A first four bet is a wager which requires you to select the first four horses across the line. First four bets while difficult to win, generally offer up the largest payouts seen on thoroughbred betting.

The first four of the 2012 Melbourne Cup paid more than $1.4 million on NSW Tab. The types of trifecta available to you which are mentioned below have varying costs but allow you to select more runners and therefore have more winning combinations.

STANDARD FIRST FOUR: With a standard first four, you must select the first four horses across the line in correct order. The minimum cost of this wager is $1.00 for one combination.

BOX FIRST FOUR: A box first four allows you to select three or more runners to run first, second, third and fourth in any order. If you box four runners, instead of having one winning combination, you will have 24 combinations. The trade off is you pay $1.00 per combo so your total outlay will be $24.00 opposed to $1.00.

FLEXI FIRST FOUR: If you didn't want to outlay $24.00 but wished to still box three runners, taking a Flexi trifecta is an option. If for example, you only wanted to outlay $12, you could have a Flexi trifecta which would see you receive 50% of the dividend if the wager were successful. A flexi First Four can also allow you to produce a more structured First Four where you have varying runners and even varying amounts for each of the four finishing positions.