UK horse racing and sports betting are known for large exotic wagers. One of the biggest is the Goliath, a massive combination wager that requires a total of 247 single bets on eight different betting choices. With great risk comes great reward, and the payoff for a Goliath bet can be huge.
Many punters love the Goliath bet because you don’t need to be right on all eight choices. In fact, you only need two winners out of eight to receive a return. Your winnings increase with every correct selection. Pick them all right and you’ll be swimming in profits with this bet type.
Sheer excitement is a hallmark of this exotic wager. Those who make the bet have an interest in eight different contests. This can make for a more enjoyable day of sports betting.
What Is It and How Does A Goliath Bet Work?
The Goliath bet is named after the legendary giant of Biblical fame because of its size. This giant wager is made up of 247 individual bets. The bets must include:
- 28 doubles
- 56 trebles
- 70 four-folds
- 56 five-folds
- 28 six-folds
- 8 seven-folds
- 1 eight-fold accumulator
A Goliath bet is offered by most UK bookmakers. It is most common to find the bets offered on football or horse racing betting. It can be made on other sports such as snooker. There really is no comparable bet found in US sports betting. The closest thing would be an eight-team parlay or a horse racing bet that involves picking the winners of eight consecutive races.
The goal of the Goliath wager is to cover all of the possible winning combinations that involve the bettor’s eight selections. As you might imagine, being correct on all eight choices would be akin to winning the lottery. The good news is that a bettor doesn’t have to choose right in every case. A return on the Goliath bet can be achieved with just two correct selections.
The complexity of a Goliath bet make it a wager that is best used by the experienced bettor. However, many bookmakers are now helping to simplify the Goliath wager by providing online Goliath bet calculators that help customers assemble a proper ticket.
The amount required to place a Goliath bet is the amount of the base wager multiplied by 247. Therefore, a £1 Goliath is a total bet of £247. It is also possible to turn the Goliath bet into an each way bet, but the cost rises substantially. This is why many online bookies provide the bet for less than £1 per selection.
Popular bookmakers like Bet365 offer this bet as a matter of course. It has long been one of the most popular bets available on the racetrack.
How to Calculate Winnings
Calculating the return on a Goliath bet can be complex. This is due to the sheer number of variables that the bet entails. The odds on each selection, total stake, and odds format must all be considered. In short, all 247 bets of the Goliath are totaled to arrive at the winnings a bettor may receive.
The best option for a bettor is a Goliath bet calculator. These calculators are provided by many online bookmakers. Bettors enter in the required information and the calculator does the rest.
Those who plan to make this wager on a regular basis should become familiar with the betting calculator. It simplifies the process and saves time. Attempting to create a wagering slip without the use of a betting calculator can be frustrating, and mistakes can also be made.
Betting Tips: Potential Results Prediction
The best way to explain a Goliath bet is to have a look at a simple example. For our purposes it will be assumed that the bettor is wagering on a day of horse racing events. Most race days in the UK will offer enough races to make a Goliath bet ticket with a bookie.
Let us also suppose that odds of 1-1 are given on each horse. The bettor makes a £0.10p base wager for a total of £24.70. The odds in an actual betting scenario can vary. Longer odds on individual selections can push the total return of the bet higher.
If each horse chosen by the bettor wins its race, the total return on the bet will be an astounding £654.40. The returns drop after this according to the number of correct selections. If fewer than five of the customer’s selections win, the bet can result in a slight loss.
There is always the possibility that none of the bettors selections will win their races. In this event, the entire bet is a loss. What one must consider is the large number of potential winning combinations. This works in the bettor’s favor, making it more difficult for the entire bet to fail.
Why Make A Goliath Bet?
There are a few reasons experienced bettors might want to consider a Goliath bet. A chance at a very large return would be at the top of the list. Few bets offer as much profit potential as a Goliath bet. The punters who wants to swing for the fences will appreciate this complex wager.
Making a Goliath bet can also offer better odds than straight win bets on eight separate events. The horse handicapper or football gamblers may have chosen eight selections at low odds. Betting a single wager on each of these selections to win might only offer average odds of 2-1. By making a Goliath bet the punter can effectively raise the odds on each selection.
The most attractive feature of this bet is that customers only need to be correct with two of the eight selections to receive a return. The bet is not an all-or-nothing proposition. A win can be achieved under many different circumstances.
What’s the Difference Between a Goliath Bet and Another Wager?
The primary difference between a Goliath wager and another bet is its ability to deliver a large payout. A customer could easily win as much as 30 times the amount of their original wager. The Goliath bet is generally more costly than other types of bets because it involves more single and double bets.
Goliath bets are more complex than other types of horse racing or football wagers. They require the punter to create an extensive bet slip that involves multiple selections and multiple events. That can mean more time handicapping the races or football matches.
When compared to other types of wagers like the Super Heinz, Yankee, or Trixie, the Goliath and its potential returns far outshine many of the other bets offered in horse racing or football betting.
What Sports Work Well With a Goliath Bet?
In theory a punter could make a Goliath bet on any event that allows for the selection of eight different wagering choices. The ideal sporting events for a Goliath bet are horse racing and football. It has also become popular for those who like snooker matches to place this wager on the outcome of those events.
Best Sites To Place a Goliath Bet On
You can choose from a number of online bookmakers if you want to consider making the Goliath bet. All of them have something unique to offer. Remember, online bookmakers also like to offer bonuses to new players. Always check the promotions that a bookmaker offers before you sign up.
Ladbrokes is a bookmaker that has a reputation for offering good odds in horse race betting. Ladbrokes is one of the few online punters that offers a best odds guarantee on racing selections. This means that you will be locking in the best odds when you make your bet.
William Hill is one of the oldest and most respected online bookmakers. This bookmaker is a good choice if you intend on using the Goliath to bet both horse racing and football. William Hill offers a variety of events for bettors. The sports that you love most are available each day of the week at William Hill.
Betway is an online sportsbook that will have more appeal to those who like to bet football games. Horse racing is also available. Players have noted that the odds they are given at this bookmaker are very generous.
The key is to find an online bookmaker that you are comfortable with. Find one that offers a Goliath bet calculator. You should also prefer bookmakers that have a good reputation for customer service. Some online bookmakers will even give new customers a free bet just for signing up.
Summary
The Goliath bet is not for the faint of heart. It is a wager that involves a lot of risk. There is the potential of a large reward. You could even win life-changing money when you bet this wager.
The Goliath bet explained should help you and serve as a type of FAQ for making the bet with your chosen bookmaker.