| Allowance |
Is the
weight concession the horse is given to compensate for its rider's
inexperience |
| All Weather Racing |
Flat
racing which takes place on an artificial surface |
| Amateur (rider) |
On
racecards, their names are prefixed by Mr, Mrs, Captain, etc, to indicate their
amateur status |
| Ante-Post |
Betting
(usually on the most important races) days, weeks and even months before the
race is due to take place |
| Apprentice |
A young
jockey tied by annually renewed contract to a licensed trainer while he or she
is learning the business of race-ridingon the flat |
| At the post |
When all
the horses have arrived at the start before a race, they are said to be
‘at the post’ |
| Bankroll |
Also
known as 'roll' or 'wad' (colloq.) This is gambling money or risk money,
as opposed to the money you live on. |
| Bay |
Horse
colour – any brown horse with a black mane/tail and legs. |
| Book |
Running
a 'book' is the act of quoting odds and accepting bets on an event. Hence the
term 'Bookmaker'. |
| Bumper |
A Flat
race run under Jump Rules, used to educate young prospective jumps horses
before they tackle hurdles or fences. Officially called National Hunt Flat
Race. |
| Burlington Bertie |
The
tic-tac bookmaking term for 100-30. |
| Carpet |
The
tic-tac bookmaking term for 3-1. Double carpet is 33-1. |
| Case money |
Emergency money. |
| Chase |
Having
lost money on a bet, "chasing" is having another bet simply to try and get back
the loss, usually on a random wager. |
| Claiming race / Claimer |
A race
in which each horse's weight is determined by the price placed on them by
connections. The lower the claiming price, the lower the weight. Horses can be
‘claimed' (bought) by other owners/trainers for the specified price after
the race. |
| Cockle |
The
tic-tac bookmaking term for 10-1. |
| Conditional jockey |
A Jump
jockey, under 26, who receives a weight allowance for inexperience until they
have ridden a certain number of winners. A conditional jockey is licensed to a
specific trainer. Some races are restricted to conditionals-only. |
| Distance |
The
length of a race: 5 furlongs is the minimum and the 4 1/2 miles of the Grand
National the longest. Also, the margin by which a horse wins or is beaten by
the horse in front: this ranges from a short head to 'by a distance' (more than
30 lengths); a 'length' is measured from the horse's nose to the start of its
tail |
| Draw |
for flat
racing only, describes a horse's position in the starting stalls, drawn
randomly the day before |
| Exacta |
First
two horses in a race in the correct order. A Straight forecast |
| Drop |
Money
lost. |
| Filly |
Female
horse up to four years old |
| Foal |
Horse of
either sex from the time of its birth until 1 January the following year. All
racehorses are given the nominal birthday of January 1st. Thus a "two-year-old"
born in June and one born in January of the same year are considered to be of
the same age for the purposes of satisfying the conditions of some races re:
weight carried. In reality, the January horse may be considered to have a
significant advantage in terms of physical development at this early stage in
its caree |
| Gelding |
castrated horse |
| Get on |
Have
your bet accepted |
| Going |
The
description of conditions underfoot on the racecourse. Official Jockey Club
going reports progress as follows: Heavy - soft - good to soft - good - good to
firm -firm |
| Going Down |
When
horses are on their way to the start. |
| Hand |
Unit of
four inches in which a horse's height is measured, at the shoulder |
| Half-brother/sister |
When two
horses have the same mother (dam), they are half-brothers/sisters. Horses are
not referred to as half-brothers/sisters when they share only the same father
(sire). |
| Jolly |
Betting
parlance for the favourite in a race - the horse with the shortest
odds |
| Juice |
(U.S)
See 'Vig'.. |
| Juvenile |
Two-year-old horse |
| Lay |
Take a
bet on, like a Bookmaker. |
| Line Betting |
It is an
even-money paid bet where you take a position either side of two possible
outcomes of the event. e.g. England runs vs. Australia may quote 225-230
(a bit like a spread), thats called the Line. Selling the Line
means you win if they score less than 225 and Buying the line
means winning if they score more than 230. This is popular in the
U.S. |
| Maiden |
Horse
which has not won a race |
| Mare |
Female
horse five years and over |
| Match Bet |
A bet
between two horses or people, not necessarily in competition with each other.
e.g. two golfers who will be trying to win their tournament, not beat each
other or be aware that the bet exists |
| Objection |
Complaint by one jockey against another regarding breach of rules
during a race |
| Odds |
The
ratio to which your bet will be paid if your bet wins. e.g. 3-1 means for every
£1 you bet, you will receive £3 of winnings |
| On tilt |
Losing
the ability to rationalise bets and betting wildly on every race. |
| Overlay |
This is
a price offered on a particular horse that is higher than the
true odds of it winning. |
| Paddock |
Area of
the racecourse incorporating the pre-parade ring, parade ring (where horses are
paraded before each race) and winner's enclosure |
| Patent |
Multiple
bet consisting of seven bets involving three selections in different events. A
single on each selection, plus three doubles and one treble. One successful
selection guarantees a return. |
| Pattern |
The
grading system for the most important races, introduced on the Flat in 1971 and
later for jumps racing. The top races on the Flat are Group 1, followed by
Group 2 and Group 3 (the next highest category is Listed, which, while not
technically part of the Pattern, combine with Group races under the heading of
black-type races). The jumps Pattern has a similar structure, except that the
races are termed Grade 1/2/3, rather than Group 1/2/3. All of these races are
in Class 1 or either flat or jumps. |
| Plater |
Horse
which usually runs in selling races |
| Pool |
A pool
is a sum of many collected as bets on a horse race. i.e. the tote. |
| Price |
Noun
~ The quoted odds for a horse to win
Verb ~ The process of giving
Prices |
| Quinella |
First
two finishers in no particular order. |
| Schooled |
Trained
to jump |
| Selling plate/selling race |
Low-class race in which the winner is offered at auction afterwards;
other horses in the race may be claimed for a fixed sum. If the winning stable
buys back its own horse it is said to be 'bought in'. The racecourse receives a
percentage of the selling price of each horse. |
| Shorten |
Odds
that reduce, say from 10-1 to 8-1, are said to have shortened. |
| Sire |
Father
of a horse |
| Stewards |
The
panel of men and women - usually a total of four - who are responsible for
ensuring adherence to the Rules of Racing |
| Tote |
"Tote"
is short for Totalisator, a system introduced to Britain in 1929 to offer pool
betting on racecourses. |
| True Odds |
The real
odds of something happening as opposed to what the bookies offer. |
| Vig |
Vig is
short for the word 'vigorish'. Also referred to as 'juice' (US). The edge that
one side of a bet has to make their advantage. |
| White meat |
Profit. |
| Yearling |
Horse of
either sex from 1 January to 31 December of the year following its
birth |
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