A Lucky 15 bet could be the best option for you when you have four selections on your bet slip. Of course, there are other options available to you, such as an accumulator or a Yankee bet, so it is important to understand the pros and cons of each type of bet.
In this post, we will not only look at the Lucky 15 bet and explain it fully, but we will also explore how to work out its cost per unit stake and potential payout options. We will also compare the Lucky 15 bet to the other two main four-selection betting options across those criteria too.
Fortunately, all the top bookmakers, such as bet365 Sport, offer extensive Lucky 15 betting options across a range of sports and markets. No longer is the Lucky 15 bet the domain of horse racing punters only!
The Lucky 15 bet is a powerful option to have in your armoury if you understand it fully, the risks associated with it and the benefits it can provide. So read on to discover all you need to know about this popular full cover with singles bet!
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What is a Lucky 15 bet?
A Lucky 15 bet is a full cover bet (like a Yankee bet) but which also covers each of the four selections as single bets in their own right.
It is essentially a Yankee bet, with the four selections also backed as single bets too.
Let’s use a simple example to explain how the Yankee bet forms the basis for a Lucky 15 bet.
Let’s now say a punter backs four selections, A, B, C and D in a Yankee bet at a cost of £2 per unit stake.
A Yankee bet covers all possible Double, Treble and Accumulator options that can be made with the four selections. This breaks down as follows:
A Yankee Bet Covers
Six Doubles
- Selections A & B to win
- Selections A & C to win
- Selections A & D to win
- Selections B & C to win
- Selections B & D to win
- Selections C & D to win
Four Trebles
- Selections A, B & C to win
- Selections A, B & D to win
- Selections A, C & D to win
- Selections B, C & D to win
One Fourfold Accumulator
- Selections A, B, C & D to win
As you can see, that is a total of eleven bets in total, meaning a £2 Yankee bet would cost £22 to place.
However, to convert this into a Lucky 15 bet, all you need to do is add four further bets backing each of the selections as a single bet.
So, your Lucky 15 bet would be as follows:
Four Singles
- Selection A to win
- Selection B to win
- Selection C to win
- Selection D to win
Six Doubles
- Selections A & B to win
- Selections A & C to win
- Selections A & D to win
- Selections B & C to win
- Selections B & D to win
- Selections C & D to win
Four Trebles
- Selections A, B & C to win
- Selections A, B & D to win
- Selections A, C & D to win
- Selections B, C & D to win
One Fourfold Accumulator
- Selections A, B, C & D to win
A Lucky 15 bet has 15 different bets to cover (hence the name), so it would cost £2 x 15 = £30 to place a Lucky 15 bet.
So, now that we understand how a Yankee and Lucky 15 bet are related and how their wager is calculated, let’s now take a closer look at the four-selection bets you could make and how they compare.
Fourfold Accumulator vs Yankee vs Lucky 15
For this example, we are going to use four selections, A, B, C and D, with stated odds of 2/1, 4/1, 6/1 and 8/1 respectively.
Initial Cost to Place the bet (per £2 Unit Stake)
- Accumulator – 1 bet – £2 total bet cost.
- Yankee – 11 bets – £22 total bet cost.
- Lucky 15 – 15 bets – £30 total bet cost.
Each Bet’s Requirement to receive a return
- Accumulator – All four selections must win or the bet is lost.
- Yankee – Two or more selections must win to generate a return.
- Lucky 15 – One or more selections must win to generate a return.
Each Bet’s Maximum and Minimum Betting Returns
These figures are based on a £2 unit stake with the four selections of odds of 2/1, 4/1, 6/1 and 8/1.
- Accumulator – Minimum & Maximum Win – £1890
- Yankee – Minimum Win – £30, Maximum Win – £3790
- Lucky 15 – Minimum Win – £6, Maximum Win – £3838
Main Pros and Cons of Acca, Yankee and Lucky 15 Bets
With the accumulator option, the main positive for punters is the low initial cost (£2), but all four selections must win to generate any return.
For the Yankee, only two selections need to win to generate a return and the maximum win amount is nearly double that of the accumulator.
The Lucky 15 is the more expensive bet to place, but guarantees a return (but not a profit at the odds shown in the example) if just one selection wins. However, it offers a higher potential maximum win amount than either of the other two options.
Is The Lucky 15 Bet A Good Option For Punters?
It certainly can be. While it is the most expensive of the bets to place that we’ve shown above, it is the only bet that generates a return on a single winner. That means it is much more likely to offer you at least some payout more often than the other bets.
It can be a particularly effective bet when combining lower price selections, with some higher priced ‘outside’ bets in which if the lower priced bet or bets win, you get a return, but you may only need one of the higher priced bets to land to make a significant profit. This could be dramatically increased if you land three or four winners in your Lucky 15 bet selections.
It is also worth remembering you can scale down your unit stake to make the bet more cost-effective for you. If you don’t want to spend £30 on a Lucky 15 bet, then reduce the stake amount to £1 (£15) or even £0.50 (£7.50) and you can see how you can bring the total cost of the bet down to smaller amounts.
You should now have a firm grasp of the difference between three different four-selection bets. Each has their pros and cons, but having all of them in your betting armoury is a great idea for any punter!
New Customers only. Bet £10 and get £30 in Free Bets when you join bet365. Sign up, deposit between £5 and £10 to your account and bet365 will give you five times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value settle. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. The bonus code BET247 can be used during registration but does not change the offer amount in any way. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply. Registration Required.
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