How to bet on the Kentucky Derby 2023 online
Learn how to bet on the Kentucky Derby 2023 online in our beginners guide, which covers everything you need to know, including the different types of bets, how to understand the odds, and tips and strategies for finding the winner.
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Create your new wagering account with TwinSpires.com and earn a $200 sign up bonus! Must use promo code on registration to be eligible. Valid for one use per household. $200 bonus cash will be credited in increments of $100 for every $400 wagered. To earn the full $200 bonus players must wager $800 within 30 days of creating a TwinSpires account. Completed wagers mean that the race has run and the results are official. This sign up offer cannot be combined with any other registration bonus offer. Certain exclusions apply.
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How to bet on the 2023 Kentucky Derby: The Guide
Most Popular Kentucky Derby 2023 Wagers
Win
The most straightforward bet you can place on the run for the roses in 2023. You can place horse racing wagers at TwinSpires and get up to $400 in bonus funds for the Kentucky Derby,
If your horse wins then you win the bet, if it doesn’t you lose, simple as that. The win market for the Kentucky Derby 2023 currently looks like this:
| POST POSITION | HORSE | ODDS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hit Show | 30-1 |
| 2 | Verifying | 15-1 |
| 3 | Two Phil’s | 12-1 |
| 4 | Confidence Game | 20-1 |
| 5 | Tapit Trice | 5-1 |
| 6 | Kingsbarns | 12-1 |
| 7 | Reincarnate | 50-1 |
| 8 | Mage | 15-1 |
| 9 | Skinner | 20-1 |
| 10 | Practical Move | 10-1 |
| 11 | Disarm | 30-1 |
| 12 | Jace’s Road | 50-1 |
| 13 | Sun Thunder | 50-1 |
| 14 | Angel of Empire | 8-1 |
| 15 | Forte | 3-1 |
| 16 | Raise Cain | 50-1 |
| 17 | Derma Sotogake | 10-1 |
| 18 | Rocket Can | 30-1 |
| 19 | Lord Miles | 30-1 |
| 20 | Continuar | 50-1 |
Kentucky Derby Place
| Pros | Cons |
| Easier to land than a win only bet | Less rewarding odds than a win only bet |
“Place” is the term used for a horse finishing second. For this wager, you’re picking a horse is going to finish first or second in the Kentucky Derby 2023 meaning you’re paid out if your horse finishes first or second.
Kentucky Derby Show
| Pros | Cons |
| Easier to land than a win or place bets | Even less rewarding odds than a place bet |
“Show” is horse racing vernacular for finishing in the first three in the Kentucky Derby. You would win this wager if your horse finishes in first, second or third place.
Kentucky Derby Across the board bet
| Pros | Cons |
| Your pick can finish anywhere in the first three | Even less rewarding odds than a show bet |
Bettors can also place a “across the board” bet on a horse, which means they are putting a dollar amount on that horse to either win, finish second or third in the Kentucky Derby.
If the horse wins, the bettor gets paid out on all three positions. If the horses finish second, you win on the place and show spots. A third-place finish will win you just the show money.
Kentucky Derby 2024 Betting: Everything you need
Kentucky Derby Exotic bets
Exacta
| Pros | Cons |
| Get better odds even if picking the first and second favorites | Difficulty level is magnified because two runners are involved |
Another very popular bet among regular Kentucky Derby bettors and casuals, is an “exacta.”
An Exacta requires the player to select two horses that he or she thinks will finish first and second in the exact order you place them.
For example, say you want to bet the No. 5 Tapit Trice to win the Kentucky Derby and also think the No. 9 Skinner will come in second.
You would put the wager in as a 5-9 exacta in that order. If the No. 5 horse wins and the No. 9 horse finishes second, you would win the exacta bet. Any other combination – including if the 6 wins and the 2 finishes second – loses.
Exacta Box
| Pros | Cons |
| Easier to land than a straight Exacta | Less rewarding than an Exacta |
An exacta box wager gives the bettor a little more insurance on an exacta bet. If you are playing an exacta box, you need to select at least two horses. If any combination of those horses come in first and second, you win.
So let’s say you like the No. 1 Hit Show, No. 7 Reincarnate and No. 10 Practical Move in the Kentucky Derby. You could place an exacta box wager on them and if two of those horses finish first and second (i.e. No. 7 wins and No. 10 finishes second), you win.
That way, you have all your horses covered on the order of finish. You have to double your wager amount for this bet, so it’s more costly but worth the risk.
Trifecta
| Pros | Cons |
| Offers bigger potential rewards than picking the 1-2 in order | Difficulty level is magnified three runners are involved |
Similar to the exacta, a trifecta bet is also quite a popular wager among Kentucky Derby bettors and folks who bet only bet the ponies a few times a year.
For this wager, the bettor tries to correctly predict the exact order of finish for first, second and third place in the Kentucky Derby.
Example: You think the No. 4 Confidence Game will win the Kentucky Derby, the No. 14 Angel of Empire will place (finish second) and the No. 3 will Two Phil’s (finish third) and, you would like to make a $1 wager on a 4/14/3 trifecta. The payout is would usually be large should that exact combination finish first, second, and third.
Trifecta Box
| Pros | Cons |
| Marginally easier than a straight Trifecta because your 1-2-3 can finish in any order | Lower odds than a straight Trifecta due to a lower difficulty level |
Like with exactas, bettors can also box their trifecta bets. Meaning, if you select three horses and they finish 1-2-3 in any order, you win the bet.
Superfecta
| Pros | Cons |
| So hard you can land an astronomical payout even if including some of the fancied runners | Incredibly difficult to pull off |
This wager is like the exacta and trifecta, but the bettor is picking the exact order of finish for the top four runners in a particular race.
Although not as popular as exactas or trifectas, some bettors love the high-risk, high-reward nature of Superfecta bets. Obviously, picking four horses to finish in the exact order is nearly impossible, so the odds for Superfecta bets can get quite high.
Additionally, many tracks and racebooks offer $0.10 superfecta wagering for the Kentucky Derby, which can be more attractive for the novice or casual player to get involved in this kind of market at a relatively low cost.
Superfecta Box
| Pros | Cons |
| You don’t have to get the first four in order to win | Still very difficult and can also become costly depending how many horses you include |
Like with exactas and trifectas, punters can also box their superfecta wagers, which means that your horses can finish 1,2,3,4 in any combination to win.
Why Kentucky Derby exotic wagers are so popular
One reason that Kentucky Derby bettors enjoy exactas, trifectas and superfectas is because it allows them to have some money on horses with long shot odds without needing them to win.
For example, if you think a horse at 30/1 will finish better than its odds suggest, you can include that horse in your exacta, trifecta or superfecta and if that horse hits the board, your payout could grow substantially.
Vertical Wagers
Derby Day Daily Double
This type of bet requires the bettor to correctly pick the winner in back-to-back races on Derby day.
The minimum stake for this type of bet is usually $1, but you can increase your play as you see fit.
Daily doubles are not offered for every race on a card, but most places have plenty of them on any given day and plenty of racetracks will offer a Kentucky Derby daily double.
Kentucky Derby Day Pick 3 and Pick 4
These are multi-race bets where a bettor tries to correctly pick winners of either three or four consecutive races on the first Saturday in May, usually culminating with the Kentucky Derby.
This bet is quite hard to win and can get expensive, but the payouts can be very large if you catch the right horses in the wager. It is another bet where punters can get exposure to horses at big prices.
Kentucky Derby Day Pick 5 and Pick 6
Most horse racing tracks will also offer Pick 5 and Pick 6 wagers for the Kentucky Derby, which can lead to massive payouts.
These are once-in-a-lifetime type of wins and the payouts reflect that. It is not uncommon to see winning tickets bring in tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars to the lucky bettor.
Of course, in order to hit something of that magnitude you’ll have to include — and connect on — some longshots.
How do Kentucky Derby Odds work
Horse Racing uses fractional odds instead of decimal or American odds. If you’ve bet on sports before, you will be familiar with odds such as -110, or +200. For fractional odds, these would be 10/11 and 2/1. These are best displayed as such.
| American Odds | Fractional Odds | Decimal Odds |
| -110 | 10/11 | 1.91 |
| +200 | 2/1 | 3 |
Kentucky Derby bets use the Pari-Mutuel system
The wagers on the Kentucky Derby in the USA use a pari-mutuel system. This means that all bets go into a pool with the amount of money bet on each horse determining their odds, meaning the favorite is the horse that’s had more bets placed on it than any of its rivals.
The pool operator takes a slice of money off the top (takeout) and after that the remaining cash is paid out to the bettors who have won on the race.
This means the odds change frequently under pari-mutuel system. So while you may have made a bet on a horse at 10-1, they may go off at 5-1 if the have been heavily bet subsequently.
If your horse is pulled out of the Kentucky Derby before the race has begun, this is known as the horse being ‘scratched’. If the horse you bet on is scratched, you will receive a refund.
Reading the Kentucky Derby Odds
As you’ll be seeing fractional and decimal odds when betting on horse racing, it’s best we explain how they work.
Fractional odds represent the ratio of the profit won to the stake. For example, a fractional listing of 6/1 (six-to-one) odds would mean that you win $6 against every $1 you wager, in addition to receiving your dollar back (i.e., the amount you wagered).
In other words, this is the ratio of the amount (profit) won to the initial bet, which means that you will receive your stake ($1) in addition to the profit ($6), resulting in a total payout of $7. Therefore, if you stake $10 at 6/1 and win, you get a total payout of $70 ($60 profit + $10 stake).
Here are the payouts from a $2, with the following odds written in fractional format.
| Horse No. | Stake | Odds | Win (Profit + Stake) |
| 1 | $2 | 2/1 | $6 |
| 2 | $2 | 11/4 | $7.50 |
| 3 | $2 | 17/2 | $19 |
| 4 | $2 | 10/1 | $22 |
How to bet on the Kentucky Derby 2023 FAQs
How does wagering on the Kentucky Derby differ from Sports Betting?
The wagering pools for the Kentucky Derby are pari-mutuel, which differs from sports betting in the sense that bettors aren’t trying to beat the house but instead are trying to beat the public at large.
The key to long-term success in betting the ponies is being disciplined in identifying value in the pools.
Where can you bet on the Kentucky Derby?
Online horse racing betting sites are now legal in many US States and you can find some of our favorites in this piece.
Some state racing associations (like NYRA) offer a betting app for users to place bets on the Kentucky Derby. Some states also have OTBs (Off-Track Betting shops) in specific locations.
You can also go to any horse racing track and bet on races around the country (even if they’re taking place at a different track). Some states, like New York, allow certain bars to have OTB kiosks, as well.
Where is online betting on the Kentucky Derby legal?
As of 2023, you are legally able to bet on the Kentucky Derby online in the following states:
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Upcoming Horse Racing Schedule
| Race | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky Derby | Saturday, May 6 | Churchill Downs |
| Preakness Stakes | Saturday, May 20 | Pimlico |
| Belmont Stakes | Saturday, June 10 | Belmont Park |
| Diana Stakes | Saturday, July 15 | Saratoga |
| Breeders Cup | Saturday, November 4 | Santa Anita Park |
How to watch the Kentucky Derby
The 2023 Kentucky Derby will take place on Saturday, May 6 at 6:57 p.m. ET. The race will air on NBC.
How to research Kentucky Derby bets
As with any sports betting, it’s important to do some research before placing any bets. There are plenty of statistics and form websites where you can research horses, trainer, jockey, previous races, form and styles.
We’ve picked out some of the best sites to help craft your Kentucky Derby bets.
| Site | Content |
| Equibase.com | Race cards, entries and results. Plentiful statistics for all your horse racing betting needs. |
| us.racingstats247.com | Comprehensive horse racing statistics. Covering Jockeys, Horses and Trainers. |
| drf.com | The go-to for all your Horse Racing needs. |
| horseracingnation.com | News and information on US Horse Racing. |
Kentucky Derby Betting Tips & Tricks
The nature of horse racing means the field is wide open, and it’s not easy to pick a winner. The Post gives you some tips for placing your horse racing bets, with the most important factors to consider.
Don’t back the inside track
Horse drawn in stalls one, two or three have produced one winner from 103 runners in the the Kentucky Derby since 1987. Hit Show (1), Verifying (2) and Two Phil’s (3) are tasked with defying that statistic.
Double figure draws are nothing to fear
Since the year 2000, twelve of the 23 Kentucky Derby winners ran from post 13 or higher, suggesting the likes of highly-touted outsider Forte (15) aren’t likely to suffer much from a higher draw.
Johnny V is the man
John Velazquez is the winningest Kentucky Derby jockey still in the saddle having won the Kentucky Derby in 2011, 2017 and 2020.
He was also aboard the subsequently disqualified winner Medina Spirit in 2021 and partners Messier for the 2022 edition.
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