Place and Eachway
Place and Eachway bets are useful when you think your runner or team will do well but perhaps not well enough to come first. Place or Eachway will typically be quoted for the first 2, 3, 4 or 5 places, depending on the number of runners in the event.
Place
Place bets will normally be quoted by bookmakers as something like 1/4 odds place 1,2,3,4 in which case you would get a quarter of the win odds if the runner comes in the first four places. So if the win odds are 16/1, you'd instead get 4/1 for the place.
On the betting exchanges such as Betfair, where Place markets are commonly seen, it is normal for odds to be quoted independently of the win market odds and prices on the two markets will not necessarily move in tandem.
Eachway
Eachway bets are more common with bookmakers and actually comprise two bets, one on the win, one on the place. The way it is stated on a betting slip, '£5 Eachway' actually costs you £10 (£5 win + £5 place).
For our example above, if your selection comes first both bets pay out, the £5 win element at 16/1 and the £5 place element at 4/1 – in this example a total return of £110 including your £10 stake.
If your selection doesn't win but is placed 2nd, 3rd or 4th, only the Place element pays at quarter odds, so you'd get back £25 including your £5 stake on this element. The other £5 stake is lost.
The terms quoted for Place/Eachway will vary from bookie to bookie and as always it is worth shopping around. Where one offers 1/4 odds 1234, another might offer 1/5 odds 1234 and another 1/5 12345.
Eachway markets are not generally offered on the betting exchanges but it is possible to replicate the characteristics of an Eachway bet by placing the two components separately – one on the Win market and one on the Place market – but remember that the odds will be independently quoted.
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