The Horse Race Card Game: A Complete Playing Guide

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Try this fun gambling game to feel like you’re at the race track

Co-authored by Ashton Wu and Hunter Rising

Last Updated: February 26, 2025 Fact Checked

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Setup

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Betting

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Playing a Round

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Variations

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Q&A

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Warnings

If you want to place some friendly wagers against your friends, horse race is the perfect card game to try. The aces are horses and move forward on a “track” when a card of their suit is drawn, and players place bets on which ace they think will win. Horse race has really easy rules (and even works as a fun drinking game), so keep reading to learn everything you need to know to play!

Things You Should Know

Player Count: 3 or more
Required Materials: deck of cards, poker chips or coins
Objective: Place bets on the suit you think will be drawn the most and move the matching ace across a finish line.

Section 1 of 4:

Horse Race Setup

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Look through a deck of cards and take out all 4 aces. Lay them out on a table face-up in a vertical column. The aces become the “horses” that race during the game.^{[1]
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Deal out 7 cards into a face-up row near the aces. Shuffle the cards and lay them out in a horizontal row so they form an L-shape with the aces. These cards are sometimes called the “links.”^{[2]
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- If there are 5 or more cards of the same suit in the row, reshuffle the cards and lay out 7 new cards.
- If you want to play a longer game, place 8 or 9 cards in the row instead.
- Place the rest of the deck to the side face-down.
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The announcer doesn’t place any bets, but they get to draw cards to move the aces and narrate what happens during the race. Pick someone to be the announcer at random, and all the other players become the bettors.

Section 2 of 4:

Horse Race Betting

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1
Determine the betting odds for each suit. Check how many cards of each suit are face-up in the row on the table. Based on the number of cards of each suit, the odds and payouts may increase for each of the aces. The betting odds for a suit are:^{[3]
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- 0 cards: 1:1
- 1 card: 2:1
- 2 cards: 3:1
- 3 cards: 5:1
- 4 cards: 10:1
- If there are more cards of a suit in the face-up row, then it’s less likely they’ll get drawn from the deck so the payouts are higher.
All the players except the announcer place bets on what ace they think will win. Each player places poker chips, coins, or any other token to mark their bet next to the ace they chose.^{[4]
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Section 3 of 4:

Playing a Round

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1
Flip the top card of the deck and move the matching ace forward. Once everyone places their bets, the announcer reveals the top card of the deck and checks its suit. Then, they move the matching ace 1 space forward so it’s under the first card in the row.^{[5]
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- As the announcer, use a lot of excitement and enthusiasm in your voice to get everyone into the game. If it’s a close game, take your time revealing cards to add more tension.
The announcer continues flipping over cards and moving the matching aces further down the row. As soon as an ace moves past the last card in the row, it’s crossed the finish line and wins the race!^{[6]
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Pay out bets to any players that bet on the winning ace. Anyone who placed a bet gets their original bet back and the payout is based on its odds. Any player who placed bets on another ace besides the winner loses their bet.
- Example: If the ace of hearts won with 2:1 odds and you placed 2 poker chips as your bet, you would win 4 chips and keep your original 2 chips for a total of 6 chips.

Section 4 of 4:

Horse Race Variations

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1
Deal the links face-down and reveal them to move aces backward. Set the 7 cards of the starting row face-down. When an ace moves underneath a new link for the first time, flip the card over. The ace that matches the suit of the card must move backward 1 space.^{[7]
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- Moving an ace backward is also called “faltering.”
- Aces can’t move further backward than their starting space.
- When you place bets, just play with 1:1 odds. If you made a $1 USD bet on the winning suit, your payout would be $2 USD.
Add the jokers to the deck after you set out the starting row. Whenever the narrator reveals a joker, all the aces except the one in the lead move forward 1 space. This is also called a “stumble.”^{[8]
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Place drinks as bets. Instead of using poker chips or money, bet on how much you’re willing to drink, such as sipping for 5 seconds or taking a shot. Play the game as normal until an ace crosses the finish line. Whoever placed a bet on the winning ace picks someone to drink the amount they originally bet. The losers must also drink the amount they bet.^{[9]
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- If you’re only playing with a few people, choose small amounts to drink. With a larger group, you may split up how you distribute drinks between multiple people.
- Remember that 1 drink is equal to a 12 fl oz (350 ml) can of beer or a 1 ¹⁄₂ fl oz (44 ml) shot of hard liquor. Drinking in moderation is 2 drinks per day for men and 1 drink daily for women.

Community Q&A

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Question

Can more than one player bet on the same horse?

AlprnYlmaz

Community Answer

Yes. It depends on how many players are playing. The game is flexible, and the rules can be adapted to suit the players' preferences.

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Warnings

If you’re playing horse race as a drinking game, be sure that you’re over the legal drinking age in your area. Make sure you have a plan to get home safely, and avoid drinking and driving.

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