How to actually read a system-bet result (Yankees, Lucky 15s, Custom)
A guided tour of every column in our system-bet calculator — what counts as a winning combination, how each-way doubles the stake, and when Custom beats a named bet.
Most system-bet calculators are correct but unreadable — they spit out a number and leave you to trust it. We built ours to show its working. Here's a column-by-column tour so you understand every line on the slip.
Bet count and stake
A Yankee on four selections is 11 bets — six doubles, four trebles, one fourfold. Your unit stake gets multiplied by 11, and if any leg is each-way, the total doubles again because each combination splits across a win line and a place line.
The "Total stake" line on our calculator is the actual amount you'd hand over. The "Unit stake" you typed is the per-line amount — small but stacked.
The breakdown table
Each row in the breakdown table is one fold size — Doubles, Trebles, Fourfold. The columns are:
- Bets — how many combinations of that size exist
- Stake — total stake spread across that fold size
- Win — return on the win line if the qualifying legs all won
- Place — return on the place line (only populated when at least one leg is EW)
- Return — Win + Place for that group
When Custom beats a named bet
The Custom mode lets you pick any number of legs (2-10) and any combination of fold sizes. Useful when a named bet doesn't fit:
- "I want 6 doubles from 4 selections, no trebles." Pick 4 legs, tick Doubles only — 6 bets, smaller stake than a Yankee.
- "I have 8 picks, only want the 5-folds." Top of the leaderboard runners — 56 bets at 5 selections each, no all-or-nothing fourfold.
- "Match the bookie's named bet but skip Singles." Untick the Singles tile on a Lucky 15 — you've made it a Yankee.
Try a Custom system bet
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A few hidden behaviours to know
- Void legs are treated as 1× — the bet still calculates with one fewer leg and reduces the bet count automatically
- "Place" status only contributes when the leg is EW; on non-EW legs it kills the win line and nothing else recovers
- Rule 4 deductions apply to both win and place lines on each-way legs
- Dead-heat reduction divides odds by the number of tied runners — applied per leg before any other math