A dead heat in betting is when two or more participants tie for a position in an event.
What does it mean when a selection is dead heated?
When two or more selections are joint winners in an event, dead heat rules may be used to settle bets. This could include two horses crossing the finishing line at exactly the same time, or three strikers tying on 20 goals at the top of the ''Top Scorer'' tables.
In this situation, dead heat rules will be used, which are worked out by dividing the total stake by the number of participants in the dead heat, and then multiplying by the odds at which the bet was placed. This calculation will give the total return to be collected by the customer.
For instance:
- Customer A backs Wayne Rooney for £10 at 6/4 to be Top Premiership Scorer
- Customer B backs Darren Bent for £20 at 20/1 to be Top Premiership Scorer
- Customer C backs Didier Drogba for £5 at 5/1 to be Top Premiership Scorer
In a three way dead heat the following returns would be expected:
- Customer A - (£10 Stake @ 6/4 = £10.00 / 3 = £3.33). £3.33 X 6 = £20, 20 Divided by 4 = £5.00, plus £3.33 (Stake Returned) = £8.33 return
- Customer B - (£20 Stake @ 20/1 = £20 / 3 = £6.67) £6.67 X 20 = £133.40, £133.40 Divided by 1 + £6.67 (Stake Returned) = £140 return
- Customer C - (£5 Stake @ 5/1 = £5.00/ 3 = £1.67) £1.67 * 5 = £8.33/1 + £1.67 (Stake Returned) = £10.00 return
Dead heat rules do not apply when the tie or draw is offered in the market.
Effectively when you have a dead heat, one part of your bet is treated as a winner, and one part as a loser. If a three way dead-heat, one part (33.33%) would be a winner, and two parts (66.66%) would be losers.
Horse Racing
You back Paddy's Boy in the last at Kempton - it is heading for certain victory when out of nowhere comes Lucky Charm with a late run - they cross the line together and cannot be separated even after a photo finish. A dead heat is declared.
You have staked £10 on Paddy's Boy at 10/1 so what happens now?
The best way to think of it is that as two horses won the race and you only picked one, the stake has to be halved. You will get paid half your stake at the full odds so for the above bet your returns will be £55 (5 x 10 + 5 stake).
For three runners tied your stake is divided by three and so on.
Dead Heats in Golf
Dead heats are a common occurrence in Golf tournaments as players can finish tied for places. Depending on the number of players tied and the number of places offered, this can affect settlement in a variety of ways.
An example of this could be as follows:
If a bet was struck on S Torrence to win the tournament Each Way (at a 1/4 the odds, 3 places) settlement would be determined as follows:
As 3 players were tied for the remaining place left in the market - 1st and 2nd finished clear of the field - the stake is divided by the following:
number of places remaining
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
the number of participants involved in the dead heat
In the above example, S Torrence backers would have their stake reduced to 1/3rd of their original stake (1 place remaining and 3 involved in the dead heat). The price taken remains unaffected, it is only the stake that is subject to a reduction.
The principles would then be the same if the bet had been struck and 4 places were offered, i.e. 2 places remaining, 3 participants in the dead heat = reduced to 2/3rds of original stake.
If you are unsure as to how your bet has been settled, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be happy to calculate the returns for you.
Helpful Tools
- For further help on how to calculate Dead Heat Winnings, click here for a Bet Calculator.