Predicting a horse will win, place or show in a race and then doing a “wheel” on the rest of the field will assure a winning ticket if the key horse finishes in the predicted position. Laying such bets can be risky with a potential to lose a great deal of money if the key horse does not come through. But if the key horse finishes in the predicted position, a trifecta wheel bet can pay off much better than when simply laying a straight bet on the odds for a particular horse to win. If a race has 19 horses running in it, there are 56 potential outcomes for a trifecta bet. Instead of having to lay $112 to cover all possible outcomes, the bettor can lay a $1 wheel and pay $56. If the key horse comes in the right position and the other two horses finish with long odds, the payoff can be high.
