How technology is changing betting in point-to-point racing

Betting on sports continues to be one of the best ways to get the most excitement out of sports knowledge, especially in Ireland, which has a huge sporting culture.

After all, if you think you know how an event will go down, you can now put some money on the line to test your theory. And with the odds on the best sites on https://irelandbettingsites.ie/, if you are right, you will love the results. Thanks to technology advancements, this betting capability has extended to encompass even the less common sports, not just in Ireland but in the whole world. We look at how it has made its way to point-to-point racing and what this means for horse racing lovers.


The Allure of Point-to-Point Racing

In horse races, you never know which horse has it in them to make it first to the finish line nor which jockey has the best chance. You just bet on the information you have and hope that the prevailing factors will favour your assumptions. Point-to-point racing is especially great at testing your assumptions as it features amateur horses racing over natural terrains, from hedges to fences to ditches. And with thoroughbreds being put to the test with at least 18 fences in the tracks, the events are always suspenseful.
 
How Has Technology Played a Role in Popularizing These Bets?

In the past, bookies would only cover professional horse racing. But now, many are offering point-to-point racing on their platforms, allowing punters to get a taste of the action no matter where they are. How?
 

Online Bookies.

To bet on a race in the past, you’d head to the actual race, get a betting slip in return for your wager, sit through the races, and cash out if you won. It was a lengthy process.

Decades on, many people do not have the ability to head to actual races to catch the action and interact with bookies. After all, many of them live far from the races (point-to-point races tend to be highly local), while others have other responsibilities. Online betting platforms allow all these people to place their bets without leaving the house. This availability comes with the following perks:

          a.    It saves time. Punters do not have to interact with anyone to place their bets. They just need to sign in, choose a wager and an outcome, and sign out. If they win, they get an alert that they have new earnings. The whole process can be just minutes.

          b.    It saves money. It’s no secret that online bookies have fewer overheads and thus charge less for wagers. So, no matter your budget, you will find someone willing to take on your wager.

Best of all, it’s convenient. Online platforms work around the clock. So, whenever you are ready to place your wager, you can go ahead and do it – the same goes for cashing out.
 

Betting Exchanges.

Since point-to-point racing is not as widely known as professional horse racing, bookies have not always had it as an option. Luckily, technology provided horse racing lovers with an alternative – peer-to-peer betting exchanges. So, how do these work?

Long ago, before online bookies existed, people would bet against each other. For example, friend A might wager that horse 1 will win the race, while friend B might wager that horse 3 will win the race. They all put their money in a pool, and whoever is right gets it all. The same concept exists in peer-to-peer betting exchanges, but in this case, people place wagers against strangers. The money goes into a pool that is governed by escrow – whoever wins gets the entire amount. If nobody wins, everyone gets their share of the total.

Punters love these exchanges as they allow them to wager on events that may not be available on bookie sites. Moreover, they get to set their own odds, and without the vig that bookies charge, the payouts are often quite lucrative.
 

Data Analysis.

Knowing which horse has the better chance requires a punter to do a deep dive. You need to know everything about it, from its previous race records to its current health and how well it performs on every terrain. Then, you must analyse this data to look for patterns that could help you predict the final outcome. In the past, punters would do this physically by reading papers, analysing past news articles, and conversing with other people who knew about the horses and jockeys.

But now, technology makes the analysis easier. For one, a simple search will give you information about a horse or jockey, enabling you to get a clear picture of the past and present. Secondly, there is software that can rely on this data to predict possible outcomes based on trends. Not only can you save a lot of time, but you can also be more thorough in your analysis. Of course, a human touch is always necessary, so you should also use your judgment to review the analysis.
 

Simplified Payments.

While much of horse racing betting revolves around the joy of supporting horses and jockeys, there is also money in the mix. Technologies have allowed punters to place wagers and get paid almost instantly, thanks to the variation of options ranging from e-wallets to card payments, and possibly cryptocurrency payments in the future.