Florida horse racing betting has been one of the most popular ways for residents to gamble for many years. With several racetracks spread across South Florida and a couple dotting both coasts, Florida horse racing betting is not only a favored pastime, it’s a tradition. Which is why we’ve put this page together; to help residents who are looking to learn more about horse racing betting in their area. On this page, we give a brief overview of the pari-mutuel wagering laws in the state. We also go over popular events that can be wagered on, as well as provide descriptions of a few of the more popular wager types available in Florida horse racing betting. Finally, we include some reviews of online horse racing betting websites. In our opinion, these are the best forums for residents to bet on the horses.
Is It Legal To Bet On Horses In Florida?
Horse racing betting is a wholly legal venture in the state of Florida. According to state statutes, Florida horse racing betting can be conducted in a form of wagering called pari-mutuel wagering. This form of gambling involves collecting all of the money put on the race, and paying winning tickets only out of that collected pool. No racetrack in the state of Florida will allow you to bet in any other form on the races.
Legal Florida horse racing betting sites include the racetracks themselves, several off-track betting locations scattered throughout the state, and online horse racing betting websites. All three locations offer you a chance to securely bet on your favorite horses. While the land-based locations are able to simulcast some of the races that are held in other states, online horse racing betting sites are able to offer odds on all of the races taking place across the country, as well as in Europe, the UK, and Australia for legal Florida online gambling.
Betting On The Triple Crown
Florida Horse bettors know how important the Triple Crown is. With only twelve winners in the last 100 years, it’s almost impossible to know if anyone will win in any given year. It was only two years ago when American Pharaoh snapped a 38-year long drought, in which no horse was able to win all three races – the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes – that make up the Triple Crown. Which is what makes betting on the Triple Crown so appealing. The payouts would be enormous if you correctly predicted the outcome of the famed series.
There are several venues at which Florida horse racing betting enthusiasts can bet on the Triple Crown. Land-based facilities like Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs and off-track betting venues will have simulcast showings of each portion of the Triple Crown, allowing residents to place some wagers. Online horse racing betting sites, however, will have much more for you to wager on. Their odds go up before any land-based facilities and they are able to provide more variety in their wager types. For the very best in Triple Crown betting, you’ll want to take a look at an online horse racing betting site.
Popular Pari-Mutuel Betting Types
Below, we’ve listed out some of the more popular wager types when it comes to Florida horse racing betting. There are two categories that these wagers can fall into, either a straight bet or an exotic wager. Straight bets have smaller payouts because the risk is not as great. Exotic wagers are harder to win but have higher payouts.
Straight Wagers
Win – This is the simplest wager you can make when betting on the horses. When you place a “win” bet, you are choosing the horse that will cross the finish line first.
Place – Choosing a horse to place means that horse must be the first or second horse to cross the finish line.
Show – When selecting a show wager, you are betting that a horse will be one of the first three horses to finish the race.
Exotic Wagers
Exacta – when placing an exacta wager, you must select two horse and state which will finish first and which will finish second.
Trifecta – A successful trifecta wager requires bettors to choose which horse will win, which will place, and which will show. All three selections must be correct.
Coupled Horses – Coupling horses gives you a better chance of choosing a winner. Horses that are connected in some way – either through the owner or the stable or trainer – can be coupled, and on a ticket would appear something like Horse 3 and Horse 3a. If you choose one of these horses, and the horse that is coupled to it wins, your ticket is still considered a winning ticket.
Wheeling – Wheeling horses can get a little complicated. You select a single horse, and then pick any number of horses to either finish before or after that single horse. It sort of allows you to combine exotic and straight wagers into a single bet. To better illustrate this, I’m going to list an example below and then explain it a little more in detail.
The Bet: 3 horse with the 1-2-5.
In this example, I am betting on the number 3 horse to be the outright winner, and for either the number 1, 2, or 5 horse to place second.
The Bet: 1-2-5 horse with the 3 horse.
In this case, either the 1, 2, or 5 horse must win and the 3 horse must place. You can wheel exactas, trifectas, and superfectas, which will determine how many positions must be wheeled.
Where In Florida Can I Bet On The Horses?
Florida horse racing is concentrated mainly in the southern region of the state. The majority of the racetracks are there, with just a few in the northern part of the state. The off-track betting locations are also more heavily concentrated south of Orlando. Below, we’ve listed all of the active horse racing betting locations in Florida.
Tampa Bay Downs
Hialeah Park
Gulfstream Park Racing and Casino
Florida Quarter Horse Racing
Calder Casino
Palm Meadows Training Center
Creek Entertainment Gretna
Premier Turf Club
Online Horse Racing Betting Sites For Florida Residents
Florida horse racing betting can easily be done online, through a computer, laptop, or even a mobile device. Online horse betting provides players with more opportunities than any land-based location possibly could, due to the sheer amount of races covered by these sites. Below, we’ve put together some reviews of our favorite online horse racing betting sites. We really believe you’ll be blown away by what these websites have to offer.
Bovada Racebook
The Best American Online Horse Racing Betting Site
If you’re looking for an online horse racing betting site that is well-established, with a good reputation and a variety of races to wager on, there’s no need to look any further than Bovada racebook. This site works solely with American bettors, offering them a legal online alternative to land-based pari-mutuel wagering. Bovada has been providing these opportunities for over twenty years.
Located in Canada, this site is owned by the Mohawk Morris Gaming Group, a company that has been at the forefront of online gaming for decades. All of their companies have stellar reputations when it comes to professional and efficient customer service, top of the line betting software, and speedy payouts. Bovada is so exceptional that they’ve never even had a late payout.
Bovada’s racebook is laid out in a simple, easy to navigate fashion. The next five races are listed in the left-hand corner of the screen, and your bet slip is located opposite that. Their auto refresh function makes sure that the latest odds are always available to bettors. To top all of that off, Bovada provides its members with a mobile betting feature, which allows you to take all of your pari-mutuel betting on the road with you, wherever you go. There’s nothing that can’t be done at Bovada racebook.
Sportsbetting
A Convenient Way For Florida Residents To Bet On Horses
Anyone who has lived in Florida for more than a day knows exactly how frustrating traffic can get. With so many different roads constantly under construction and tourists clogging up the turnpike at every moment of the day, it can get aggravating trying to get up the road to the grocery store, let alone driving across the state to get to a racetrack. If you don’t feel like fighting the traffic every time you want to place a few wagers, you should check out SportsBetting Racebook.
SportsBetting’s horse racing betting website is without a doubt one of the easiest to use. Every race that’s being run not only in Florida but across the entire country, can be found under their comprehensive horse racing calendar. From there, you can plan out exactly which horses and races you want to wager on. SportsBetting’s hovering bet slip allows you to easily transition from one page to the next without having to switch back to check everything you’ve got on the docket.
The horse racing betting action at SportsBetting is second to none. Not only do they have odds on every horse running in the US, they also provide the largest variety of wager types for US bettors. This racebook also has some of the highest wager limits available to US bettors. SportsBetting makes sure that Florida horse racing betting fans are completely satisfied with everything they find at this racebook.
Horse Betting Sites That Accept Florida Players
| Racebook |
Bonus |
Florida Welcome? |
Visit |
| Bovada Racebook |
50% Up To $250 First Deposit |
Yes |
Visit |
| SportsBetting |
50% Match On First Deposit |
Yes |
Visit |
| BetOnline Racebook |
$1,000 On All Deposits - 25% |
Yes |
Visit |
| 5Dimes Racebook |
50% To $200 Then 20% To $500 |
Yes |
Visit |