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September 14, 2022

Understanding Starting Price in Sports Betting

Jean-Paul Uwizeye
Written byJean-Paul UwizeyeWriter
Researched byMatteo BianchiResearcher

Many people love sports betting, especially online sports betting. It is exciting, easy, and full of fun. Also, these people who are betting on sports might get much richer overnight if they are betting on profitable sports with great returns. It is good to learn some sports betting tips before doing it. This article focuses on the starting price in sports betting. It takes a a look into what it is, how it is decided, and when to take it, among other aspects.

Understanding Starting Price in Sports Betting

What Does the Starting Price Mean in Sports Betting?

The starting price, simply called "SP," refers to an official agreed odds price at which a horse goes off when the race starts. In short, it is a horse's "starting price" at the beginning of the race. It is also known as the final pre-event price for the "Closing Line. " The starting price is decided by several factors. The odds price of a horse in racing keeps changing. However, once a bettor takes the starting price, they will agree to accept the SP rather than the current odds price in the race.

How is the Starting Price Decided?

Traditionally, an official body sets the starting price based on the odds quoted by the on-course bookmakers. If there is no on-course bookmaker, the starting price will be calculated using a sample list of odds from the online bookmakers. All bookmaker odds are arranged from low to high and divided into two halves equally. The starting price will be taken from the one with the highest odds as the shortest price.

This traditional method to calculate the starting price does not directly take the volumes of bets placed off-course, like online sports betting, into account. However, as online betting has become the major stake in racing, now the starting price in the U.K has closely followed the odds on the Betfair exchange, which are decided by the market. Since there is no profit margin built into the prices, bettors could often find better starting prices represented by the betting exchange than by the bookies.

Why is the Starting price Important in Horse Racing?

The starting price usually indicates which horse is drifting and which horse is coming in for support before the race begins. It stands to reason that paying close attention to the starting price is very useful for the people who are betting during the racing. In general, the starting price is a factor in calculating winnings for different kinds of betting, like tricasts and forecasts or Tote Placepot and Scoop6.

When Should a Bettor Take the Starting price?

The odds price keeps changing over the day before a race starts. When a bettor places a bet on race day, a bookie usually offers the bettor the option to place the bet either at the starting price or the current odds price when the bettor is betting. As the odds price in a race keeps fluctuating, the possibly offer before the race might be higher or lower than the starting price.

Most bettors would accept the current odds price when they are betting. Otherwise, their return would get lower if the horse price shortens. However, bettors should take the starting price if they believe the odds price at the time they are betting will get bigger.

Nowadays, most online sports betting sites would provide the Best Odds Guaranteed to reduce the risk when the selection is not as good as a bettor wants. For example, if a bettor backs a horse at 12-1, but it drifts out at 14-1 before it goes off, the bettor will get paid at 14-1 anyway if the bet is successful. BettingRanker is the right place to find the best online betting sites and get helpful sports betting tips.

How To know the Bet Is Good or Bad

In a race, the odds price keeps changing over the day before the race begins. How could the bettors know if they have a value bet before the odds price settles at the approximate fair value?

As a whole, this could perform by comparing the bettor price to the starting price, which is usually referred to as beating the starting price.

  • If a bettor's price is lower than the starting price, then the bettor does not pick up a value bet.
  • If a bettor's price exceeds the starting price, then the bettor has picked up a value bet.

Summary

A starting price refers to the odds price at which a horse goes off when the race begins. It is determined by the bookmaker's odds. The starting price is crucial in horse racing. There are some benefits to taking a starting price over a current odd price. To compare the starting price with the bettor's price can help to determine whether a bettor has selected a value bet or not.

About the author
Jean-Paul Uwizeye
Jean-Paul Uwizeye
About

Born and raised in Rwanda, Jean-Paul Uwizeye seamlessly connects the world of online casinos to Rwandan enthusiasts. With a unique blend of Western gaming insights and deep Rwandan cultural roots, he's a go-to localizer for engaging and relatable content.

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