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Dead Heat Betting | The ultimate 2024 guide

If you aren’t serious about betting, dead heat betting might not be a common term for you. For most gamblers, betting always ends in a win or a loss. How often in your gambling experiences have you ever come across a tie/a push? 

Well, maybe a few but you even didn’t pay attention to it. A tie is the typical dead heat betting meaning. Ideally, dead heat betting in sports is an intricate type of tie that requires a closer look.  If you’ve never heard about this term or want to know more, this 2024 dead heat betting guide examines the meaning and how this betting works. So, find out more.

Summary of the article

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What is dead heat betting?

Dead-heat is a type of tie occurring between two or more selections, at any live bookmaker. Unlike regular ties, where a refund is always made, dead heat betting rules demand that payouts are made. When a dead heat occurs, bettors win part and lose part of the bet. 

Dead-heat is common in horse racing, cricket, car racing, and golf. However, dead heat in football might also occur.

What are dead heat rules in betting

Dead-heat betting rules are pretty similar across sports, mobile bookmakers, and betting markets, but some minor differences may occur. Pretty much a dead heat calculator does everything. 

The standard rule is, dividing the stake proportionally by the number of participants in a tie, being different from pool betting and colossus. However, calculations may get complex if the number of tied places exceeds one. 

So, dead heat with three winners, each winner gets a third of their stake. However, some bookies cut the odds, which might result in significant differences.

Dead Heat rules and each way bets

Placing an each-way betting complicate matters a lot. But dead hits are more common in each way bets, there are a lot of offers available more so in sports where competitors can tie in more than a single place. In some cases, a dead heat has no impact on your bet; thus, you’ll receive the full amount as per your stake but at a fraction of your odds. , each way calculators can give you payouts much faster.

How dead heat betting works

Dead heat betting is as easy as understanding ties. Whether you are on betting sites with live streaming or betting at the best sports betting exchanges, you need to understand the betting terms of a particular sportsbook. 

Most players place bets not hoping to land a tie but a straight win. That is why most bookies try as much as possible to break the ties -for instance, in horse racing, they use phono finish to determine if it’s a true tie.

In golf betting, players may tie on points resulting in dead heat golf; in cricket, a  test match, cricket always results in a dead heat between the two sides, and in football, it occurs in the case of top scorers in a tournament. 

Therefore, the working of these bets may vary slightly according to the rules of the bookies and the sport. If you do not like this type of bet, you can try out Goliath bet or Yankee bet.

What is a dead heat calculator?

If you want to know your payout, it’s excellent to understand how the dead heat calculator works. While this bet calculator may vary from bookies by payment methods to another, its principle remains the same, i.e., showing you how much you’ve won. 

Most bookies have an automatic calculator on their website, which allows you to easily calculate your return and profit when your bet is subjected to dead heat rules.

How to use dead heat betting calculator

Using the dead heat calculator is pretty straightforward. However, it somewhat depends on the software used and the horse betting terms. However, you’ll need the following: Your stake: the amount you wish to risk while placing a bet. This amount, alongside the sports odds, determines what you’ll receive if your bet is successful. 

The sports and team or participants you are wagering on. In case of a dead heat, you’ll need the tied teams to calculate the payout and bookmaker odds. While placing a bet, you’ll use the specific odds provided. If the outcome results in a tie, odds may be adjusted, or your stake divided proportionally by participants’ numbers.

If a bookie’s rules do not alter the odds in case of a tie, a dead heat calculator requires:

  • The original odds from the crypto bookmaker (in respective odds format)
  • The number of tied places – in golf, horse racing, and dog betting. It’s worth noting that not all tied places qualify for a payout, especially in golf. Thus, the calculator may require you to input only those numbers that qualify for a payout. 
  • Enter your stake. After this step, the dead heat calculator immediately shows your payout. On fast or instant withdrawal bookmakers, you get your money instantly after the game. 

Suppose a bookie changes the odds; you’ll need to use the adjusted odds to get your total payout.

How do dead heat payouts work?

If you aren’t using the dead heat calculator to determine your payout, you may use the manual methods. This dead and heat betting guide shows you how: 

First, divide the stake equally among the winners of the events. In the case of two winners, i.e., two-way Dead Heat bettor’s return is half what they could have won. Hence the name half-face value; also a bet for half the original stake.

Tip

The formula for two winning runners in dead heat horse racing or dead heat dogs racing: 

[(Stake / 2) x (Odds – 1)] – (Stake / 2) = Profit/Loss

In case of more than two runners:

[(Stake / No of tied runners) x (Odds – 1)] – [Stake x (No of tied runners – 1) / No of tied runners] = Profit/Loss

For place markets:

[(Stake x No of payouts / No of tied runners) x (Odds – 1)] – [Stake x (No of tied runners – No of payouts) / No of tied runners] =  Profit/Loss

Note that a Dead Heat outcome between two runners in the middle of your best and your worst-case scenario. These calculations apply to both backers and layers. In case of a lay bet, calculate the settlement out using the backer’s stake but remember; the amount the backer wins, the layer loses, and vice versa.

Popular sports where dead heat betting might occur

Football: in football, betting a dead heat is rare. Top goalscorer in a given competition and Golden Glove awarded to goalkeepers are common scenarios leading to a dead heat.

Horse: Dead heat horse racing is rare because a photo finish can show the leading horse when zoomed properly. However, the difference in the two horses may not be apparent; thus, such horse racing results in a tie as long as they adhere to horse betting terms by learning how to bet on horses.

Dog racings: in dog betting, ties can occur. While these scenarios can be eliminated with a photo finish, it’s not always certain. This results in a dead heat dogs racing scenario. You can place bets to finish in the first two or three places.

Golf: in golf betting, two or more competitors may tie in a particular position, resulting in dead heat golf betting. However, a dead heat can’t occur on the tournament’s overall winner because an extra hole will be played to determine the overall winner.

Cricket: in cricket, betting a dead heat is very occasional in any currencies. However, the dead heat betting cricket scenario is not an ordinary draw, and when they occur, bookies play by the rules to pay the winning parties.

Formula one: instances of dead heat are rare in moto sports. Naturally, they don’t occur, but the bookies apply standard rules to the payouts if dead heat in races occurs

Car sports: dead heat in cars racing is another possibility in betting sites with live streaming. If two or more cars tie in a sport, that bet is classed as a dead heat, and payouts are made according to bookie rules

Dead heat betting pros and cons

PROS

  • Offers flexibility in betting options
  • Applicable in different betting markets and sports
  • It offers players chances to hedge bets

CONS

  • It's guaranteed you'll receive a payout
  • Payouts are always smaller than the stake

Dead heat betting FAQ:

Dead heat betting is available for specific sports only, such as horse and dog racing, football, cricket, golf, and car racing. Even so, it's rare in most of these sports except golf.

Yes, dead heat rules are pretty similar across all sports. All bookmakers have adopted similar rules to ensure fair play.

Two or more competitors can hit a dead heat. The chances of three or more competitors having a dead heat are much lower, however.

Yes, you'll win part of your stake and lose part of it. Typically, the bookies divide your stake by the number of participants who tie.

The only exception to look out for is how bookies treat dead heat bets. So, gamblers need to look at the rules before placing bets.

Conclusion about dead heat betting

Dead heat betting means a tie on an outcome and it can even happen at e-sports betting sites. Two or more participants in a competition may tie on different aspects resulting in dead heat betting situations. So, for any form of betting, dead heat may quickly occur, and payouts are usually a division of the stake by the number of participants who tie. 

With most bookies offering this option, a punter can get daily betting offers on these types of bets. However, bettors need to adhere to the dead heat betting rules.

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