You're in Luck!

From a betting perspective, I'm sure many of us are guilty of often putting our big wins solely down to skill, and our losses down to being 'unlucky'. In some situations though such as big accumulator wins or other unlikely outcomes that seem to somehow effortlessly fall into place, we should concede that luck can indeed play a meaningful role from time to time. With this in mind then, let's embrace some of the outsider odds moments that clearly have a big dollop of luck involved and revel in the unfolding good fortune!

Surely one of the luckiest (or perhaps) craziest betting moves has to be the 'all or nothing' roulette bets that you sometimes see. You can of course participate yourself with a BitwinBitcoin bonus code , after all who doesn't like to try their luck with a spin of the wheel from time to time. One noteworthy big win of recent years was a stunt a few years ago where one man, Ashley Revell, bet the proceeds of all of his worldly goods ($136,000) on a single spin of a roulette wheel. He opted for red. The idea came as result of a drunken conversatio with friends, and the Brit couldn't let the idea drop. Thankfully for him he won, but imagine how utterly gutting it would've been if he's lost everything.

"That spin was the most amazing moment of my life. It is a cliché but time did stand still. It was just complete calm" said Revell of his win.

A not quite such extreme bet, though more unlikely in terms of probability, is the good fortune of brazilian businessman Pedro Grendene Bartelle, who placed $35,000 on a single roulette spin (number 32) in 2017 at Hotel Conrad in Punta del Este, on the Uruguay coast . Lady luck was more than on his side, as his number came up, winning him a staggering $1.2million. Not bad for a few seconds work! Of course it's impossible to know how often he's 'gone big' on a single number, since he was already a mult imillionaire, but it's still a great moment to be captured on film.

Moving onto the territory of sports betting, one multiple / accumulator bet in recent times that sent my head spinning was a crazy 17-fold football accumulator by an online punter. The 50p 'match result' and 'both teams' to score bet, saw the lucky individual win a healthy £61,000. As you'd expect not all of the results were a formality, but by the end of each match the stars had aligned and ultimately a win's a win! A representative for the losing bookmaker predicted that this would be hard to top in 2018 in terms of how outlandishly difficult the accumulator was to land. What's your unlikely bet that came good?

The Changing Face of Gambling

I remember the days when betting was either the domain of heading to the bookmakers, casino or making your way down to the race track. None were particularly seen as attractive or unattractive options, they were simply the only shows in town. Now of course with gambling moving firmly into the 21^st century that's all changed, and often betting shops are now seen as something that's rather old hat or quaint. Of course there are betting terminal casino game options in bookmakers and the like that are fairly popular, but that's not the full picture. Now bookmaker websites often take the place of physical bookmakers, and casino websites emulate bricks and mortar casinos. Punters can even 'cut out the middle man' entirely with peer to peer betting exchanges.

Even currency is now an area where there are now more options than ever. Many gamblers now opt to bet via an online bitcoin casino. Some see this as an appealing option due to the lack of bitcoin regulation and it was bound to happen anyway really, as the balooning value of bitcoin creates markets where people want to use this ever more versatile cryptocurrency exactly how they please. Many of these bitcoin sites have the same kind of bonus offers that gamblers know and love from more typical betting websites and so playing for bitcoin instead of other forms of currency is largely a seamless process. Of course not everyone owns bitcoin, but for those who either do, or have an interest in acquiring them (as many do each time the currency makes the news after reaching a new high!) this is certainly an option worth considering.

Whether you move with the betting times and use online betting exchanges, online casinos, online bookmakers or a combination of the above, the topic of bonuses really is a point worth stating. In bricks and mortar bookmakers I've rarely seen any decent offers of bonuses or incentives of any kind other than something minor. Online though, it's a different world. Some punters really do tip the odds in their favour by keeping an eye out for big bonuses that give something of a boost to their betting bank. These perks can either result in ramping things up profits-wise, or in a worst case scenario cushioning potential losses. Gambling is often a matter of margins and finding value, and in my view if you find the right bonuses this can definitely feed into the art of locating value.

Big Odds Betting on the Cheltenham Festival

The highly anticipated four day Cheltenham Festival is now just around the corner (march 13^th - 16^th 2018). Earlier today I was looking over some of the previous results of the Cheltenham Gold Cup over the years imagining how I'd have felt if I'd had the guts to place bets on the bigger odds selections. Of course often such selections go nowhere with the markets correctly pricing their chance of winning, but on occasion they do come good and what a story to pass on (and big win to smuggly collect) should you land a big odds winner in the ballpark of 25-1 + instead of betting on short odds favourites with a 'playing it safe' mindset, which can often backfire anyway.

One of the most noteworthy wins of previous wins that falls along these lines has to be 9 year old Gelding Norton's Coin, who managed to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup at dizzying betting odds of 100-1. Bred  owned and trained by Sirrell Griffiths, who viewed training as a hobby, Norton's Coin disappointed in previous runs before stepping up in class so was seen as something of a no hoper by the betting markets. At these odds though, some did elect to take the punt, and it more than paid dividends for them. When placing a bet a certain degree of bravery (or some would say foolhardiness) is often needed. For Norton's Coin 100-1 had looked about right with everything else factored in, but imagine having £20 on that, or perhaps even a bet via a bookmaker's free bet offer. You'd certainly be thanking your betting bank afterwards! Often bookmakers have free bet offers running alongside the big events like the Grand National, Royal Ascot and the Cheltenham Festival and so it certainly makes sense to keep an eye on those to get more bang for your betting buck!

This year's Gold Cup, or Cheltenham Festival in general could of course also throw up Outsider surprises, though they're unlikely to scale the heights of this 100-1 winner (hopefully I've not just tempted fate by stating that!). Often elements of luck and skill combine when betting on Cheltenham or the Grand National and so whether you bet on a short odds favourite or a long shot, there can be aspects of flying blind with any selection and are both plus points and drawbacks whichever odds bracket you find yourself drawn towards. Current favourite in the betting markets for the Gold Cup is 3-1 Might Bite with many a glowing write-up in the racing press. Sizing John, Coney Island and the like also factor is, while Cloudy Dram has been pulled out of the race and entered into the RyanAir Chase Instead, which was a surprise to many.

Ruth Jefferson stated: “He’s come out of the race at Newbury fine. We took him out of the Gold Cup and he’ll go for the Ryanair, that’s the plan” As always there will likely be a few more changes across this and other races before the Festival begins, but as per usual the event as a whole is bound to be once again be one of the real highlights of the British racing calendar.

Horse and Jockey Profile

Sadler’s Wells: His Legacy Lives On

 

 

Sadler’s Wells, who retired from breeding in 2008 and died at home at Coolmore Stud, County Tipperary in 2011, is now best known for his prolific stud career. He was champion sire in Britain and Ireland 14 times, in France three times and North America once and his progeny won all the British Classics.

However, it’s worth remembering that, prior to taking up stallion duties in 1984, Sadler’s Wells was a top-class racehorse. By Northern Dancer, the most influential sire of the 20th century, out of Fairy Bridge, a half-sister to Nureyev, Sadler’s Wells was bred by the late Robert Sangster in America and trained by the late Vincent O’Brien at Ballydoyle, County Tipperary. Having won the Beresford Stakes at the Curragh in the September of his two-year-old campaign, he went on to win the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the Eclipse Stakes, by a neck from Time Charter, and the Phoenix Champion Stakes. He also ran creditably in defeat, finishing second to Darshaan in the Prix du Jockey Club and Teenoso in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes.

A small, sturdy, dark bay colt, not unlike his sire, he demonstrated courage and durability on the racecourse, characteristics he passed on to his notable progeny, which included Montjeu, Galileo, High Chaparral and, of course, Frankel who remained unbeaten in a fourteen-race career . Following his death, Ben Sangster, son of the late Robert, said, “His legacy will live on through his sons and daughters and their sons and daughters.”

The Rise and Rise of James Bowen

Welsh jockey James Bowen has had a remarkable twelve months. Fresh from setting a record total of 30 winners in his debut point-to-point season – all the more noteworthy for the fact that he had his first ride on his 16th birthday, March 12, several months into the season – Bowen turned professional in May.

He rode his first winner as a professional, Curious Carlos, for his father, Pembrokeshire trainer Peter, at Cartmel on May 27 and joined Nicky Henderson as conditional jockey on October 1. He rode out his seven-pound allowance aboard Thomas Campbell, trained by Henderson, at the Cheltenham November meeting and has since become the youngest jockey to win the Welsh Grand National, steering the veteran Raz De Maree to victory at Chepstow in January.

At the time of writing, according to WilliamHill.com Bowen Jnr. has ridden 39 winners, 13 more than any other conditional jockey in the country and just one short of riding out his five-pound allowance. He has already been touted as a future champion jockey and, if fate decrees, that should be just a matter of time.

For a lad of 16 he has a wise approach to the sport looking to the long term. Asked about what winning the likes of the Grand National would mean to him compared to winning the jockey's title he said “Being champion would mean more. I’d love to do that. Obviously the big days are special but for me the aim is to ride winners every day and try to be champion jockey.” I have a feeling he might not have to decide between the two.