Glossary
Games glossary
87 definitions · page 1 of 2.
- Allowance Race
- Race for horses not eligible to be claimed. There are different classes of allowance races.
- Also Eligible
- Horses who are eligible to run if there are scratches in the race.
- Annuity
- It is like a mortgage. Lotteries sometimes use annuities to create higher jackpots than they have the cash for. An annuity backed jackpot winner collects the money in installments over several years, typically over 20 or 25 years.
- Apprentice
- Also referred to as a bug boy. An apprentice is a jockey who is just getting started in the sport. The apprentice is allowed to carry less weight that a veteran rider. After the rider wins a certain number of races, he loses his bug. The apprentice is…
- Backstretch
- Straight portion of far side of the track between the turns. The stable area is also know as the backstretch.
- Bandage
- Cloth wrapped around a horse’s front or rear legs. The bandages offer support and protect the horse’s legs against injury.
- Bearing in out
- A horse who is not running a straight course, due to tiredness or soreness or because of the jockey’s inability to stay a straight course.
- Bleeder
- A horse that bleeds internally or through the nostrils during or after a workout.
- Blinkers
- Device that hinders a horse from seeing things on either side. It prevents the horse from shying from objects and other horses and they focus a horse’s attention on running.
- Bonus Ball
- A seventh ball drawn in the UK National Lottery. Matching 5 numbers and the 'Bonus Ball' wins the second highest prize.
- Box Bet or Boxed
- A way of betting a three or four digit number that will pay off if those three or four numbers are drawn in any order. For example 245, 452, 425 would win if the selected number is 542.
- Boxing
- A system used to play more digits than you could normally play in a three or four digit numbers game.
- Breakopen
- An instant-win ticket on which the player tears open a flap to see if the ticket is a winner. Also called 'Pulltabs'. Breakopens are often sold by charities and occasionally by state lotteries.
- Breezing
- Working a horse at a moderate speed, less effort than handily.
- Bug
- A term to denote a one, two or three- bug apprentice weight allowance.
- Bug Boy
- An apprentice who gets a weight allowance to compensate for his inexperience.
- Bullet work
- The best time for each distance on the workout line for a given day, designated by a black dot in the program.
- Bute - (Butazolidin)
- Trade name for phenylbutazone, an analgesic permitted for use on horses.
- Cash Lotto
- A lotto game awarded as a lump-sum cash payment. Cash lotto games typically have a smaller top prize than large jackpot games, more favorable odds of winning the top prize, and require players to select fewer numbers out of a smaller field. Examples include…
- Cash Option
- A large jackpot that the winner elects to receive as a lump sum cash payment rather than an 'Annuity' (see above) over several years.
- Cash Payoff
- A lottery prize that will be paid out all at one time, rather than over several years.
- Change Leads
- Changing from leading with the right leg to the left leg going around a turn.
- Class
- A relative term that implies one horse is superior to another.
- Combo
- A way of betting a three digit number that covers all possible combinations of sequences.
- COMMISSION
- The Florida Public Service Commission.
- Commission
- The fee paid to retail outlets for selling lottery tickets. Commissions in North America typically range between 5 percent and 6 percent of the price of the ticket.
- Daily Game
- This can refer to any game where winners are determined once a day, but usually refers to a numbers game such as the 'Daily 3' or 'Daily 4' games played in many states. Double or Doubles - A 3 or 4 digit number that contains two numbers of the same digit…
- Disqualification
- A horse is removed from the place he finished and placed lower. For example, a horse may finish first, but interfere with another runner, impeding his chances to win the race. The interfering horse will be "taken down" and placed lower in the order of finish.
- Dogs
- Plastic traffic cones placed a certain distance out from the rail during workouts so that the area will be protected from wearing out.
- Double-Double
- A four-digit number made up of two doubles. Example; 1221. Draw - The lottery results.
- Drop Down
- A horse is running for a lower claiming tag than in his previous races.
- Eased
- A horse who stops running, having been taken up by his jockey.
- Entry
- Two or more horses who have the same owner or trainer and are coupled in the wagering.
- Exact Order
- (Also, Straight) Numbers drawn in the same order as played. Exotic Numbers - Unusual or uncommon set of numbers.
- Exacta
- A wager in which the first two finishers in a race must finish first or second.
- Field
- Horses that are grouped together as one wagering interest. If you wager on the field, you get all the runners entered in the field.
- Four-digit or 4-Digit Game
- A numbers game played with four digits between 0 and 9. Numbers may be repeated.
- Fractional Time
- Intermediate time recorded in a race at the quarter, half mile, etc…
- Furosemide
- A diuretic medication that is used to treat horses who bleed. Also known by the product name Lasix.
- Graded races
- The most important races. They are classified as Grade I, Grade II or Grade III. One being the most important.
- Handicap
- A race in which the racing secretary assigns various weights to horses in an attempt to equalize their ability. The best horse in the race carries the most weight.
- Handle
- The sum of all money wagered at a video lottery terminal. See also 'Net Machine Income' below.
- Hot or Overdrawn
- A digit that over a period of time is drawn more often than the norm. While some play these numbers because they are 'Hot', they can only reach normality by not being drawn.
- Inquiry
- An objection lodged by a jockey or the stewards concerning a possible infraction during the running of a race.
- Instant Game
- A lottery ticket that requires the player to remove a latex coating to determine if the ticket is a winner. Also called 'Scratch-off Game' or 'Scratcher'.
- Jackpot
- The top prize for a lotto or lottery game. Jackpots are usually 'Parimutuels' (see below). If not won in the next drawing, they 'roll over' to the next drawing and increase in size/amount.
- Keno
- A lotto game in which several numbers (typically 20) are drawn from a large field of numbers (typically 80). Players select a set of numbers from the main field (usually a minimum of 3 numbers up to a maximum of 10 numbers) and are awarded prizes based on…
- Length
- Approximately eight to nine feet. The measurement used to gauge how much one horse is in front of another.
- Lotto Lottery
- A game where players select a small group of numbers (usually six) from a large set (usually 49) and are awarded prizes based on how many match the randomly drawn result. In a typical lotto game, a player might be asked to select six numbers from a set of…
- Lotto, Lottery
- A game where players select a small group of numbers (usually six) from a large set (usually 49) and are awarded prizes based on how many match the randomly drawn result. In a typical lotto game, a player might be asked to select six numbers from a set of…
- Mega Number
- A separate drawn number used in SuperLotto Plus of the California Lottery. Players choose 5 numbers from 1 to 47 and a MEGA number from 1 to 27. There are 9 ways to match and win. In fact, you can win even if you just match the MEGA number. To win the…
- Morning line
- A projection, before actual wagering takes place, on how the public will bet.
- Net Machine Income
- The money played at a video lottery terminal (see 'Handle' above) minus the prizes won at that terminal.
- No-match Numbers
- A 3 or 4 digit number that contains no double digits as in the 'Double' or 'Double-Double'.
- Numbers Game
- This term can be used for any lottery game where winners are determined by a random draw of numbers. However, it is often used more specifically for a game where a player selects three or four digits (0 to 9) and matches them with a similar set drawn at…
- Off-line Game
- A game that does not require the use of a computer terminal for purchase. Instant and passive games are examples of off-line games.
- Online Game
- A game where tickets are purchased through a network of computer terminals located at retail outlets. The terminals are linked to a central computer that records the wagers. Examples of online games include lotto, keno and numbers games.
- Overdue
- A digit that has not been drawn in more days than the norm. These numbers are favored because they can only reach normality by being drawn.
- Pairs
- A three digit number bet whose any one pair of the first two digits, last two digits, and in some cases the first and last digit appear on the drawn number.
- Parimutuel or Pari-mutuel
- A common method of payoffs that splits the total available money between all winners of a particular prize level.