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The Starting Price (SP) is the official set of odds returned for each horse at the moment a race starts. It is set by a panel sampling the main betting markets, and it settles every bet taken 'at SP'. Because it reflects all the money bet right up to the off, the SP is the sharpest public estimate of each horse's chance — which is why beating it consistently, known as positive Closing Line Value, is the most reliable sign of a real betting edge.
An independent process samples a range of bookmaker prices, both on-course and online, at the moment the stalls open, and returns a representative figure for each runner. It's designed to reflect the true state of the market at the off, not any single firm's price.
The board (or early) price is what's offered before the off and moves as money comes in. The SP is the final price locked in at the start. If you take an early price you keep it; if you bet 'at SP' you get whatever is officially returned.
If you expect a horse to shorten (be backed in), take the early price; if you expect it to drift, SP may be bigger. Bettors who beat the SP on average are demonstrating genuine skill, because the SP is the market's best final estimate of each horse's chance.
Every selection is logged with an advised price before the off and then compared to the SP to measure Closing Line Value. Settling honestly against the SP is how the public ledger proves the picks weren't priced after the result was known.
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