Part 7: Key Wheeling in a Trifecta Bet

Key Wheeling in a Trifecta Bet
Key-wheeling in a trifecta bet means selecting a key horse in a fixed position, usually first, and wheeling any number of other horses in multiple combinations to finish in the remaining positions, usually second and third. If the 1 is key-wheeled with the 2, 3, and 5, the combinations of 1-2-3, 1-2-5, 1-3-2, 1-3-5, 1-5-2, and 1-5-3 are covered. As long as the 1 is the winner and any combination of the numbers 2, 3, and 5 are second and third, the key-wheeled wager is a winner. The more numbers used with the key-wheeled selection, the greater the number of possibilities covered. However, the more numbers used, the greater the cost to cover the wager.

 

# of choices # of combinations $ amount of bet Cost of bet
2 2 $1($2) $2 ($4)
3 6 $1($2) $6 ($12)
4 12 $1($2) $12 ($24)
5 20 $1($2) $20 ($40)
6 30 $1($2) $30 ($60)
7 42 $1($2) $42 ($84)
8 56 $1($2) $56 ($112)
9 72 $1($2) $72 ($144)
10 90 $1($2) $90 ($180)
11 110 $1($2) $110 ($220)
12 132 $1($2) $132 ($264)
13 156 $1($2) $156 ($312)

A simple rule to remember to compute the cost of a key-wheeled trifecta wager would be as follows: the number of horses to be boxed with the keyed selection MULTIPLIED by the next lowest number MULTIPLIED by the dollar amount of the wager. EXAMPLE: A key-wheeled trifecta using 4 choices with the key-wheeled selection for $2 would be computed 4 ( the number of horses boxed with the key-wheeled selection) x 3 (next lowest number) x 2 (dollar amount of wager) = $24.