The highlight of the Australian racing calendar and the best time of year for punters, the illustrious 2009 Melbourne Cup Carnival is here and the only way to clean up with your race wagers is to know and understand the major bet types.

Standard Melbourne Cup Bet Types:

Standard bet types are the best way to bet on the races in the Melbourne Cup carnival for novice betters. They are easy to understand, place and work out the paying dividends for.

Win: The most popular and placed bet type is the win wager for its simplicity. Simply select the runner you believe will win the race, i.e. finish first. You can select as many horses as you like to win.

Place: A place wager is where you pick the horse you think will finish within the top three finishers in a race. To win a place bet, your selection needs to finish first, second or third in the race. If a race is contested by only five to seven runners, then only first and second Place dividends are paid with nothing for third (i.e. NTD No Third Dividend) and with races of 4 or fewer runners only the first place Win bet is allowed.

Eacy Way: This bet type combines both Win & Place wagers. Your runner can either win the race or place in the top three for the wager to be successful.

Exotic Melbourne Cup Bet Types:

Exotic bets are a terrific way to bet on the Melbourne Cup carnival for punters looking for a more advanced, complex and high-paying wagers.

Exacta: An exacta bet is where you correctly select the horses to come first and second in a race.

Quinella: In a quinella bet you must select both the first and second placegetters in any order.

Trifecta: In a trifecta wager you must select the first three finishers in the correct order.

First4: Select the four horses to finish in the correct order.

Running Double: Select the winning runners in two successive races at the same track.

Daily Double: Pick the winning horses in the betting agency’s two nominated races at the same track.

Quadrella: With a Quadrella or Quaddie bet you must choose the winners in four nominated races at the same track.

And when betting on the Melbourne Cup Carnival races, no matter what wager you chose to place or which horse you back, the best way to secure the most competitive odds and generous payouts is through an online bookmaker.