What is a NAP?

Learning the jargon for betting on horse racing is something that must be done before you get involved yourself. If you fail to do this successfully, you could end up getting behind bets you don’t necessarily understand, making it far less enjoyable and a lot more dangerous than it ever needs to be; Betting on the horses is massively enjoyable but that’s only true when it’s done responsibly.

One of the most confusing terms for inexperienced horse racing punters is the concept of a ‘NAP’ and it can scare them off even considering having a bet on it. The Winners Enclosure are one site who are clearly knowledgeable over all of the horse racing betting lingo, with helpful pages created specially to give novices a helping hand with working out exactly how to bet on the sport. They’re best known for daily recommended bets on horse racing, as well as previews and coverage of all major races, and their own Nap of the Day page, which has become a staple in what they do for the betting community.

Definition of a NAP

Although the horse racing NAP is seen as being as confusing as the Lucky 15 or the rules which come into play through Each Way betting, it’s easily the most straight-forward of all terms. Simply put, a NAP is a single horse from a day’s racing action which the tipster providing it sees as being the most likely to win. The word originally comes from a French card game called Napoleon, where the best hand you can get is a Napoleon, eventually shortened to being NAP, and best known in horse racing ahead of all other sports.

NAP of the Day

As NAPs are primarily intended to be tipped and posted out every day, a lot of tipsters post out their own NAP of the Day and push it out as being a cornerstone in the bets they recommend. Unlike the other bets they will present, this is the one they see as being the most likely to land. TWE are one of the sites who do this and regularly update their own NAP of the Day page with their most reliable pick from the day’s action.

The odds for a typical NAP of the Day can fluctuate anywhere from above Evens to as little as less than 1/2. This can be disappointing for punters who want stronger odds for something they’re backing but don’t forget, the main point of a NAP is to predict the most likely winner and it’s not always a bet that will be massively desirable. Some tipsters even use NAPs as a way of proving their ability, as it will show how reliable they are if their NAP lands.