No problem Funny. I have worked for an Off Track Betting corporation in the past and learned a lot about betting structures and terms. Glad to help.

First off, in real life, exactas and quinellas are quite similar. I don't know why they included both in the game. The only way I can explain it is with an example.

Let's say in a certain race, you like the 7 and the 9. You think they will finish 1st and 2nd or vice-versa.

You can play a $100 exacta 7-9. You only win if the race finishes 7-9. You can also play a $100 exacta box 7-9. You now win if the race finishes 7-9 or 9-7. The cost of this bet is $200 because you are essentially getting a $100 exacta 7-9 and a $100 exacta 9-7 on the same ticket.

Now, you think the 2 might be there too. You can now play a $100 exacta box 2-7-9. The cost will be $600 because there are now 6 winning combinations. 2-7, 2-9, 7-2, 7-9, 9-2, and 9-7. In the game, you can play up to a 5-horse exacta box. A $100 4-horse box will cost you $1200, and a 5-horse box will cost you $2000.

If you play a $100 Quinella 7-9, you win if the race finishes 7-9 or 9-7. But, you only win about half as much. Think of it as a half-exacta. In real life, each type of bet has its own 'pool'. The pool is the total amount of money wagered on each type of bet for a given event. For a given race, there might be more money bet on 7-9 in the exacta pool versus the quinella pool, so the quinella pool is a better bet because there are less bets on it and the payouts will be more. A lot of good bettors look for betting value like this. I wouldn't worry about it in the game. It's not that involved.

Don't be afraid to play a few 4-horse or 5-horse Trifecta box bets. They are the same as above except 3 out of your 4 or 5 horses have to finish 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. A $100 4-horse tri box will cost $2400, but usually will return 10,000 or more. A 5-horse $100 tri box will cost you $6000.

As you look at the Win column, you'll see a variety of numbers next to each horse. The horse with the lowest number, or odds, is the favorite. Next is the 2nd favorite, 3rd fav ...ect. In the Win pool, more money has been bet on the favorite than any other horse for that race. So, a win bet on him will return the smallest amount. Because the odds to win are determined by the betting public (how much is bet on him vs. the other horses), they (lowest odds) don't necessarily mean that the favorite is the best horse. But, in the game the numbers are pretty accurate. I would make box wagers involving horses who are the first 5 or 6 choices according to the win odds.

Hope this helps.