Where Are All the Boat Race Courses

In total, there are 24 boat races courses across Japan. For more information regarding each course, please see the links below.

Kojima (児島):

English Site: http://www.boatrace.jp/en/map/kojima.html

Japanese Site: https://www.kojimaboat.jp/

Miyajima (宮島):

English Site: http://www.boatrace.jp/en/map/miyajima.html

Japanese Site: https://www.boatrace-miyajima.com/

Tokuyama (徳山):

English Site: http://www.boatrace.jp/en/map/tokuyama.html

Japanese Site: www.boatrace-tokuyama.jp/

Shimonoseki (下関):

English Site: http://www.shimonoseki.gr.jp/english/

Japanese Site: http://www.shimonoseki.gr.jp/

Wakamatsu (若松):

English Site: http://www.boatrace.jp/en/map/wakamatsu.html

Japanese Site: livebb.jlc.ne.jp/bb_top/new_bb/index.php?tpl=20

Ashiya (芦屋):

English Site: http://www.boatrace.jp/en/map/ashiya.html

Japanese Site: livebb.jlc.ne.jp/bb_top/new_bb/index.php?tpl=21

Fukuoka (福岡):

English Site: http://www.fukuoka-kyotei.com/root/english/

Japanese Site: www.fukuoka-kyotei.com/root/japanese/index.html

Karatsu (唐津):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/karatsu.html

Japanese Site: www.karatsu-kyotei.jp/

Oomura (大村):

English Site: http://www.city.omura.nagasaki.jp/english/services/omurakyotei.html

Japanese Site: www.omurakyotei.jp/

Amagasaki (尼崎):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/amagasaki.html

Japanese Site: http://www.amagasaki.gr.jp/asp/amagasaki/kaisaiinfo/kaisaiindex.htm

Suminoe (住之江):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/suminoe.html

Japanese Site: www.suminoe.gr.jp/

Biwako (びわこ):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/biwako.html

Japanese Site: www.biwako.gr.jp/

Mikuni (三国):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/mikuni.html

Japanese Site: www.mikuni.gr.jp/

Naruto (鳴門):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/naruto.html

Japanese Site: www.naruto-kyotei.gr.jp/

Marugame (丸亀):

English Site:  www.boatrace.jp/en/map/marugame.html

Japanese Site: www.marugame-kyotei.jp/

Kiryu (桐生):

English Site:  www.boatrace.jp/en/map/kiryu.html

Japanese Site: www.kiryu-kyotei.com/

Toda (戸田):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/toda.html

Japanese Site: www.boatrace-toda.jp

Edogawa (江戸川):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/edogawa.html

Japanese Site: www.boatrace-edogawa.com/

Heiwajima (平和島):

English Site: www.heiwajima.gr.jp/en/

Japanese Site: www.heiwajima.gr.jp/

Tamagawa (多摩川):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/tamagawa.html

Japanese Site: www.tamagawa.com/

Tokoname (常滑):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/tokoname.html

Japanese Site: www.tokoname-kyotei.gr.jp/

Gamagori (蒲郡):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/gamagori.html

Japanese Site: www.gamagori-kyotei.com/

Hamanako (浜名湖):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/hamanako.html

Japanese Site: www.hamanako-kyotei.com

Tsu (津):

English Site: www.boatrace.jp/en/map/tsu.html

Japanese Site: www.tsu-kyotei.com/

Beginner's Guide to Boat Racing in Japan

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I hope this was informative and provided a little insight into an interesting aspect of Japanese gambling and culture.

The Betting System for Japan's Boat Racing

Bets start at 100 Yen and go to up to over a million Yen. In terms of betting pools, by far and away the highest is the Trifecta pool. On busy days, the Trifecta pools for a single race get reach over 100 million Yen. While the Win/Place pool will almost never reach 1 Million yen. The Exacta/Quinella pool generally falls right in the middle of the other two pools. Lastly, the Quinella-Place pool typically picks up a fraction of the remaining money spent by all bettors. (Similar amounts of the Win pool)

How to Read a Japanese Betting Ticket:

Unfortunately, the number of foreign bettors is very low and betting tickets are currently only available in Japanese. This poses quite a challenge to all who aren't familiar with the thousands of characters used in the Japanese language. Please see the below picture that shows what a typical Japanese betting ticket looks like:

[Credit to Heiwajima Racing for the screenshot]

The translation/guide for the above betting ticket is:

1. 開催場 / Stadium … Fill in the race Stadium where the race is being held at.
2.  式別 / Bet Type … Fill in the type of bet you wish to make.
3.  レース / Race No. … Fill in the race number to bet on.
4.  1着・2着・3着 / 1st, 2nd, 3rd … For Trifecta or Trio bets, fill in the boat numbers up to third place. For Exacta or Quinella bets, fill in the boat numbers up to second place.
5.  金額 / Bet … Fill in the amount of your bet. To specify a number like 15, fill in 10 and 5.
6.  単位 / Units … You can specify 100, 1,000, and 10,000 yen.
7.  取消 / Cancel … If you make a mistake, you can cancel that line by filling in this slot. Any bets on that line will not be purchased.