Horse racing in New Zealand has a rich and long history and having a punt at horse races is about as Kiwi as it gets. Kiwis wager on horse races in a variety of ways, from mobile horse race betting apps to TAB booths to online racing bookmakers.

Horseracing is big in New Zealand with latest reports indicating that the racing industry contributes nearly NZ$2 billion to the country’s economy every year.

Betting on the horses in New Zealand can be fun. However, if you aren’t sure of several important factors about horseracing, you may not be able to beat the bookies.

To ensure that you win most of the time when wagering on the horses in New Zealand, you need to be aware of common New Zealand racing terminology, different types of horseracing bets and a few horse racing tips.

How to Bet on the Horses in New Zealand

Before betting went online in New Zealand in the late 90s, Kiwi bettors who wanted to place bets on horseracing events had to visit a race track or avail themselves in physical betting outlets. However, that’s not the case today.

With improved technology and the rise of online sportsbooks, now it’s possible to place bet on horse races online. But how do you go about betting on horses in New Zealand? Here’s how:

• Step 1: Find a good betting site – There are plenty of horse race betting sites that accepts players from New Zealand that get to wager on horse races. Your first step is to find a good site that offers competitive odds, and where you can bet with New Zealand dollars.
• Step 2: Sign-up and claim your bonus – Once you settle for a good site, sign up and claim your bonus since most of them will offer you a sign-up bonus. Remember to go through the terms and conditions of the bonus too.
• Step 3: Fund your account – Now that your account is up and running, deposit some funds into it to make real money horse bets. Remember to consider things such as the minimum and maximum deposits required.
• Step 4: Find a race – The next step is now finding a race. Once you fund your account, the next thing to do is to find a race to bet on. You can find many horseracing events in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, and USA among other markets.
• Step 5: Pick a horse – Now, after careful research, go ahead and pick a horse or horses that you want to bet on. You can choose to wager on one horse or place multiple bets.
• Step 6: Choose your bet – Decide whether you think a certain horse will win the race or place. If you believe that you can predict which horses will finish in top 3 positions, then go ahead and place such a bet.
• Step 7: Place your bet(s) –After selecting your horses carefully, go on and place your bets and you are good to go.

Types of Horse Racing Bets

The unique language associated with horseracing can be quite off-putting to some people, especially those ones starting to wager on the races. But it shouldn’t be that way. The following are the common horse racing bets that you need to know.

• Win – Here, you wager on a horse to finish the race in position 1.
• Place – In this type of bet, you are wagering on a horse to come 1st, 2nd or 3rd.
• Each Way – In this type of bet, you place a wager on a horse that will win or place.
• Quinella – This is a bet on 2 horses that will come 1st and 2nd (in any order).
• Exacta – Here, you bet on a horse that will finish the race 1st and the one that will come 2nd (in order).
• Trifecta – This is betting on horses that will come 1st, 2nd, and 3rd (in order).
• First 4 – This is wagering on horses that will come 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th (in order).

New Zealand Horse Race Betting Tips

Being a Kiwi player who likes wagering on the ponies, there a few important things that you need to consider before placing your horseracing bets. There are players whose intention is to secure some of the best odds around, while others factor in statistics before placing their bets. Still, there are those who just prefer wagering on horses with some funny names.

Whatever type of horse race bettor you are, the following are a few helpful horseracing betting tips that you may want to consider before wagering on any horse race:

• Consider the horse’s previous form – In most cases, horse racing online operators in NZ will display the performance of horses for the last 6 races. How was the performance of the horse(s) that you want to place bets for? Did it finish out of the top 9, fell or injured itself? Make sure to consider the last performance of a horse before betting on it.
• What is the jockey like? – Another thing that you need to consider before placing horseracing bets in New Zealand is the jockey. You will want to consider how successful the Jockey has been performing in the last races. Has the jockey ever ridden with the horse that you are about to bet for before or have possess the necessary experience at the race track? Even the weight of the Jockey can be a deciding factor too.
• How has the horse been running? – Just like human beings, horses have their own style of running that suit different tracks. In most cases, Daintier horses tend to be generally better on firm surfaces while those ones that hit the ground hard tend to perform better in soft tracks that tend to be slightly forgiving.
• Look at the distance the horse is running – Horses also have their own different strengths in accordance to different distances. For example, some horses tend to be sprinters, meaning that they are better suited to short distances, or could take time to get up to speed, meaning they are better suited for long races.
• Look at the weather conditions – Some horses tend to perform better in muddy racetracks, while other prefer dry ground. Before betting on the horses, look at the weather conditions. Find out which horses do better at what conditions before wagering on them.