Greyhound Channel has now extended its account wagering services on Greyhound, Harness and Thoroughbred races to wireless Internet ready phones and PDA's. Greyhound Channel customers can access their accounts, check account balances, totalisator odds, results, payouts and place wagers in any pools offered by host tracks around the country.
There are a number of ways to wager on greyhound races. Here is a brief rundown on the rules of greyhound betting:
$2 WIN
Dog must finish 1st.
$2 PLACEDog must finish 1st or 2nd.
$2 SHOWDog must finish 1st, 2nd, or 3rd.
$2 QUINIELAPlay 2 dogs, they must come in 1st or 2nd in either order.
$3 PERFECTAPlay 2 dogs, they must come in 1st & 2nd in exact order.
$2 TRIFECTAPlay 3 dogs, they must come in 1st, 2nd, & 3rd in exact order.
$1 KEY TRIFECTAPlay 3 dogs, if you key a dog to win, that dog must come in 1st, followed by the other two dogs bet in either order 2nd & 3rd. This bet costs $2 to play as it is a combination of $1 bets.
$1 TRIFECTA BOXPlay 3 dogs, they must finish 1st, 2nd, & 3rd in any order. Bet costs $6 to play as is it is a 6 combinations of $1 bets.
$2 SUPERFECTAPlay 4 dogs, they must finish in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, & 4th in exact order.This is a straight bet, $2 to play.
$1 SUPERFECTAPlay 4 dogs, they must come in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, & 4th in any order. Bet costs $24 to play as it consists of 24 -$1 bets.
Although physically racing greyhounds is banned in most US states, online greyhound betting is still legal in most of the US. There are a couple of reputable US-based online greyhound betting sites where you can place bets of all different odds on your favorite dogs.
In this guide, we’re going to give you the lowdown on the legality of greyhound racing, show you how to bet on dog races, explain how greyhound betting works, and explain all the different types of bet that you can place on greyhound races.
I hope you enjoy our greyhound betting guide!
First things first, we need to talk about the law. Greyhound racing is a hot topic in the United States and remains controversial because some greyhounds are treated poorly by their owners. However, it’s worth noting that many greyhound trainers take good care of their dogs and rehome them once they’re too old to race any more.
Regardless, there are many legal restrictions in place.
Greyhound racing (i.e. the physical act of racing the dogs) is banned in most US states, but 6 states currently allow it and have greyhound racing tracks in operation – Florida (12 tracks), Texas (3 tracks), Alabama (1 track), Arkansas (1 track), Iowa (1 track) and West Virginia (2 tracks).
However, Florida recently voted to outlaw greyhound races for 2021, so as of January 2021, all 12 Floridian tracks will cease to be used. This will leave 8 greyhound racing tracks across 5 states in the US – Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, and West Virginia.
The act of betting on a greyhound race taking part in another state is not illegal in most states – the majority of states allow you to legally watch live greyhound racing in other states and use greyhound racing betting sites to gamble on the outcome of the race. The laws on this are always changing, so double-check the legal status in your state.
So why is there this strange exception to the rules?
Well, back in 2006, the United States introduced anti-gambling measures known as theUnlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act or UIGEA for short. Due to lobbying from the powers that be, horse racing and greyhound racing were exempt from the bill, keeping it legal to bet on horse racing and greyhound races in most US states despite the act itself being banned in many of them.
Hopefully that clears things up!
If you’re looking for online betting sites that let you bet on greyhound races, you won’t find many trustworthy examples. The best greyhound betting sites are based in the US, have been around for many years, and have a very trustworthy reputation.
It’s not easy to find these sites!
The best online betting sites for greyhound races will have deals with racing tracks that allow them to stream greyhound races live to bettors in other states. They will also be legally licensed and they must pool their money with the physical racetracks to ensure that all winning gamblers get an equal cut whether they placed the bet online or in person.
Here are the 2 best betting sites for greyhound racing online:
Bet America is a race betting website that is safe, reputable, and based in the US. The website features a live racing feed, and you can bet on horses as well as greyhound races. You can also gamble in their online casino, play online poker, and there are real-money welcome bonuses for new players.
Pros
Cons
Established way back in 1993, TVG has been a prominent name in the race betting industry for nearly 30 years. This US-based race betting company is perhaps best known for its association with the TVG horse races channel (a.k.a the greyhound racing channel). TVG has a mobile-friendly betting site and decent welcome bonus promotions for new gamblers.
Pros
Cons
If you want to know the best way to bet on dog races, you have 2 options:
Unless you live in (or near) one of the handful of states where greyhound racing is legal, you’re probably not going to get to a greyhound race easily. For most Americans, betting on greyhounds online is the best option. Also remember that betting sites are legally required to pool their wagers with the tracks, so the odds and winnings are the same either way.
Just to remind you – some states ALSO do not allow betting on greyhound races online, so make sure you’re in a state where at least one of these options is available to you. If you’re in a state where both greyhound racing AND online gambling are banned, then you’re out of luck I’m afraid!
Though there are many racing betting sites out there, the 2 I would recommend are Bet America and TVG.
So, now you know where to place your bets legally, but how exactly does greyhound racing betting work? If you’re used to betting on horses, then it’s basically the same thing, but here’s a guide for beginners:
First things first, we need to talk about parimutuel wagering. Basically, parimutuel wagering means that all wagers of the same type get pooled together and the potential payouts are based on the total money bet on the greyhounds after the house takes its cut and taxes from the pool.
So basically, the more people that put money down on different greyhounds, thelarger the pool of money becomes. The more people that put money down, the more the winners will get back in return. The final payout odds cannot be known until the last bet has been placed and finalized.
Not as complicated as it seems!
Betting sites and greyhound tracks love this system because they’re always making a profit – players aren’t competing with the house; they’re competing with each other. The house always takes a cut from the pool regardless of what happens.
If you’re familiar with horses racing bets, the rules are pretty much the same – daily double, pick 3, straight and exotic bets, etc. If you’re totally new to all of this, allow me to introduce you to the main 2 types of bets – straight bets and exotic bets.
Okay, so there are 4 types of straight bet that you’re likely to come across:
Pretty simple, right?
As the name implies, exotic bets are a little more complex. There are 10 main types of exotic bet that you’ll find on betting sites, though there may be slight variations. I know this wall of bets below looks intimidating, but it’s mostly quite simple stuff:
While it’s maybe not the most morally upstanding sport in the world, greyhound betting is still legal in most of the US. If you’re looking to put money on the best greyhound betting sites, I’d recommend Bet America and TVG above all else. These racing betting sites allow you to place a range of straight and exotic bets on multiple races all around the country.
Hopefully this guide has taught you your Daily Double from your Pick 3 and helped you to use a racing betting site without worry. If you have any greyhound racing tips or a racing betting site that you recommend, feel free to leave a comment below!