What do win, place and show mean in horse racing?
Win, place and show bets were undoubtedly the first developed to facilitate gambling on horse races.
The terms are used to describe the top three positions at the finish of the race. The meaning of win is obvious; “place” means to finish second and “show” is to finish third.
If you bet a horse to show, you have a small margin for error built into your wager as you will collect if your runner finishes in the top three positions. If you bet the horse to place and he runs third, on the other hand, you collect nothing.
Most horse racing betting experts frown on show wagering in particular, though, arguing that win betting is more productive in the long term. Read more here about picking the winner.
But if having that extra margin for error is important to you, go ahead and put your dough on show.