abandoned racing has been called off at that particular meeting.
accumulator a bet on any number of selections in different races, where the winnings on the first horse go onto the second and then onto the third and then onto the fourth and so on.
all in in poker a player who runs out of funds may still play for the portion of the pot he has contributed to.
allowance the weight conceded by professional jockeys to apprentices or conditionals to compensate for their inexpenence.
also-ran a horse that lost
anchor box the player who is dealt cards first is sitting on the anchor box
ante initial bet
apprentice a young jockey tied by contract to a trainer while learmng flat racing
arbitrage back and lay or buy and sell in the same market to make a profit
AWT all-weather fibre-sand track
back bet that a horse will win
back all bet that all the horses in a race will win
banker a horse that is strongly fancied and is often the main selection in multiple bets
basic strategy a playing strategy that reduces the house advantage in blackjack
blackjack a score of 21 made with an ace and any other card worth 10
blind bet bet made before a hand is seen
bluff pretend you have a good hand in poker board community cards in hold ’em and Omaha board price the current price on offer for a horse bookies betting shop or bookmaker’s
book percentage a figure that shows the profit of a book. The book percentage minus 100 gives the percentage profit or loss that is made by betting on all runners. A figure greater than 100 is its profit. The percentage less than 100 is the percentage loss on a book
boxed in when a horse cannot overtake another because one or more horses block its path
break a score over 21 in blackjack
brought down a horse that has fallen due to the actions of another horse
bumper a flat race for horses bred for national hunt
burlington bertie a price of 100/30
burnt cards cards that are discarded without being seen by the players
button marker used to denote the dealer in poker
call bet the same as the previous player in poker
carpet a price of 3/1
carre bet on four numbers on roulette
cheval bet on two numbers on roulette
clerk of the course race course official who manages the race day
clerk of the scales Jockey Club official who ensures horses carry the correct weight.
closing a bet (spread betting) placing a second bet of the same size in the opposite direction of the initial bet co-favourites where there is more than one favourite colours silk shirts worn by the jockeys
colt young male horse, aged 4 years and under
come-out first roll of the dice
commission the amount charged for the services supplied by a betting exchange or spread betting firm
community cards cards laid face up in games like hold ’em and Omaha that may be used by all players to make a hand
conditional young jockey tied by contract to a trainer while learning national hunt racing
conditions race a race where horses carry weight according to factors such as age, sex, whether they have won before or the type of race won
connections people related to a horse, such as the trainer and owner
craps dice; a score of two, three or 12 in dice
court cards king, queen and jack
dead heat where a race is a tie for either the winner or one of the placed horses
dead man’s hand two pair of aces over eights in poker
decimal odds odds where the stake is included in the price. For example 2/1 is 3.0
deuce two
dolly marker used on roulette to show the winning number double carpet a price of 33/1
down bet a bet that the result will be lower than the lower end of the quote. Also called a sell
draw the position of a horse in the starting stalls
drift odds that lengthen
dutching betting different stakes on several horse in a race to give the same payout no matter which of the selections wins
dwelt slow at the start
edge the profit a casino makes on bets usually expressed as a percentage
en plein bet on one number on roulette (straight up)
evens a price of 1/1
favourite the horse with the lowest price
FC an abbreviation for forecast
field the runners in a race
filly a female horse up to 4 years old
first base the player who is dealt cards first is sitting at first base
first time out a horse running in its first race
flat tops slot machines with fixed payouts
flop first three community cards dealt on hold ’em or Omaha fold surrender from the game
form a record of a horse’s previous racing performance
furlong an eighth of a mile (201 metres)
gelding a castrated male horse
gentleman jockey an amateur jockey
going the condition of the racing surface
going down the horses are on their way to the start
grand £1000
green a description of an inexperienced horse
hand a measure of a horse’s height, equivalent to four inches
hardways same score on both dice
hedge place additional bets to guarantee a profit
hit take another card
hole card dealer’s down card
hole cards cards in the player’s hand
home stretch the length of straight track before the finishing post
hopping one-roll betting
house advantage the profit a casino makes on bets, usually expressed as a percentage
IBAS the Independent Betting Arbitration Service, a British organization that settles disputes with bookmakers on the punters’ behalf when the bookmaker is a member of the scheme
impair odd
index bet a bet where the performance is measured by awarding points for a particular outcome
in-running betting on an event as it happens
inspection due either to the weather or condition of the course, a decision will be made about whether or not racing can go ahead
irons stirrups
joint favourites two horses are favourite jolly the favourite
judge Jockey Club official who declares the race result and the distances between runners
juvenile a 2-year-old horse in flat racing, a 3- or 4-year-old-horse in jump racing
lame a horse that is having difficulty walking or is limping
lay bet that a horse will lose
lay all bet that all the horses in a race will lose
layers bookmakers
laying off bookmakers practice of reducing betting liability by betting with other bookmakers
long shot a horse with high odds
maiden a horse or rider that has not previously won a race
makeup the result on which a bet is settled
manque low
mare female horse aged 5 years and over
match a race where there are only two horses competing
maximum makeup a maximum limit on the result
miss out losing score in dice
muck pile where the losing hands are placed
nap the top tip of the day from a racing tipster
natural a Score of 7 or lIon the first roll of dice; a score of eight or nine in punto banco
no offers no price is offered by the bookmakers. N/O is displayed on the screen
novice a jump racing term: a novice hurdler is a horse that has not won a hurdle race before the current season, a novice chaser is a horse that has not won a steeplechase before the current season
objection a complaint from a jockey that, in his opinion, the rules of racing have been broken
odds on a price lower than evens off the race has started
open make the first bet
open bet a bet that has not been closed or settled
outsider a horse with little chance of winning
over-round the profit on a book
overbroke a book with a loss
pacer a horse in harness racing which moves its legs on one side of its body in unison
pair (roulette) even: two cards of the same value, for example two aces
pari-mutuel the prices quoted by the French tote
pass take no further cards
passe high
pattern created in 1971 to ensure that the major European races are spread out across the season and do not clash. Pattern races are classified in groups one to three with group one being the most important races and including the classics
penalty a weight added to the handicap weight of a horse
photo finish a close race where the aid of a photograph is needed to determine the result
picture cards king, queen and jack plate a shoe Worn by a horse for racing plater a horse that runs in selling races
pocket cards cards in the players hand in games like Hold ’em and Omaha
pokies video poker machines
pot money played for in poker
press increase bets
prop bets proposition bets (craps bets and hardways)
pulled up a horse that drops out of the race after the off
punter someone who bets
push a bet that is tied
racecard a programme for the day’s racing
rag a horse with little chance of winning (an outsider)
raise make an increased bet
rake a charge made by the casino for the use of its facilities, usually a percentage of the pot
rating a measure of the performance of a horse on a scale of 0-140, where 140 is the highest.
run a straight reduction factor. The percentage that will be deducted from odds on a betting exchange in the event of a withdrawn horse.
rule 4 a deduction made from the prices due to the withdrawal of a horse from a race
scratching a horse that is withdrawn from a race.
seven out a score of 7 after the come out roll in dice
shooter person who throws the dice
showdown when the players reveal their hands in poker
sidewheeler a pacer in harness racing
SP an abbreviation for starting price
spread the difference between what a spread betting firm predicts and the outcome
spread a plate lose a horse shoe
stake amount of money bet
stallion male horse that has retired from racing and is mating mares
stand take no more cards
standoff a tie
starter the person responsible for starting the race
steeplechase a race over obstacles
steward Jockey Club official who is responsIble for checking that the rules of racing are followed
stewards’ enquiry an inquiry into whether or not the rules of racing have been broken
straight slots slot machines with fixed payouts
stud where horses are bred
stud book a book that contains the pedigree of thoroughbred race horses
system a method of betting that is supposed to favour the player
thoroughbred a horse bred for racing that is registered in the general stud book
tipster a person who is employed by a newspaper to recommend horses that are likely to win
tissue prices early prices offered before a betting market has been formed
trip the distance of the race
trips three of a kind
trotter a horse in harness racing that moves with a diagonal gait
under orders the race is about to start
up bet or buy in spread betting, a bet that the outcome will be higher than the prediction
vigorish commission
walkover a race with only runner. In order to be declared the winner, the horse must walk over the course. Where there are obstacles, the horse need not jump over them, but may walk around
weigh-in after each race the jockeys on the winning and placed horses must weigh in to confirm that they are carrying the same weight as at the start of the race
yearling a horse from 1 January to 31 December of the year following its birth