Scoop6 explained: win fund, place fund and bonus

How does the Scoop6 pay out on win and place?

A Scoop6 ticket can collect in two ways: all six winners share the win fund, and all six placed share the place fund. A ticket that finds six winners also has six placed horses, so it shares both.

The Tote nominates the six races, and they are often competitive Saturday handicaps with big fields. Place terms follow field size and race type under the Tote's Scoop6 rules, so a 16 runner handicap counts four places and an 8 runner race three.

Because every ticket with six winners also has six placed horses, the place fund is always easier to win than the win fund, and its dividend is usually far smaller. The win fund is where the headline figures come from, and it frequently goes unwon because one shock result in a 20 runner handicap is enough to end almost every line.

How is the Scoop6 pool split between funds?

After the Tote's deduction, the pool is divided into a win fund, a place fund, a bonus fund and a starting fund held in reserve. The Tote rules set the ratio between them.

The split means only part of each week's stakes goes to the win fund, which is why rollovers matter so much to its size. The bonus fund builds separately and is only available to tickets that have already won the win fund. The starting fund is held back and added to the win fund once the win fund has been won, so the next win fund does not start from nothing.

The ratio and minimum stake can change, so check the current Tote terms before playing. Under the Tote's published rules the Scoop6 runs every Saturday with a £2 minimum unit stake.

How do Scoop6 rollovers and the bonus race work?

When nobody finds six winners, the win fund rolls over to the following Saturday. Win fund winners then get a chance at the bonus fund by picking the winner of a race nominated for a later day.

A long run of rollovers can push the win fund into six or seven figures, which draws in syndicates and occasional players alike. When one ticket finally lands it, the winner takes the whole win fund, while several winning tickets split it equally per unit.

The bonus race is a single race on a later day nominated by the Tote, and each win fund winner makes one selection for each winning line. Finding that winner shares the bonus fund; missing it leaves the bonus fund to keep growing.

How much does a Scoop6 perm cost?

Multiply the selections in each leg and then the unit stake. Two picks in all six legs make 64 lines, and three picks in all six make 729 lines.

Using the £2 minimum line, a single line costs £2, 64 lines cost £128 and 729 lines cost £1,458. That is why most individual players choose one horse in the legs they feel surest about and cover the big handicaps more widely. A ticket of 3, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1 is 18 lines, or £36 at £2 a line.

How are Scoop6 races chosen?

The Tote nominates six races, often competitive Saturday handicaps and feature races, and the legs can be spread across more than one meeting.

Big field handicaps dominate because they create the uncertainty that keeps the win fund building. The live chart on this page shows how favourites fare in handicaps compared with non-handicaps: the gap is wide, and it explains why a Scoop6 leg rarely goes to plan for most tickets.

Non-runners switch to the starting price favourite, as in the Placepot and Jackpot, and a void leg is treated as successful for every selection. Because the legs can be spread across more than one meeting, a late going change or a withdrawal at one course can reshape a ticket after the first leg has already been run.

How can you keep pool bets like the Scoop6 within a budget?

Set a fixed amount for pool bets before racing and cost every perm in full before placing it. Adding one extra pick to a leg multiplies the whole ticket, not just that leg.

Rollover weeks create pressure to spend more because the prize looks bigger. The pool is bigger, but so is the number of tickets chasing it. Decide the stake first and build the perm to fit it, rather than building the perm you want and then finding the money.

• Write down the total you will spend on pool bets this week
• Cost the full perm before submitting it
• Cover the hardest legs, not every leg
• Use deposit limits with your account provider

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