This glossary of bets offered by UK bookmakers is a non-exhaustive list of traditional and popular bets offered by bookmakers in the United Kingdom. The 'multiple-selection' bets in particular are most often associated with horse racing selections but since the advent of fixed-odds betting on football matches some punters use these traditional combination bets for football selections as well.

Types of bet[edit]

Win[edit]

⚽️ Bet with 10bet – one of the UK’s best online sports betting sites. Get outstanding odds on Premier League & Championship. Up to £50 welcome bonus. Below are two useful betting charts and tables showing the number of selections / permutations in various bet types and accumulators. The bet types shown are promoted by most bookmakers. Examples are Lucky 15, 31, 63, yankee, canadian, heinz, goliath. We advise extreme caution when betting. A treble bet is a form of multiple bet. There are a number of other kinds of multiple bets available, including doubles, trixies, accumulators, Yankees and Lucky 15s. These bets also include several bets. Double bet calculator - This calculator works out winnings for double bets and supports perms (doubles from 3, doubles from 4 etc). A doubles from 3 requires a greater stake than a treble but only requires 2 winning selections to gain a return. Accumulator bet. A wager on nine selections usually placed in a 3 by 3 grid on a purpose-designed betting slip and consisting of 8 trebles. If the selections A to I are placed thus: then the 8 trebles are (horizontally) ABC.

A bet that produces a return only if the selection comes first in an event (i.e. wins). A win bet may be placed on a single event.

Place[edit]

A bet that produces a return only if the selection finishes first or within a predetermined number of positions (places) of the winner of an event. The return is often based on a fixed proportion of the win odds of the selection.

Each-Way[edit]

A combination of win and place bets of equal size. Each-Way bets may be placed on a single event or on two or more selections in a multiple bet. Each-Way multiple bets are settled on a win-to-win and place-to-place basis.

Single[edit]

A bet on an individual selection or outcome.^[1]

Multiple bet[edit]

A double, treble or accumulator. A linked series of win singles where all the return from the first selection is automatically staked on the second selection as a win single and so on until all selections have won, thus giving a return, or until one selection loses in which case the whole bet is lost.

Double[edit]

A bet on two selections, both of which must win to gain a return.^[1]

Treble[edit]

A bet on three selections, all three of which must win to gain a return.^[1]

Accumulator[edit]

A bet on four or more selections, all of which must win to gain a return. Accumulators are often named after the number of selections they contain; thus we can get a fourfold, fivefold or sixfold accumulator (or even higher).^[1]

Full cover bet[edit]

A wager consisting of all possible doubles, trebles and accumulators across a given number of selections. These include: Trixie, Yankee, Canadian or Super Yankee, Heinz, Super Heinz and Goliath. A double may be thought of as a full cover bet with only two selections.

Trixie[edit]

A wager on three selections and consisting of four separate bets: 3 doubles and a treble. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.^[1][2]

Yankee[edit]

A wager on four selections and consisting of 11 separate bets: 6 doubles, 4 trebles and a fourfold accumulator. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.^[3]

Canadian or Super Yankee[edit]

A wager on five selections and consisting of 26 separate bets: 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 fourfolds and a fivefold accumulator. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.^[1]

Heinz[edit]

A wager on six selections and consisting of 57 separate bets: 15 doubles, 20 trebles, 15 fourfolds, 6 fivefolds and a sixfold accumulator. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.^[1] It is named for the '57 varieties' advertising slogan of the H. J. Heinz Company.

Super Heinz[edit]

A wager on seven selections and consisting of 120 separate bets: 21 doubles, 35 trebles, 35 fourfolds, 21 fivefolds, 7 sixfolds and a sevenfold accumulator. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.

Goliath[edit]

A wager on eight selections and consisting of 247 separate bets: 28 doubles, 56 trebles, 70 fourfolds, 56 fivefolds, 28 sixfolds, 8 sevenfolds and an eightfold accumulator. A minimum two selections must win to gain a return.

Full cover bets with singles[edit]

Patent[edit]

A wager on three selections and consisting of 7 separate bets: 3 singles, 3 doubles and a treble. Equivalent to a Trixie plus 3 singles. One winning selection will guarantee a return.^[1]

Lucky 15[edit]

A wager on four selections and consisting of 15 separate bets: 4 singles, 6 doubles, 4 trebles and a fourfold accumulator. Equivalent to a Yankee plus 4 singles. One winning selection will guarantee a return. The 'Lucky' part of the name of this and other similar bets comes from the bookmaker's practice of offering bonuses for one or more winners; usually including 'double the odds' for only one winning selection.^[1]

Lucky 31[edit]

A wager on five selections and consisting of 31 separate bets: 5 singles, 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 fourfolds and a fivefold accumulator. Equivalent to a Canadian plus 5 singles. One winning selection will guarantee a return.

Lucky 63[edit]

A wager on six selections and consisting of 63 separate bets: 6 singles, 15 doubles, 20 trebles, 15 fourfolds, 6 fivefolds and a sixfold accumulator. One winning selection will guarantee a return.

Alphabet[edit]

A bet consisting of six selections - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, usually on horse racing or greyhound racing. Selections 1, 2, and 3 form a patent, as described above. Selections 4, 5, and 6 form a second patent. Selections 2, 3, 4, and 5 form a Yankee, as described above. Selections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 form a sixfold accumulator, as described above. The total number of bets in an alphabet is therefore 26 [2 patents at 7 bets each, plus 1 yankee at 11 bets, and one accumulator at one bet - (7+7+11+1=26)]. At least one correct selection guarantees a return.

'Any to Come' (ATC) or 'if cash' bets[edit]

Wagers which include conditional bets, i.e. if part of the wager produces a sufficient return then a predetermined amount may be wagered on one or more of the other selections. ATC and 'if cash' bets (generally referred to as 'conditional bets') are normally not accepted on Ante-post selections.

Up-and-Down[edit]

An example of an 'if cash' or 'any-to-come (ATC)' bet. A wager on two selections and consisting of two single bets. If one selection wins (hence the phrase 'if cash') then the original stake is placed as an additional single bet on the second selection. If both selections win each original stake is placed as a single on the other selection: in effect giving twice the winnings for just two stake units. The downside of only one winning selection is that both original stakes are lost.

Usually played for 'single stakes about (SSA)' meaning stakes identical to the original ones are placed on selections in the case of one or more winners. 'Double stakes about (DSA)' means twice the original stake is placed on selections in the case of one or more winners. Note: an odds-on winner will not supply enough money for 'double stakes about' so the whole amount actually available is used.

Round Robin[edit]

A wager on three selections and consisting of 10 separate bets: 3 doubles, 1 treble and 3 up-and-down bets (each of 2 separate bets). It may be considered to be a Trixie to which 3 up-and-down bets have been added. One winning selection will guarantee a return.

Flag[edit]

A wager on four selections and consisting of 23 separate bets: 6 doubles, 4 trebles, 1 fourfold and 6 up-and-down bets. It may be considered to be a Yankee to which 6 up-and-down bets have been added. One winning selection will guarantee a return.

Super Flag[edit]

A wager on five selections and consisting of 46 separate bets: 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 fourfolds, 1 fivefold and 10 up-and-down bets. It may be considered to be a Canadian to which 10 up-and-down bets have been added. One winning selection will guarantee a return.

Rounder[edit]

A wager on three selections A, B and C consisting of 3 singles and 3 any-to-come (ATC) doubles to the original singles stakes. For example: £1 win A, ATC £1 double BC; £1 win B, ATC £1 double AC; £1 win C, ATC £1 double AB.

Roundabout[edit]

As Rounder (above) except the ATC doubles are to twice the stake, e.g. £1 win A, ATC £2 double BC etc. Note: In the event of an odds-on winner the complete returns (lessthan £2 in this example) from the winning single are bet on the appropriate double.

Speciality bets[edit]

Union Jack[edit]

A wager on nine selections usually placed in a 3 by 3 grid on a purpose-designed betting slip and consisting of 8 trebles. If the selections A to I are placed thus:

then the 8 trebles are (horizontally) ABC, DEF, GHI, (vertically) ADG, BEH, CFI, (diagonally) AEI, CEG. All three selections in a particular treble must win to achieve a return. It is possible to get five or even six winners from the nine selections and yet still not achieve any return (e.g. A, B, E, F, G do not give a winning treble in example 1, and A, B, D, F, H, I do not produce a return in example 2, as shown below).

Example 1

Example 2

Note that selection E appears in 4 of the trebles; A, C, G and I appear in 3 trebles; B, D, F, and H appear in only 2 trebles.

This is considered more of a novelty bet.

Forecasts[edit]

Forecasts are bets on a single event that require the correct forecasting of the finishing order of (usually) the first two or three finishers in the event.^[1] Returns on correctly predicted finishing orders are calculated by industry sources via computer software that uses the starting price of all participants in the event, and are usually declared to a £1 stake unit on (mainly) horse and greyhound races.

Straight Forecast[edit]

Multibet Trebles

A straight forecast or computer straight forecast is a wager requiring the naming of two selections a and b to finish 1st and 2nd in the correct order in a specified event.^[1] Requires a single unit stake. Usually declared on horse and greyhound races of three or more runners. Equivalent to the USA exacta or perfecta, or the Canadian exactor.

Reversed Forecast[edit]

A reversed forecast (RF) is a wager requiring the naming of two selections to finish 1st and 2nd in either order in a specified event.^[1] It is the same as two straight forecasts on selections a and b: a 1st, b 2nd and b 1st, a 2nd. Requires two unit stakes. Equivalent to a 'boxed' exacta/perfecta in North America, where the quinella is a similar wager that requires only one unit stake.

Combination Forecast[edit]

A combination forecast is a wager on three or more named selections in order to choose two of the selections to finish 1st and 2nd in the correct order in a specified event.^[1] It is the same as the number of straight forecasts on selections a, b ... n given by the formula n(n − 1) and therefore requires this number of unit stakes. E.g. 3 selections - 6 bets; 4 selections - 12 bets; 5 selections - 20 bets; etc. Equivalent to boxing an exacta/perfecta with more than two runners in North America.

Tricast[edit]

A tricast is a wager requiring the choosing of three named selections a, b and c to finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order in a specified event.^[1] Requires a single unit stake. Accepted on horse races where 8 or more horses are declared and at least 6 run, and on greyhound races of 5 or more runners that form part of the bookmakers' main service. In North America, this wager is known as the trifecta (USA) or triactor (Canada).

Combination Tricast[edit]

A combination tricast is a wager on three or more named selections in order to choose three selections to finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order in a specified event.^[1] Requires multiple unit stakes given by n(n − 1) (n − 2) where n is the number of selections. E.g. 3 selections, 6 bets; 4 selections, 24 bets; 5 selections, 60 bets; etc. In North America, this is a 'boxed' trifecta.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^{abcdefghijklmno}Britodds - betting glossary
2. ^Footballdailytip - Trixie Calculator
3. ^Yankee Bet Explained: Hityah.com

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One of the common questions I invariably get asked when discussing my job is ‘What’s your biggest winning bet’?

Usually, I struggle to recall a huge winning bet as most of my winners come at ‘normal’ prices but this week I picked up a 77/1 winning bet (more about this later on) which has inspired my column today.

This big winner was based on a simple ‘multiple’ betting strategy I have adopted for some-time and one which I feel many other punters might also benefit from. Allow me to explain…

Comparing Single & Double Bet Value

Trebles Multi Bet

Firstly, I want to set the scene with some mythical fixtures and prices to compare the profits from both single and double bets.

For ease of explanation, let’s imagine that this weekend my beloved Everton are priced at evens (2.0) to beat Man Utd and Leicester are also evens (2.0) to beat Southampton. Effectively they are 50/50 shots.

Therefore, if you are able to get anything above 2.0 (evens) on those matches, then you’ve got a value bet and should make a profit in theory.

A quick check at the fictional odds available at the bookies shows that both Everton and Leicester are available at around 2.20 (6/5).

My options if I wanted to back both are as follows:

• 2 Single Bets: Back Everton & Leicester at 2.20 as 2 single bets. Potential profit if both win: 2.40 points.
• 1 Double Bet: Back Everton & Leicester at 2.20 as 1 double bet. Potential profit if both win: 3.84 points

As you can see the double bets will ultimately provide the greatest profit and long-term a 21% Return on Investment. This compares well with the 10% Return on Investment to be had simply backing single bets.

The main difference here comes in the strike-rate as the double bet will only win 1 in 4 times, compared to the 1 in 2 strike-rate the single bets have.

Ultimately it’s this strike-rate for success (50% for single bets vs. 25% double bets) that can make all the difference and really test your patience when doubling up.

The question to ask is if you’re willing to accept the risk of taking a longer losing run in exchange for higher profits?

Treble & Trixies

Whilst I draw the line at placing big accumulators I am also a fan of placing Treble bets or Trixie bets when you have 3 value selections.

It might be unlikely for a 10-fold accumulator to come in, yet it is more than reasonable to expect 3 bets to win or place (if placing an each way treble) every now and then.

For those of you looking to be even more creative, if you have 3 value tips, you might like to try a Trixie bet, which is actually 4 bets in 1: 3 doubles and 1 treble.

You needn’t risk huge stakes on such bets, but they are a nice way to compliment single bets you place and can often pay out big on the occasions they come in.

Which leads me back to my bet earlier this week, where one of my regular trixies came in at decent odds. I placed a £1.25 each way Trixie on 3 horses at 7/1, 9/2 & 4/1, which all duly came in. Thus my £10 staked became £778.20. Click here to see my betslip

Admittedly I got a little lucky as my 7/1 winner was uplifted to 14/1 – but even if paid out at the lower odds, it more than made up for any losses incurred by past losing trixies. As I usually bet them each way, very often I get a few place and wins to make a few quid back and tick me over until these big wins come in!

Bad Single Bets = Bad Multiple Bets

Before you rush off to place a whole series of multiple bets – it’s important to make clear that Doubles, Trebles & Trixies betting is only as good as the bets you are placing or the tipsters you are following who advise the tips.

If your bets don’t make a profit as a single, they won’t magically make a profit when bet as a multiple.

Many mug punters roll up short priced football bets in an attempt to push up their returns with no concept of value. This is why bookmakers sometimes love you betting on doubles and trebles – If not used correctly, they can multiply your losses as well as profits.

My own Trixie selections on the above winning bet were based on tips put forward by some of the high quality tipsters we work with here at the Smart Betting Club.

With access to a number of these tipsters, alongside placing all the single bets they put forward, it’s also sometimes worth the occasional multiple bet when the odds remain in your favour.

Multiple Treble Bet Calculator

For those of you with the patience and foresight to ride the losses in anticipation of the winners when they come, it can add another string to your betting bow.

I do hope you have enjoyed my article today – hopefully its provided some food for thought and options for your betting moving forward.