Trifecta – Horse Race Betting Types
With this bet you must pick the first three finishing horses in the order of their finish. In other words, you must pick the horse that wins, the horse that finishes second and the horse that finishes third.
The simplest form of this wager is the Straight Trifecta, which is a single combination of the first three finishers. The minimum bet for a Straight Trifecta is $2. To purchase, simply tell the clerk: “$2 Trifecta on 1-2-3.” A Trifecta is not offered in all races at all tracks (refer to program).
NOTE: This wager is also called the “Triple” at some tracks.
Trifecta Box
The trifecta box has a $1 minimum bet per combination — $6 minimum total cost. You can box three or more horses on a single ticket and wager $1 (or more) on each combination.
Example: To purchase a $1 Trifecta Box using four horses, tell the clerk: “$1 Trifecta Box 11-2-3-4.”
The following examples are for a $1 Trifecta Box:
3 horse box ( 6 combinations) Cost $ 6
4 horse box ( 24 combinations) Cost $ 24
5 horse box ( 60 combinations) Cost $ 60
6 horse box (120 combinations) Cost $120
7 horse box (210 combinations) Cost $210
Trifecta Key
The Key Wager requires the Key horse to finish FIRST with any combination of two or more horses finishing second and third. For example, if your key horse is #5 and your other horses are #’s 2, 4 and 6, you will win if #5 finishes first and two of your other three horses finish second and third.
Example: To make the bet, tell the clerk: “$1 Trifecta Key #5 on top of 1, 2 and 3,” and the ticket will cost $6. If four horses were coupled with the Key horse, the cost would have been $12, etc.
Trifecta Full Wheel
You may select one or two horses to finish in a given position and combine your selection with all possible combinations. The number of combinations will vary according to the total number of horses in the race.
Example # 1: If you pick #6 to finish first in a 12-horse field and want to have $1 per combination, tell the clerk: “$1 Trifecta 6-All-All.” The total cost of the ticket is $110.
Cost In This Example…
| Number of horses in race: | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Cost in this Example: | $42 | $56 | $72 | $90 | $110 |
Trifecta Part Wheel
The trifecta part wheel is offered at a $1 minimum bet per combination — $2 minimum total cost. It is now possible to make a Trifecta wager coupling one or more horses to finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd.
Example: You want #4 and #7 in the win position, #1, #9, and #11 in place position, and #2 and #5 in the show position to bet $1 on each combination, tell the clerk: “$1 Trifecta Part Wheel 4 and 7 with 1, 9 and 11 with 2 and 5.” There are 12 possible combinations in the bet for a cost of $12. To win, the 4 or 7 must finish first, the 1, 9 or 11 must finish second and the 2 or 5 must finish third.
