Daily Double Bets and Rolling Doubles For Horse Racing

By Bill Peterson

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The daily double was one of the first exotic or gadget bets and is still very popular today. It used to only be found in the first two races on the program, but now some tracks offer what they call a "rolling double," meaning that the double may be played in more races throughout the card.
The double is about the simplest exotic bet. You pick the winner in the first race, the first half of the double, and then you pick the winner in the second race, or second half. You must have the winner in both halves to collect.

An alternative to playing a daily double is a parlay bet. When you parlay a bet you simply take all your winnings from the first race and place them on a horse in the next race.
Either a double or a parlay can add up quickly. If you wager $2 to win on a horse in the first race and it wins and you collect $12 which you then wager on another horse in a following race, you may multiply your $2 investment many times. For instance, if your choice in the second race of your parlay bet wins and pays $10 to win, you actually collect $60. Not bad for an initial wager of $2. Of course, the downside is that you have to pick two winners in a row.

Many bettors like to wheel a horse in the double when they feel strongly about a runner's chances of winning. While it may be hard to pick a winner in one of the races, if you can find a winner in either race of the daily double and then wheel all the horses in the other race with that one, you may hit the double.

All these wagers have risks and positive and negative attributes. The parlay bet, unlike the daily double, doesn't have to be on two consecutive races or even at the same track. You may win on the 3rd race at Aqueduct and then take your winnings and parlay them on the 5th race at Gulfstream Park. On the other hand, if you can't isolate a winner in the first or second race but can only narrow down the contenders to a short list, you may have to part wheel those horses with some of the horses in the second race.

If that is the case it is easier to just play a part wheel or box in the double rather than trying to figure out which amounts to bet on each runner in order to Dutch them so that you wind up with enough to bet all your choices in the second race.

If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to http://williewins.homestead.com/true.html and get the truth about betting on horses and winning. Bill Peterson is a former race horse owner and professional handicapper. To see all Bill's horse racing material go to Horse Racing Handicapping, Bill's handicapping store.

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