| Terminology
Across the board:
A wager on a horse to win, place, and show. The player collects three
ways if the horse wins, two ways if it comes in second, and one way
if it comes in third.
Age:
All Thoroughbreds celebrate their birthday on January
one, regardless of when they were actually born.
Allowances:
Reductions in the weight that horses are required to
carry. Reductions may be allowed for apprentice jockeys, for
female horses racing against males, for three-year-olds racing
against older horses, or for race conditions.
Daily Double:
A type of wager in which the player selects winners
for two consecutive races.
Daily Racing Form:
A publication reporting past performance and handicapping
information.
Derby:
A stakes race for three-year-olds.
Exacta:
(Perfecta) A wager on two horses in one race to finish
first and second in exact order.
Exotic wagers:
Any wager other than win, place or show.
Handicapping:
To select horses on the basis of past performances.
Infield:
The area within by the inner rail of the racetrack.
Inquiry:
A review of a race called for by an official for a possible
rules violation. (reviews called for by jockeys are objections).
Jockey Club:
The official registry for thoroughbreds in North America.
Key horse:
A single horse used in multiple combinations in an exotic
wager.
Length:
A unit measurement of the distance between two horses
in a race, approximately the length of a horse.
Listed race:
A stakes races of lower quality than a group race or
a graded race.
Minus pool:
Occurs when too many bets are placed on the same horse,
and the pool, after takeouts, is too small to cover the minimum
payout to all the winners.
Objection:
Review of a race called for by a jockey for a possible
rules violation. (reviews called by officials are inquiries.)
Ohio State Racing Commission:
(the "Commission") Ohio state governmental
agency responsible for prescribing and enforcing the rules, regulations,
and conditions under which pari-mutuel wagering on horse races
is conducted in the state.
Off-Track Betting Parlor:
A facility located apart from a commercial race track,
where simulcasting is offered. (currently two in Ohio).
Overnight races:
A race in which entries are allowed up to a certain
number of hours of the race, in contrast to a stakes race which
closes weeks ahead of the race.
Pari-mutuel Wagering:
A form of wagering where all the money wagered is divided
among the winners after a statutory percentage is deducted to
cover taxes, commissions, and administrative expenses. Under
this form of wagering, the bettors are competing among themselves.
The track does not have a stake in the outcome of the race.
Place:
A type of wager in which a single horse is selected
to finish first or second.
Purse:
The amount of money that is distributed to the owners
of the top four or five finishers in a race.
Quarterhorse Program:
Promotion program conducted by the Commission which
provides quarter horse racing purse subsidies. There are very
few quarter horse races run in Ohio.
Quinella:
A type of wager in which the player selects two horses
to finish first and second in either order.
Scratch:
To withdraw before a race.
Show:
A wager on a single horse to finish first, second or
third.
Standardbred Program:
Promotion program conducted by the Commission which
provides purse subsidies. The program also formed the Ohio Sires
Stakes series of races funds research and testing at the Ohio
State University Analytical Toxicology Laboratory.
Stake races:
A race for which horses usually must be nominated or invited in advance,
and for which a fee must be paid in order to run.
Simulcast:
Presenting a televised race from another track for viewing
and pari-mutuel wagering purposes.
Thoroughbred:
A horse descended from one of the following three sires:
Darley Arabian, Byerly Turk and Godolphin Barb, registered with
the Jockey Club or other recognized foreign registry.
Thoroughbred Program:
Promotion program conducted by the Commission, which
provides purse subsidies for various overnight/stake races; supplements
purses for registered thoroughbreds that win open races; provides
broodmare and stallion awards to breeders of winning registered
horses; and funds research at The Ohio State University Analytical
Toxicology Laboratory for equine research.
Trifecta:
A wager on three horses in one race to place first,
second and third in exact order.
Win:
A type of wager in which a single horse is selected
to finish first.
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