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Home to the oldest racetrack in the United States, New Jersey boasts a rich horse racing history.

Betdaq is the second largest betting exchange site in the world. Created in 2000, the site was bought out by Ladbrokes in 2013. Today, it offers an impressive selection of sports, with in-play betting and casino games too. The high traffic means you can find great odds on all of the biggest events. Finally, many online horse betting sites allow new players to get used to betting by playing for free. You won’t find joining bonuses for brick and mortar betting houses, or at the racetrack. It’s not easy to replicate the atmosphere of a live casino. The feel of the excitement, the banter with your fellow players, and the social. BetAmerica is one of the best online betting sites out there, complete with a dedicated section just for horse race betting. The layout for the BetAmerica desktop site is one of the easiest to use.

The NJ horse racing industry dates back to the 1830s at Freehold Raceway, a track that continues to operate almost 200 years later. Currently, you can watch and bet on live standardbred and thoroughbred racing at three racetracks in the Garden State.

There’s also legal off-track and account wagering in New Jersey so you can watch and bet on horse races from across the globe at Atlantic City casinos with racebooks, off-track wagering facilities around the state and online sites like TVG.

This page includes a complete overview of horse racing in New Jersey, including everything you need to know about the state’s racetracks, the most popular races in the country, and how you can bet on horse racing, online and off, right here at home.

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How to bet on horse races in NJ

Horse racing dates back to the 1830s at Freehold, but it was still illegal to bet on horse races in New Jersey until 1939 when voters backed an amendment allowing pari-mutuel betting at in-state racetracks.

Six decades later, New Jersey lawmakers passed the Off-trackand Account Wagering Act in 2001. This made it perfectly legal to bet on horse races in four types of places:

• Online at TVG
• NJ racetracks
• Casinos with racebooks
• Off-track wagering facilities

Online horse betting at TVG

New Jersey’s Off-track and Account Wagering Act makes account wagering on horse races perfectly legal in the state.

That means NJ residents 18 years old or older are free to open an account and bet on local and simulcast races from around the world.

When you join TVG and have your account setup, you can place bets:

• Online using the 4NJBets / TVG racing app
• At a self-service machine inside an NJ racetrack
• Over the phone

Opening a TVG / 4NJBets horse betting account

You can open a TVG account to bet on horse races using just a minimal amount of personal information, including:

• Your name
• A valid email address
• Your phone number
• Your date of birth
• A personal password
• Your current address

Funding your TVG horse betting account

Once it’s open, you’re going to need to fund your account before you can place bets. Fortunately, TVG offers a variety of deposit options for you to choose from, including: BetCash (ACH/eCheck), Debit/Credit Card, TVG Prepaid Card, PayNearMe, PayPal, Gift Cards, Wire Transfer, Deposit at the track, Money orders and checks.

New Jersey racetracks

Close to a dozen racetracks have come and gone in NJ’s almost-200 year history of live horse racing. Today, three racetracks remain in the Garden State, offering live standardbred and thoroughbred racing, simulcast racing and pari-mutuel betting on all of it.

Freehold Raceway

Races have been held at what is now central New Jersey’s Freehold Raceway since the 1830s. The track was officially established in 1853, making it the first racetrack in the United States.

• Live Racing: Standardbred
• Dates: Jan. 1-May 31, September-mid-December
• Simulcast: Open seven days and nights per week for year-round thoroughbred and standardbred (harness) racing simulcasts
• Location: 130 Park Ave., Freehold, NJ 07728
• Contact: 732-462-3800
• Owner: Penn National Gaming and Greenwood Racing

Meadowlands Racetrack

In East Rutherford’s Meadowlands Sports Complex, the Meadowlands has live thoroughbred and harness racing. Notable annual races include the Hambletonian.

• Live Racing: Thoroughbred and standardbred
• Dates: Year-round
• Simulcast: Open seven days and nights per week for year round thoroughbred and standardbred (harness) racing simulcasts
• Sports Betting:FanDuel Sportsbook at the Meadowlands
• Location: 1 Racetrack Dr., East Rutherford, NJ 07073
• Contact: 201-843-2246
• Owner: Jeff Gural

Monmouth Park

Monmouth Park features thoroughbred racing on the Jersey Shore. Notable annual races include the Haskell Invitational.

• Live Racing: Thoroughbred
• Dates: Early May to Labor Day
• Simulcast: Open seven days and nights per week for year-round thoroughbred and standardbred (harness) racing simulcasts
• Sports Betting: Monmouth Park Sports Book by William Hill
• Location: 175 Oceanport Ave., Oceanport, NJ 07757
• Contact: 732-222-5100
• Owner: New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority

Atlantic City casinos with racebooks

The Off-track and Account Wagering Act makes it legal for Atlantic City casinos to open racebooks and offer pari-mutuel wagering on simulcast races from NJ racetracks and horse racing facilities across the globe.

Currently, only one casino has:

Borgata’s Race & Sports Book

The only place in Atlantic City where you can bet on horse racing. Located across from the Borgata Hotel Casino North Entranceand Poker Room. Formerly known as the Racebook, Borgata’s Race and Sports Book now takes sports bets as well.

Features 100 seats with individual flatscreen monitors, 10 betting windows, and self-serve kiosks for horse racing bets.

Plus, the Boot and Whip bar features a video wall displaying live events and races.

• Location: 1 Borgata Way, Atlantic City, NJ 08401

Licensed off-track wagering facilities

The Off-track and Account Wagering Act makes it legal for off-track wagering facilities to launch in the state and offer pari-mutuel wagering on simulcast races from NJ racetracks and horse racing facilities around the world.

The NJ Racing Commission lists the following licensed off-track wagering facilities:

Favorites at Egg Harbor

• Location: 6055 Black Horse Pike, Egg Harbor, NJ 08235
• Phone: 609-804-6240

Favorites at Hillsborough

• Location: 150 Route 206, Hillsborough, NJ 08844
• Phone: 908-722-1415

Favorites at Gloucester

• Location: 1300 Blackwood-Clementon Rd., Clementon, NJ 08021
• Phone: 856-441-4253

Favorites at Toms River

• Location: 1071 Highway 37 West, Toms River, NJ 08755
• Phone: 732-240-1210

Favorites at Woodbridge

• Location: 3 LaFayette Rd., Fords, NJ 08863
• Phone: 732-512-5000

Winners Bayonne

• Location: 400 Route 440 North, Bayonne, NJ 07002
• Phone: 201-437-5780

How to bet on horse races in NJ

Betting on a horse race is much easier than it may seem. Sure, there are some complicated names for the bets you can place, but they’re all relatively straightforward.

Whether you’re betting on a live standardbred or thoroughbred race at one of the three racetracks in NJ, or a simulcast race at the track, an Atlantic City casino racebook, an off-track wagering facility or online with 4NJBets — the following basic and more advanced bets are available:

Straight bets

Straight bets are about picking winners, and who might finish in the top three in any race. Basic straight bets include:

• Win: Bet on a horse to win, and if it does, you get paid at odds set once all bets are in.
• Place: Bet on a horse to finish first or second, and if it does, you get paid at odds set once all bets are in.
• Show: Bet on a horse to finish first, second or third, and if it does, you get paid at odds set once all bets are in.
• Across the Board: Three separate bets on the same horse including a bet to win, place, and show.

Exotic bets

Exotics offer a little more variety, and often bigger odds, but these bets are still primarily about picking winners, and who might finish in the top three in any race. These bets include:

• Exacta: Bet on two horses to finish first and second, in that order, and get paid out at big odds. The exacta can also be boxed, which is like two separate bets flipping the order of finish.
• Quinella: Bet on two horses to finish first and second in any order and get paid out at odds that are slightly less than the exacta.
• Trifecta: Bet on three horses to finish first, second and third, in that order, and get paid out at even bigger odds. Trifectas can also be boxed, which is like making separate trifecta bets changing the finishing order of the three horses.
• Superfecta: Bet on four horses to finish first, second, third and fourth, in that order, and book a big payday. Superfecta bets can be boxed, but boxing starts to get a little expensive with four horses.

Wheeling

You can wheel any of these exotic bets. This is like fixing the finishing position of some horses and adding bets with more horses for later finishing positions to make various winning combinations.

You ‘key’ the horses you like at the top and mix in more possibilities to save money over boxing while giving you additional opportunities to win.

The Triple Crown

The biggest event in US horse racing is actually three events. The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, or just the Triple Crown, is a trio of races held annually from May to early June featuring the top three-year-old thoroughbreds.

The horses vie to become a Triple Crown winner by winning all three:

• Kentucky Derby: The first leg normally held on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs racetrack in Kentucky. It is also known as The Run for the Roses. The Derby is typically run on a 1 1/4 miles track. The 2020 Kentucky Derby was rescheduled from May 2 to Sept. 5, 2020.
• Preakness Stakes: The second leg typically held two weeks after the Kentucky Derby at the Pimlico Race Course in Maryland. The Preakness is typically run on a 1 3/16 miles track. The 2020 Preakness Stakes, originally set for May 16, 2020, has been moved to Oct. 3, 2020
• Belmont Stakes: The jewel of the Triple Crown typically held at Belmont Park, New York, in the first week of June. If a horse has won the first two legs of the Triple Crown, media coverage tends to explode for this race. The longer 1.5 mile race is also known as The Test of the Champion. The 2020 Belmont Stakes will be run before the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes for the first time ever after being moved to June 20, 2020. Plus, it will be run on a 1 1/8 miles track as a result of the change in timing.

Only 13 horses have won the Triple Crown. The first Triple Crown winner was Sir Barton in 1919.

Affirmed won the Triple Crown in 1978 and there was a 37-year drought following his win. American Pharoah broke that 37-year streak in 2015. Justify took the title in 2018 and was the last Triple Crown winner.

Twenty-three horses have won the first two legs but failed to complete the Triple Crown by winning the Belmont Stakes.

The Haskell Invitational

The Haskell Invitationalis a race for three-year-old thoroughbreds that typically runs in July at Monmouth Park in New Jersey following the Triple Crown.

The race has been around since 1968 but became an invitation-only $1 million stakes race for three-year-olds on a 1 1⁄8 miles track in 1981.

The 2020 edition is the 52nd Haskell Invitational Stakes and it is scheduled for Saturday, July 18, 2020.

The Hambletonian Stakes

The Hambletonian is an American harness race for three-year-old standardbreds. It is the first leg in the Triple Crown of Harness Racing. The race is typically run at Meadowlands Racetrack on the first Saturday in August with a $1 million purse.

The 95th Hambletonian is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 8, 2020.

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NJ horse racing history

Historians claim there has been horse racing in New Jersey since the late 1700s and early 1800s. Freehold Raceway, which started hosting races as far back as the 1830s, is considered the oldest racetrack in the US.

Large racetracks in Ho-Ho-Kus, Clifton, North Bergen, Paterson, Vernon and Long Branch began operating in the 1860s and 1870s. The Long Branch Racetrack, now Monmouth Park, opened as New Jersey’s first grand racing venue in 1870.

New Jersey made it illegal to bet on horse racing in 1894, but the sport did not leave the state.

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Races were held at various tracks, including Weequahic Park in Newark and the Long Branch Racetrack in Oceanside.

Following the 1939 amendment that allowed pari-mutuel betting, Garden State Park in Cherry Hill opened in 1942, followed by Monmouth Park at Long Branch and Atlantic City Race Track in Mays Landing in 1946. These three tracks made up New Jersey’s Golden Triangle of thoroughbred racing.

The launch of Atlantic City casinos killed the action at Garden State Park and the Atlantic City Race Track and both eventually closed. However, Monmouth Park and Freehold Raceway remained in operation.

The Meadowlands started hosting harness and thoroughbred racing in the late 1970s and continues to do so today.

Horse Racing Sites

Betting on horse races on the internet is greater than just being a convenience. Rather than getting stuck to just a local racetrack (maybe there are none near to you), you can bet on races all over the world. The opportunities are much greater for making money and you can test out your handicapping skills now that you are no longer restricted to just a few races at your local racetrack.

Thoroughbred Horseracing in the United States

Great Britain’s Horseracing

You can get access to the big races from around the world from the best horse racing betting websites. You get the same kinds of bets that are available in person, however the selection is much bigger. You even get to be part of promos, get bonuses and in some cases, you can watch live streaming of races right at home.

Our ultimate objective is to show you the best-betting sites that are aligned with your needs. We only provide sites that are reputable, fair and safe. Below are our recommendations for the best horse racing betting sites online.

Access to Numerous Racetracks

Horse betting online has the main advantage of not being limited to your local racetrack or even in your city or state. The big racing sites give you access to all the major horse racing events from around the world. If you want to try different kinds of horse racing you can easily do that too. Betting online won’t make much sense if you didn’t have access to a wide variety of racetracks.

Bonuses and Promotions

Horse Racing Gambling Sites

Bonuses and promotions are not the only things to consider when it comes to horse racing, however having them don’t usually hurt. If two sites are fairly evenly matched in every other factor, we often go with the one that provides the best bonuses and promotions. There is nothing wrong with getting some extra money when you are betting.

Worlds Biggest Horse Races – Biggest Flats Races – Popular Jump Races – Great Britain Horse Racing – Thoroughbred Horseracing – Horse Racing in Great Britain

Horse Racing Major Festivals

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• March
  Cheltenham – The Cheltenham Festival
  Lingfield Park – Blue Square Winter Derby

  April
  Aintree – Aintree Grand National
  Ayr – Scottish Grand National
  Newmarket – Craven Meeting
  Sandown Park – Gold Cup Celebration

  May
  Newmarket – Guineas Meeting
  Chester – Chester’s May Festival
  York – Dante Meeting

  June
  Epsom Downs – Epsom Derby Meeting
  Ascot – Royal Ascot
  Newcastle – John Smith’s Northumberland Plate

  July
  Sandown Park – Coral-Eclipse Meeting
  Newmarket – Newmarket’s July Meeting
  Ascot – King George Day
  Goodwood – Glorious Goodwood

• August
  York – Ebor Festival

  September
  Haydock Park – William Hill Sprint Cup
  Doncaster – St. Leger Meeting
  Ayr – Western Meeting
  Ascot – Ascot’s September Festival

  October
  Newmarket – Totesport Cambridgeshire Meeting
  Newmarket – Newmarket’s October Meeting
  Ascot – Champions Day
  Doncaster – Racing Post Trophy

  November
  Cheltenham – The Paddy Power Open
  Haydock & Aintree – North West Masters
  Newbury – Hennessy Meeting

  December
  Sandown Park – Tingle Creek Meeting
  Kempton Park – Stan James Christmas Festival
  Chepstow – Coral Welsh National