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Calculate Your Bets - Betting and Bets Explained - How To Work Out Single Bets.

This article will explain how to work out your bets and betting - by calculator or manually by fractions.

This is the easy bit singles - see also How to Calculate Multiple Bets

The betting market can be extremely difficult for the newcomer to understand when betting on horses,football,or anything for that matter.

Also there are many seasoned punters who don't really understand how betting works or any idea of what they have won or trying to appreciate what they will win before placing their wagers.

It is even more confusing now as there are many formats used - fractions,decimal,and also the odds displayed at Betting Exchanges which include your stake in prices.

Why are the odds so peculiar with prices like 13/8 and 15/8

Until 1971 England operated a strange currency where the pound consisted of 240 pence to the pound.

There was pence,shillings,florins,two and six,five shillings,ten shillings and the pound.

The odds first introduced were compiled to accommodate the old two shillings and six pence.

The odds were based on one eighth to fit the two and six which was one eighth of a pound.

Also bear in mind that in 1971 there were no computers,and even calculators had hardly made any impact.

For this reason all bets,even multiple bets were calculated mentally,on paper using fractions.

Its all different now,and i will explain how to work out your bets both using a calculator and also manually by fractions.

For continuity i will refer to horses and use the pound as stake unit,but it does not matter which sport you bet on or what currency you use.

Also the returns in examples will be to just 2 decimal places which will be adequate for most bets.

THE SINGLE BET - HOW TO CALCULATE

A bet on say 2/1 is easy to work out - You win £2 plus £1 stake.

But what about 13/8,11/8 or 7/4 etc.

Lets Analyse 7/4.

Its fairly simple - use your calculator - (scroll down if you want manual instructions to work out by fractions).

Just add the right hand number (4) to the left hand number (7) and then divide that number by the original right hand number (4).

So 7+4 divided by 4 = 2.75

If you bet one pound the answer is £2.75.

Maybe you bet with £5 - just do same calculation 7+4 divided by 4 times 5 = £13.75.

Lets do 11/8

Again just add the 8 to the 11 making 19 and then divide by 8.

11 + 8 divided by 8 = £2.375

£1 wins you £2.37 and just multiply by your stake if bigger than £1.

   Odds on works just the same.

Lets look at 8/13

simple ! 8+13 divided by 13 = £1.62

Again if stake is different to £1 - lets say £2.50 just do - 8+13 divided by 13 times 2.5 = £4.04.

Decimal bets are also just the same.

Lets do 9/5

14(which is again 9+5)divided by 5 = £2.80 to £1 stake.

Each Way Bets - This is How to Calculate

Just the same as above calculations for singles !

You do of course need to work out new price,which is simple.

Lets say you backed a 5/1 shot at 1/5th odds a place.

This ones easy 5/1 multipled by 1/5 = 5/5 which is 1/1,in other words evens.

Lets look at 13/8 at fifth odds.

So,the new price is 13/8 multipled again by 1/5 which = 13/40.

13/40 is new price,and as you now know from doing singles on a calculator that you just add both figures and then divide by 40 = 13 + 40 divided by 40 = 1.32.

Again,if you bet £5 just multiply answer by 5.

Those who want to know manually how to get there.it is just the same as explained in working out single prices manually.

So,new price is 13/40 which is 1/3 minus 1/40th(which makes 13/39 which is 1/3) = £1.00 + .33 minus 01 = £1.32.

Bet £5 ? - just multiply by 5 after working out for one pound or manually go 5.00 + 1.67 minus .04 = £6.63.

Lets do 7/4 at 1/4 Odds.

New price is 7/4 multiplied by 1/4 = 7/16 new price.

Calculator easy at 23 divided by 16 = £1.44.

Manually,7/16 is half minus 1/8th = 1.00 + 50 minus .06 = £1.44.

Confused by Dead Heats ? - This is what You Get

When i worked in the betting shops,dead heats caused plenty of arguments - many punters just could not grasp or accept the dead heat rules.

Many gamblers,including experienced players always think they get half the odds when a horse dead heats for first place - wrong !

You get half your stake onto original odds - same thing ? - no.

Work it out.

Many punters think if they have bet £10 on a dead heat winner at say 8/1 odds,they think they get £10 on the winner at 4/1 - half the odds.

Not so,they get £5 at 8/1 - it is the stake that is halved not the price.

There is a big difference....

£10 at 4/1 returns £50.

£5 at 8/1 only gets you £45 - which is what you are entitled to.

Rule 4 Deductions - How to work out the Deductions

Rule 4 deductions are made when a horse is withdrawn late and not enough time for the bookmakers to form a new market.

If another horse is withdrawn,then your selection obviously has a better chance of winning,so the Rule 4 balances that out.

Lets do a 30 pence in the pound Rule 4 Deduction.

Its quite easy,lets say you have backed a 4/1 winner that is subject to a .30p Rule 4 deduction.

Just put 4/1 times 7/10(which is 100 less 30 deduction 70/100 reduced to 7/10)

So,4/1 times 7/10 = 28/10 which is same as 14/5 which is your new price.

Another example 10p Rule 4 Deduction to 7/4 winner.

Now its 7/4 times 9/10 = 63/40.

Looks horrendous to work out,but just refer to calculator or manual instructions for singles - the method is identical.

Calculator says £2.57 for £1

Manual ............look at odds 63/40 ............Evens + Half + 1/10 + half ................£1.00 + £1.00 + .50 + .05 + .02 = £2.57.

This is the easy bit singles - see also How to Calculate Multiple Bets

So,you want to do bets manually - here's how

Now you need to look at those odds as fractions.

Lets do 13/8 again,but this time manually.

To arrive at the answer you need to make the 2 numbers equal - in this case 13/13

So look at odds - you need to get the 8 up to 13.

Easy ! ........... 8 + 4 + 1.

In other words evens plus a half(as 4 is half of 8 you always refer to the number on your immediate left hand side) then plus a quarter (1 is one quarter of 4).

So,13/8 is evens plus half plus a quarter - every time whatever the stake.

So,£1 at 13/8 = £1 + £1 +.50 + .12 = £2.62 (actually it is £2,625,but £2.62 will suffice for £1 bets)

Maybe you bet £3 at 13/8 - now it is £1 + £1 + .50 +.12 times 3 = £7.87.

You can of course do it from start for £3............£3 + £3 + £1.5 + .37 = £7.87.

Another example this time 7/4

Just make 4 up to the 7 to get 7/7.

So,fractions are Evens(4) + half (2) + half again(1)

£1 bet ...............£1 + £1 + .50 + .25 = £2.75.

£5 bet ................£5 + £5 + £2.50 + £1.25 = £13.75.

Another example this time 11/4

Approach this differently - look at the odds.

11/4 is almost 3/1(that is 12/4).

Its quicker if you now do 3/1 minus a quarter.

So,£1 at 11/4 .....................£4 less a quarter = £3.75.

Remember the quarter above in this case refers to just £1 not £4 as you just took shortcut and there was no point in doing it in full i.e..........£1 + £1 + £1 +£1 minus quarter = £3.75.

Doing it like 7/4 or 13/8 would look like this for 11/4..................evens + evens + half + half.............£1 + £1 + £1 +.50 +.25 = £3.75................but deducting a quarter in this case is quicker.

Decimal odds are just the same.

Lets do a decimal bet,and it is just the same - example 7/5.

You again have to balance to 7/7

Get 5 to 7 by saying evens + 2/5.

So £1 at 7/5 = £1 + £1 +.40 = £2.40.

£5 at 7/5 = £5 + £5 + £2 = £12.

Odds on shots are not difficult !

Many punters struggle with odds on bets as they do seem complicated especially to newcomer.

They are not so hard - lets do 8/13.

Again just look at fraction and get to the nearest easy figure.

8/13 is almost 4/6(i.e 8/12)

4/6 is 2 thirds of unit,so you know £1 will win £1.66.

But that is the returns for 4/6 - you need to turn 4/6 (8/12)into 8/13 which is the odds you are calculating.

So this is how .............use odds for 4/6 then subtract 1/13 to get accurate figure.

Its not as hard as it sounds.

£1 + .66(which is 2/3 of £1) minus .04 (which is 1/13 of .66) = £1.62

Another odds on example - 4/11

Look at odds ...........4/11 is nearly 1/3(4/12)

But you don't want 4/12 you want 4/11

Do this............. 1/3 plus 1/11

So,its easy - same procedure ............£1 + .33 plus .03 = £1.36.

If your stake was £10 ................£10 + £3.33 + .30 = £13.63

When calculating odds on bets it is always best to use £1 and then multiply for your stake as it can get messy deducting 1/13 and similar.

By Pendil at SAFE BOOKMAKERS SITES.©This article can be reproduced by anyone,so long as article is reproduced full and intact with all links unchanged.End of article.