What Is Best Odds Guaranteed?

Best Odds Guaranteed, or BOG, as it is sometimes unfortunately known as, is a great offer that horse racing fans will love.

In the early days of online betting it was a major selling point for those bookies that offered it but these days most decent betting sites – the ones we feature here on this site at least – tend to have it as standard.

That said, it separates those top sites from the rest and, whether commonplace or not, it is still a great offer.

How Does BOG Work?

Here’s how it works. Normally when placing a bet on a horse to win a race you are given the option to either take the price currently available or, alternatively, take the Starting Price (SP). If the bookie you are betting with doesn’t offer Best Odds Guaranteed, this leaves you with a decision to make and, naturally enough, a risk that you might make the wrong one.

Do you take the price now and lose out if the horse drifts in the betting to win at a bigger SP, or opt for the Starting Price and run the risk of everyone else agreeing your pick is the one to be on and see the odds become much shorter, thus reducing your profit.

With BOG you don’t have this issue as you are always given the best odds. If your horse wins, or – in the case of an each way bet – places, you’ll get the higher of the two possible prices. If your horse has drifted like a barge you’ll get paid at the inflated SP, whilst if it has proved popular in the betting and shortened, you’ll still be paid at the full early odds you accepted.

In order to take advantage of BOG you need to take the price at the time of placing your bet. Some bookies, even though they offer BOG, will also still offer an SP, which is somewhat sneaky as that effectively means you won’t get the benefit of Best Odds Guaranteed if the initial odds prove to be higher.

What Races Have Best Odds Guaranteed?

It should be noted that BOG doesn’t apply to ante post bets and may not apply to certain enhanced odds offers or price boosts. It is usually offered on all UK and Irish races, as well as on selected other big races globally and Best Odds races are usually clearly marked as such.

The table below shows a general rule of thumb for BOG though exceptions may apply. Betting sites may have a start point for BOG kicking in, for example 6pm the day prior to the day of the race.