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LOTTERY
AND PARI-MUTUEL RACING TERMS
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| A |
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| Across the Board | To bet a horse to win, place and show. |
| Agent | A retail outlet for lottery tickets. |
| Allowance Race | Race for horses not eligible to be claimed. There are different classes of allowance races. |
| Also Eligible | Horses who are eligible to run if there are scratches in the race. |
| Annuity | It is like a mortgage. Lotteries sometimes use annuities to create higher jackpots than they have the cash for. An annuity backed jackpot winner collects the money in installments over several years, typically over 20 or 25 years. |
| Apprentice | Also referred to as a bug boy. An apprentice is a jockey who is just getting started in the sport. The apprentice is allowed to carry less weight that a veteran rider. After the rider wins a certain number of races, he loses his bug. The apprentice is allowed ten pounds until he wins five races and seven pounds until he has won an additional 30 races. If he has ridden 35 winners prior to the end of one year from the date of riding his fifth winner, he will receive an allowance of five pounds until the end of that year. An apprentice is called a bug because the program will have an asterisk next to the weight that the jockey carries. |
| B | |
| Backstretch | Straight portion of far side of the track between the turns. The stable area is also know as the backstretch. |
| Bandage | Cloth wrapped around a horse’s front or rear legs. The bandages offer support and protect the horse’s legs against injury. |
| Bearing in/ out | A horse who is not running a straight course, due to tiredness or soreness or because of the jockey’s inability to stay a straight course. |
| Bit | Metal mouth bar to which the reins are attached. |
| Bleeder | A horse that bleeds internally or through the nostrils during or after a workout. |
| Blinkers | Device that hinders a horse from seeing things on either side. It prevents the horse from shying from objects and other horses and they focus a horse’s attention on running. |
| Bonus Ball | A seventh ball drawn in the UK National Lottery. Matching 5 numbers and the 'Bonus Ball' wins the second highest prize. |
| Box Bet or Boxed | A way of betting a three or four digit number that will pay off if those three or four numbers are drawn in any order. For example 245, 452, 425 would win if the selected number is 542. |
| Boxing | A system used to play more digits than you could normally play in a three or four digit numbers game. |
| Breakage | The odd pennies that the track keeps from the pay-out. |
| Breakopen | An instant-win ticket on which the player tears open a flap to see if the ticket is a winner. Also called 'Pulltabs'. Breakopens are often sold by charities and occasionally by state lotteries. |
| Breezing | Working a horse at a moderate speed, less effort than handily. |
| Bug | A term to denote a one, two or three- bug apprentice weight allowance. |
| Bug Boy | An apprentice who gets a weight allowance to compensate for his inexperience. |
| Bullet work | The best time for each distance on the workout line for a given day, designated by a black dot in the program. |
| Bute - (Butazolidin) | Trade name for phenylbutazone, an analgesic permitted for use on horses. |
| C | |
| Cash Lotto | A lotto game awarded as a lump-sum cash payment. Cash lotto games typically have a smaller top prize than large jackpot games, more favorable odds of winning the top prize, and require players to select fewer numbers out of a smaller field. Examples include Florida's 'Fantasy 5' and Indiana's 'Lucky 5'. |
| Cash Option | A large jackpot that the winner elects to receive as a lump sum cash payment rather than an 'Annuity' (see above) over several years. |
| Cash Payoff | A lottery prize that will be paid out all at one time, rather than over several years. |
| Chalk | The heavily bet favorite in a race. |
| Change Leads | Changing from leading with the right leg to the left leg going around a turn. |
| Claiming horse | A horse who is eligible to be bought out of a race. |
| Class | A relative term that implies one horse is superior to another. |
| Colt | Unaltered male horse under five-years old. |
| Combo | A way of betting a three digit number that covers all possible combinations of sequences. |
| Commission | The fee paid to retail outlets for selling lottery tickets. Commissions in North America typically range between 5 percent and 6 percent of the price of the ticket. |
| D | |
| Daily Game | This can refer to any game where winners are determined once a day, but usually refers to a numbers game such as the 'Daily 3' or 'Daily 4' games played in many states. Double or Doubles - A 3 or 4 digit number that contains two numbers of the same digit. Example; 122. The attraction of doubles is that their payoff in 'Box Bet' and 'Combo' bets is doubled. |
| Dam | Mother of a horse. |
| Dead Heat | Two or more horses finishing in an exact tie at the wire. |
| Derby | Stakes races for 3-year olds. |
| Disqualification | A horse is removed from the place he finished and placed lower. For example, a horse may finish first, but interfere with another runner, impeding his chances to win the race. The interfering horse will be "taken down" and placed lower in the order of finish. |
| Dogs | Plastic traffic cones placed a certain distance out from the rail during workouts so that the area will be protected from wearing out. |
| Double-Double | A four-digit number made up of two doubles. Example; 1221. Draw - The lottery results. |
| Driving | Strong urging by rider in stretch. |
| Drop Down | A horse is running for a lower claiming tag than in his previous races. |
| E | |
| Eased | A horse who stops running, having been taken up by his jockey. |
| Entry | Two or more horses who have the same owner or trainer and are coupled in the wagering. |
| Exact Order | (Also, Straight) Numbers drawn in the same order as played. Exotic Numbers - Unusual or uncommon set of numbers. |
| Exacta | A wager in which the first two finishers in a race must finish first or second |
| F | |
| Fast Track | A dry track. |
| Field | Horses that are grouped together as one wagering interest. If you wager on the field, you get all the runners entered in the field. |
| Filly | Female horse under five years of age. |
| Firm | A turf course that is dry. |
| Fixed Payouts | Fixed lottery prizes for each dollar played. |
| Foal | A new born horse. |
| Four-digit or 4-Digit Game | A numbers game played with four digits between 0 and 9. Numbers may be repeated. |
| Fractional Time | Intermediate time recorded in a race at the quarter, half mile, etc… |
| Furlong | One eighth of a mile, 220 yards; 660 feet. |
 Racetrack diagram courtesy of www.fgnetbet.com |
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| Furosemide | A diuretic medication that is used to treat horses who bleed. Also known by the product name Lasix. |
| G | |
| Gelding | Castrated male horse. |
| Graded races | The most important races. They are classified as Grade I, Grade II or Grade III. One being the most important. |
| H | |
| Haltered | Claimed. |
| Handicap | A race in which the racing secretary assigns various weights to horses in an attempt to equalize their ability. The best horse in the race carries the most weight. |
| Handily | An easy victory achieved without hard urging. |
| Handle | The amount of money wagered into a betting pool. |
| Handle | The sum of all money wagered at a video lottery terminal. See also 'Net Machine Income' below. |
| Heavy Track | A running surface drier than muddy, although often slower. |
| Horse | A male horse five years or older. |
| Hot or Overdrawn | A digit that over a period of time is drawn more often than the norm. While some play these numbers because they are 'Hot', they can only reach normality by not being drawn. |
| I | |
| Impost | The weight carried by a horse. |
| In the Money | Finishing first, second or third. |
| Inquiry | An objection lodged by a jockey or the stewards concerning a possible infraction during the running of a race. |
| Instant Game | A lottery ticket that requires the player to remove a latex coating to determine if the ticket is a winner. Also called 'Scratch-off Game' or 'Scratcher'. |
| J | |
| Jackpot | The top prize for a lotto or lottery game. Jackpots are usually 'Parimutuels' (see below). If not won in the next drawing, they 'roll over' to the next drawing and increase in size/amount. |
| Juvenile | A horse that is 2-years old. |
| K | |
| Keno | A lotto game in which several numbers (typically 20) are drawn from a large field of numbers (typically 80). Players select a set of numbers from the main field (usually a minimum of 3 numbers up to a maximum of 10 numbers) and are awarded prizes based on how many of their numbers match those in the drawn set. For all about Keno click here. |
| L | |
| Length | Approximately eight to nine feet. The measurement used to gauge how much one horse is in front of another. |
| Lotto, Lottery | A game where players select a small group of numbers (usually six) from a large set (usually 49) and are awarded prizes based on how many match the randomly drawn result. In a typical lotto game, a player might be asked to select six numbers from a set of 49. At a predetermined time, six numbers are randomly drawn by the lottery people. The player wins a major prize if all six of their numbers match those chosen in the random drawing. The player wins smaller prizes for matching three, four, or five of the drawn numbers. Variants of lotto games include 'Powerball' or 'Power Ball' and 'The Big Game' and 'Lottery Extra' (UK). Lucky Dip - A random selection of numbers made by computer. (Also, Quick Pick) |
| M | |
| Maiden race | A race for horses who have never won a race. |
| Maiden Special Weight | A maiden races for horses not eligible to be claimed. |
| Mare | A female horse 5-years or older. |
| Mega Number | A separate drawn number used in SuperLotto Plus of the California Lottery. Players choose 5 numbers from 1 to 47 and a MEGA number from 1 to 27. There are 9 ways to match and win. In fact, you can win even if you just match the MEGA number. To win the Jackpot, you must match all five numbers plus the MEGA number. For each SuperLOTTO Plus draw, a pool of two draw machines is used. The first machine is designated as the SuperLOTTO Plus draw machine, with the remaining machine designated as the Mega draw machine. Natural Selection - A selection of numbers made by the player as opposed to a 'Quick Pick' or 'Lucky Dip' selection. |
| Morning line | A projection, before actual wagering takes place, on how the public will bet. |
| Mudder | A horse who like an "off" track, a track that is wet. |
| Muddy track | A track soaked through due to heavy rain. |
| N | |
| Net Machine Income | The money played at a video lottery terminal (see 'Handle' above) minus the prizes won at that terminal. |
| No-match Numbers | A 3 or 4 digit number that contains no double digits as in the 'Double' or 'Double-Double'. |
| Numbers Game | This term can be used for any lottery game where winners are determined by a random draw of numbers. However, it is often used more specifically for a game where a player selects three or four digits (0 to 9) and matches them with a similar set drawn at random by the lottery people. The player can select several different types of wagers with payoffs varying accordingly. For example, players making a 'Straight' bet could win $500 on a $1 bet if their three digits match the three digits selected by the lottery people, in the same order. |
| O | |
| Off Track | A track that is less than fast. |
| Off-line Game | A game that does not require the use of a computer terminal for purchase. Instant and passive games are examples of off-line games. |
| Online Game | A game where tickets are purchased through a network of computer terminals located at retail outlets. The terminals are linked to a central computer that records the wagers. Examples of online games include lotto, keno and numbers games. |
| Outrider | Mounted rider who escorts horses to the post. |
| Overdrawn | See 'Hot' above. |
| Overdue | A digit that has not been drawn in more days than the norm. These numbers are favored because they can only reach normality by being drawn. |
| P | |
| Pace | Relative rate of speed in the early going of a race. |
| Paddock | Area where the horses are saddled |
| Pairs | A three digit number bet whose any one pair of the first two digits, last two digits, and in some cases the first and last digit appear on the drawn number. |
| Parimutuel or Pari-mutuel | A common method of payoffs that splits the total available money between all winners of a particular prize level. |
| Passive Game | A lottery game similar to a raffle where a player buys a ticket with preprinted numbers. The lottery later randomly draws numbers that are compared to the players' tickets to determine the winners. |
| Place | A horse finishing second. |
| Post Parade | Horses heading to the starting gate. |
| Pulltabs or Pull Tabs | See 'Breakopen' above. |
| Q | |
| Quad | A four-digit number consisting of the same number. Example; 1111. |
| Quick Pick | A random selection of numbers made by computer. (Also, Lucky Dip) |
| R | |
| Repeat | A number that contains at least one of the digits that was drawn the previous day or the previous draw. |
| Ridden out | Mild encouragement by rider in the stretch. |
| Rollover | An event that occurs when the lottery jackpot or a jackpot game is not won. The jackpot thus 'rolls over' to the next drawing, resulting in a bigger jackpot for that drawing. Scratch-off Game - See 'Instant Game' above. |
| S | |
| Scratch | A horse that has been withdrawn from a race. |
| Shadow Roll | A noseband that is placed on the horse so that he won’t see shadows on the ground. This prevents horses from trying to jump a shadow on the track. |
| Show | A horse finishing third in a race. |
| Sire | Father of a horse. |
| Sixteenth | One sixteenth of a mile; 110 yards. |
| Sloppy | A track condition in which there is moisture on the track, but the base of the track is still firm. |
| Spiel | An add-on feature to a lotto game. For an additional fee an extra set of numbers (typically four to six numbers) is printed on the bottom of a ticket. Players win by matching one or more of these numbers to those selected in a random drawing. Spiel games are found throughout Canada but are not yet common in the USA. Examples of spiel games include Atlantic Canada's 'TAG', Quebec's 'Extra', and Ohio's 'Kicker'. |
| Sports Lottery | Games where outcomes are determined by the results of sports events. Sports lotteries are popular lottery games in much of the world, where they are frequently called 'Toto' or 'Totocalcio' (Italy) or 'Football Pools' (UK), but have not achieved this level of popularity in North America. |
| Stewards | Like any sporting event there are officials who enforce the rules. In racing they are called stewards. |
| Straight or Straight Bet | A bet of 3 or 4 numbers that must be drawn in the exact order. The player attempts to match both the numbers drawn and the order in which they are selected. For example, if the numbers 1, 2, 3 are selected in a three-digit game, a ticket bearing 1, 2, 3 will win but a ticket bearing 2, 1, 3 will not. (See 'Box Bet' above) |
| Superfecta | A wager in which the first four runners in a race must finish first, second, third or fourth. |
| T | |
| Take out | The percentage of tax taken from each betting pool at the track. |
| Taken Down | A horse who has been disqualified and placed lower in the order of finish. |
| Terminal | A computerized device located at a lottery retailer that is used to sell lottery tickets and online games and to validate winning tickets of lottery, online and instant games. Terminals are connected to a lottery's central computers by phone line. |
| Three-digit or 3-Digit Game | A numbers game in which three digits between 0 and 9 are selected. Numbers may be repeated. |
| To Wheel | To play the 'Wheeling System' (see below). |
| Totalisator or Totalizator | The system of betting on races (an automated system that dispenses and records betting tickets, calculates and displays odds and payoffs and provides the mechanism for cashing winning tickets) in which the winning bettors share the total amount bet, minus a percentage for the operators of the system, taxes etc. Synonyms: Tote, Parimutuel. |
| Tote Board | The totalisator infield board at the track that shows the money wagered and the resulting odds. |
| Toto | See 'Sports Lottery' above. |
| Tree System | A way of organizing numbers to play for a straight win so that potential combinations are not missed. Similar to a 'Wheeling System'. |
| Trifecta | A wager in which you must have the top three horses in the exact order of finish in order to win. |
| Triple or Triples | A three digit number consisting of the same number. Example; 111. |
| U | |
| Underdrawn or Under Drawn | A digit that over a period of time is drawn less often than the norm. These numbers are favored because they can only reach normality by being drawn. |
| V | |
| Valet | A person who takes care of the jockey’s equipment. |
| Video Lottery Terminal (VLT) | Electronic games of chance played on a video screen. They often simulate popular casino games such as blackjack, poker, or spinning-reel slot machines (for all about 'Slot Machines' click here). Unlike slot machines, video lottery terminals do not dispense money. Rather, a winning player is provided a ticket that is redeemed by the retailer for prizes. |
| Virgin | A colloquial term referring to a number or number combination that has never been drawn. |
| W | |
| Wheeling System | A way of organizing and playing a set of numbers to improve the chances of winning multiple prizes. |
| Withholding | The anticipated tax amount deducted from prize payments. |
| Y | |
| Yearling | A horse’s age between New Year’s Day after being foaled and the following January 1. |
Lottery terms courtesy of www.ildado.com