How to Track Belmont Stakes Odds for Place

When placing a bet for a horse to place at the Belmont Stakes, the final contest in the Triple Crown of horse racing, you are wagering that the horse in question will finish in either first or second place. In order to track those odds, you will need to find a few statistics, and plug them into a very basic mathematical formula.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Track the odds for a particular horse to place in the Belmont Stakes by finding out the total place pool figures on the leaderboard or tote board at the racing venue. You can also visit the official website for the Belmont Stakes to find these figures (see Resources below).
2. Subtract the "take" from the total, which usually ranges from 15 to 20 percent, depending upon your state. The take covers all local and state taxes, the costs of running the horse-racing venue and any other miscellaneous expenses. In New York, where the Belmont Stakes contest is held, the take is 14 percent for straight bets.
3. Divide the total place pool by two, which will account for the fact that a horse's chances for winning or placing in the Belmont Stakes are effectively doubled in theory over a straight win.
4. Calculate the total payoff for that particular horse. For instance, if $1200 is in the place pool and $200 has been subtracted for the take, that leaves $1000, which is then divided in half, leaving $500. If an additional $200 has been bet on your particular horse to place, divide the $500 by 200, which will leave $2.50.
5. Convert the $2.50 figure from the payout into the appropriate odds ratio, which translates to exactly two and a half to one.
6. Round out the total amount to the nearest nickel, dime or quarter, depending upon the venue. For instance, if the payoff amount came to $2.33, the racing venue might lower the odds to 2.3 or even 2.2 to one.

Tips & Warnings

• Since a bet to place is much more conservative than a bet to win, the odds are generally lower and the potential payout much smaller.