otb wagering

The State Legislature established the New York State Racing and Wagering Board in 1973. The Board was created to combine the functions of the various existing racing commissions to provide a centralized authority. Pursuant to statute, the Board was given "general jurisdiction over all horse racing activities and all pari-mutuel betting activities, both on-track and off-track, in the state and over the corporations, associations, and persons engaged therein."
Prior to the 1973 enactment, the State had several Commissions that were charged with the regulation and oversight of legalized gambling that governed Thoroughbred Racing, Harness Racing, Quarter Horse Racing, Off-Track Betting and the Lottery. Under the new legislation, all these Commissions, except for the Lottery, were consolidated into the New York State Racing and Wagering Board.
Of the consolidated commissions, the State Racing Commission was the oldest, having been established in 1895. The Commission also held the prestige of being the oldest racing regulatory body in the nation. When the Racing and Wagering Board assumed the powers and duties of the Racing Commission, a reconstituted State Racing Commission was created as an advisory board.
In April 1970, New York State enacted a law permitting local communities to operate pari-mutuel off-track betting facilities. New York City OTB was the first, which started in 1971. Schenectady OTB followed in 1971, and then Western OTB commenced in 1974. Nassau OTB opened its first branch on January 31, 1975 followed by Suffolk OTB in April 1975 and Catskill OTB in 1976. At the time, simulcasting consisted of an audio signal, which was transmitted to the betting facilities. Simulcasting a live audiovisual signal was first authorized by the State Legislature in 1984 on an experimental basis and was extended permanently in 1990.
The first permanent appointment to the Racing and Wagering Board was Joseph H. Boyd, Jr. Governor Nelson Rockefeller appointed him as a member on June 30, 1973. Emil Mosbacher, Jr., the first Chairman of the Board was appointed on August 1, 1973.
In 1977, the functions of the Bingo Control Commission were transferred to the Board. Since this transfer the Board has regulated both bingo and games of chance conducted by religious, charitable and certain non-profit organizations. Bingo was authorized pursuant to a constitutional amendment passed in 1957. Games of chance were authorized by constitutional amendment in 1975.
Finally, in 1993 the Board was given the authority to regulate Class III Indian gaming in the State pursuant to Compacts entered into between the State of New York and the Oneida Indian Nation of New York and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe. Currently there are two Native American casinos in New York State. The Oneida Indian Nation of New York has operated the Turning Stone Casino Resort in Verona since July 20, 1993. The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe opened the Akwesasne Mohawk Casino in Hogansburg on April 10, 1999.
Both Compacts were negotiated under the auspices of the Federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The United States Department of the Interior on June 4, 1993 approved the Oneida Compact. The St. Regis Compact was approved on December 4, 1993.In greyhound and horse racing, wagering is conducted under the pari-mutuel system, a term that comes from the French phrase “among ourselves.” The constantly changing odds for each race are set by the betting public, meaning that unlike certain casino games, patrons wager against one another and not against “the house.” In fact, the house (in this case Hinsdale Park) has no stake or interest in the actual outcome of the race. Its profit is derived from a small percentage extracted from each wager, similar to a stockbroker’s commission. Every dollar bet at the racetrack, minus the small percentage of “takeout” that gets split between the track and state government, is returned right back to the members of the betting public who hold winning tickets after each race.
Think of the betting process as one of risk vs. reward: Bet on “favorites” who have a solid shot of winning based on their published race records and you’ll cash more tickets—but the return on investment will be lower, because many other handicappers will have also backed the same winners (ie the total amount bet on the race must be distributed equally amongst a large number of people). Conversely, when you wager on “longshots”—finishers whose records indicate they have a remote, outside chance of winning—you’ll cash fewer tickets but the return on investment will be much greater, because only a small fraction of the public will share equally in the total amount of money bet on the race.
It is important to remember that the odds for each runner are not meant to represent an entrant’s actual chances of winning the race. The betting public speaks with money, and the odds for each race simply stand for the betting public’s opinion of who will win. Over many years, documented pari-mutuel analysis shows that favorites (entrants with the most money bet on them) win at a amazingly consistent 33 percent of the time. That figure is one of the few universal betting standards. However, some bettors turn that same statistic upside down to show that favorites lose at an equally consistent 66 percent! So do you jump on the “smart money” bandwagon or bet “bombs away” hoping to make a really big score? Just like playing the stock market, wagering strategy is a function of whether you want a small, steady return on your investment or are willing to withstand a fair amount of losing before you attain a more occasional, but potentially explosive, bang for your buck.
Translating Win Odds Into Dollar Values
The odds as listed on the tote board or on television monitors show how much an entrant will pay to win based on every dollar wagered. For example, a minimum $2.00 bet on a runner who wins at 3-1 odds will pay $8.00: Three dollars won for each dollar bet ($2.00 x 3 = $6.00), plus when you win you always get back the original cost of your bet ($6.00 winnings + the original $2.00 bet = $8.00).
Some win odds are listed as fractions and should be read as such: 7-2 odds equals $7.00 won for every $2.00 invested, which is the same as saying the odds were three and one-half to one; 9-5 odds equals $9.00 won for every $5.00 invested, which is the same as saying the odds were one and four-fifths to one. The chart below is a quick reference for common odds and their returns until you become familiar with calculating payoffs:Linking the outcomes of two or more finishers or two or more races in a single bet is called an “exotic wager.” Keeping in mind the basic theory of risk vs. reward, it is far more difficult to predict what will happen to two or more entrants in a single race or to pick the winners of consecutive races. But if you do, the return on investment can escalate astronomically. Listed below are some common exotic wagers offered at Hinsdale Park and its OTB simulcasts. To see which exotic wagers are offered in which races, consult the heading at the top of each page in your official track program.
Perfecta (also Exacta): Pick the one-two finishers in a given race. Your selections must finish in the exact order you specified. A “box” allows you to reverse this order of finish but also doubles the cost of the bet. A “wheel” means you play a single entrant in either the first or second spot with all the others in the race. A “partial wheel” allows you to select two or more other finishers of your choosing to finish first or second with your single.
Quinella: Pick the one-two finishers in a given race in either order. Unlike the perfecta, this does NOT double the cost of the bet, but the payoffs are usually half of what a perfecta would pay (in pari-mutuel betting, just as in everyday life, insurance comes at a price!)
Trifecta: Takes the perfecta one step further by stipulating that you select the top three finishers in order. Again, a more difficult task with a potentially greater payoff. Boxes, wheels and part-wheels are allowed.
Superfecta: The first four finishers in order. Boxes, wheels and part-wheels permitted.
Daily Double: Pick the winners of consecutive races on a single ticket. A wheel in the daily double involves picking a single runner in either the first or second race of the sequence and combining it with all others in the remaining race. A part-wheel narrows your selections to just the one single and as many others as you like in the remaining race.
Pick Three (or Pick Four, Pick Six, etc...): Pick the winners of three or more consecutive races. You may use as many finishers in each leg of the sequence as you like, but each additional entrant increases the cost of the ticket exponentially.Betting to place allows you to cash a ticket if your choice runs first OR second. A show bet means you win if your selection runs first, second OR third. Although the actual odds to place and show are not shown on the tote board or television monitors, you can use the win odds as a very rough estimate of what these backup bets will pay. In general, place payoffs average half of the win price. Show payoffs return about one third of the win odds.