What does it mean to box horses in a bet?

Among the more popular words in horse racing parlance is “box.” It’s a wagering term that beginners should quickly learn if they want to make smarter bets at home or at the track.

We’ll discuss the finer points of “boxing” below.

Only certain intrarace wagers can be “boxed”

Exactas (first two finishers in order), Trifectas (first three finishers in order), Superfectas (first four finishers in order), and Hi-Fives (first five finishers in order) are the only wagers that can be boxed. Multi-race wagers (such as Daily Doubles and Pick Threes) and Win, Place, and Show wagers are not eligible to be boxed. The logic behind this will become readily apparent.

Boxing can increase wager costs significantly

Boxing a wager will increase a bettor’s chance of winning, while increasing his amount wagered.

Boxing an exacta, for example, can become cost-prohibitive depending on the number of horses involved. A two-horse exacta box would cost $2 for every $1 wagered, because the wager covers two possible outcomes (Horse 1 over Horse 2, Horse 2 over Horse 1). A three-horse exacta box costs $6 for every $1 wagered, as six combinations are covered (1 over 2, 1 over 3, 2 over 1, 2 over 3, 3 over 1, 3 over 2). Four-horse ($12 for $1) and five-horse ($20 for $1) exacta boxes are where costs start to escalate.

Trifectas can quickly become cost-prohibitive to box. A three-horse trifecta box starts simply enough – $6 for every $1 risked. Throw a fourth horse into the box though, and the cost skyrockets to $24.

Superfectas start at $24 for a $1 box, and jump to $120 for a five-horse box at a $1 base. Of course, trifectas and superfectas sometimes offer very large payouts worth chasing.

When is it wise to box a bet?

Deciding whether or not to box a bet depends on the confidence of the bettor in his or her selections for a given race. For instance, if a bettor feels that a heavy favorite is very likely to win a race and favors a certain horse to come second, it may be a waste of profit to box that exacta, as the 1/2 exacta combination on its own may not pay very much.

If a bettor is having a trouble splitting hairs between his or her top three selections in a race, a logical solution might be to box them in an exacta. But if the exactas aren’t yielding generous payouts, then a trifecta would be a sensible alternative. It ultimately comes down to individual risk tolerance and protecting profit. There’s no point in hitting a wager only to make a couple of bucks, or worse yet, lose money.