What is Tote betting?

The city of Bath is a great place to live or visit for a number of reasons. It is not only steeped in history but also has plenty to see and do - from the awesome shops to fabulous spas.

Bath racecourse is another great example of what this vibrant place has to offer and is a real draw for visitors. Known as one of the best small courses around the UK, its expensive redevelopment in 2016 has given it a new lease of life.

Of course, horse racing is not just popular in Bath but around the whole country too. This can be seen in the number of top-class events that take place each year. For example, the Cheltenham Festival in March always attracts lots of attention because it delivers plenty of excitement and betting opportunities. To get the most from your Cheltenham betting, why not check out the cheltenhamfestival.net site in advance? They have the best Cheltenham Day 3 tips along with tips for the other days this event runs.

If you plan to bet on Cheltenham or races at Bath, you might wonder about the different ways of placing bets. Tote betting is one option which might seem a little confusing at first. What exactly does it involve?

What is tote betting?

Tote betting is merely one way of betting on horse races. First created in the 1920s, it was a bid by the UK Government of the time to curb unlicensed betting. The Tote is quite a popular way to bet on racing and something which many people prefer. Bets can be placed in person at the course or online at the official Tote website.

How does it work?

In essence, Tote betting works in a similar way to a lottery. You make your selection for the race you want to bet on and then place your bet. Your stake money then goes into a cumulative pool along with the other people who have made the same bet on that race with the Tote. The neat thing is that everyone who has picked correctly shares a percentage of the total cumulative money in the pool as

their winnings. If fewer people backed your selection, you get a bigger share of the money. This can lead to major wins - as the Tote placepot of £182,567.80 at Cheltenham 2019 showed.

As with standard betting, there are many different bets you can make with the Tote. This covers a traditional Win, Each-Way or Place bet to exotic choices like an Exacta (pick the top 2 horses in the right order) or a Trifecta (pick the top 3 horses in the right order).

Tote betting is a different way to wager

This could be the easiest way to get your head around betting on racing with the Tote. Rather than paying out based on your stake alone at fixed odds, you would get a share of the whole pool if your bet wins. For this reason, many people still use it when betting on horse racing.