Suggestion about a likely winner from an expert. |
| Totalisator/Parimutuel |
A term for a system used to total and calculate bets and dividends.
With a totalisator System, all the money from bets is put into pools for each bet
type on each race. A commission is deducted and the remaining pool of money is then
shared by those who picked the winners. If a popular horse wins, many people will
be sharing the same pool of money and they will get a smaller dividend for each
$1 bet. Conversely, if the winner isn’t as popular then those people who bet on
it will receive a higher dividend. The concept can be seen as being extremely fair,
as the Totalisator acts only as a 'stake holder' with the participants themselves
setting the return. Dividends are simply a reflection of the weight of money bet
on the winning selections. |
| Track Condition |
There are five track ratings in Australia : Fast (very hard),
Good (firm), Dead (slight give in the surface), Slow (soft), and Heavy (bog). |
| Trainer |
The person who prepares a horse or greyhound for racing. |
| UNiTAB Pool |
Is the pool Queensland, South Australia and Northern Territory
punters bet into. |
| Weigh-in |
After each race, the jockey and saddle are weighed together
to be sure the placegetters carried the correct handicap weight they were allocated. |
| Weight-for-age |
A class of race where weights are allocated on a set scale
according to the age and the sex of the horse. |