It’s a great time to be a punter, dear readers, because as Cheltenham draws nearer the online betting firms are all trying to outdo each other in the great ‘who can offer the best Cheltenham concession’ stakes.
I thought it was Paddy Power and their money-back-if-Dunguib-wins that would win but bonkers Betfred has come along and out-’Done’ them.
Not satisfied with nominating a horse to win that will give you your money back he’s taken the concept one step further and regardless of what horse wins the Supreme Novices Hurdle any losing bets will be refunded.
That’s right if you back any horse that loses in the first race of the meeting Freds gonna give you your money back!
And the small print?
Basically it’s a maximum of £100 per customer and the money is refunded as a Free Bet to the same stake as your original bet. So unless you are only planning on having one bet at the meeting (and that’s the Supreme Novices race) then there doesn’t seem to be much wrong with this offer.
If you haven’t got a Betfred account yet then click below to open one now….
———-
Like the flipside of a coin or the ying to the yang after Wednesday’s Post I bring you…..
My 5 worst Cheltenham Festival nightmares.
1) Multum In Parvo (Cathcart 1990)
As I said in my last post it was the nearest I have ever come to winning a 6 figure sum and you honestly couldn’t get any closer without winning. Multum In Parvo led for every inch of the course from the second last fence until the very last 1/36th of a yard. With the jockey dropping his whip on the run in, the eventual winner cutting him up, the stewards inquiry and the objection that went on for ages it was if someone was revelling in making me suffer.
Another second to keep me moaning and it meant another 6 months of working for William Hill.
2) The 2001 Cheltenham Festival
2 words Foot and Mouth. 2 more words Bloody and Annoying.
3) One Man (Queen Mother 1998)
Yes, I know everyone loved this horse. Yes, I know it was a fantastic performance to win the Queen Mother and yes it was his finest hour. Yes, it was very sad what happened in his next race but as a bookmaker this was our single worst result at the Cheltenham Festival in the 15 years we had our shops. I for one wished connections had carried on trying to win the Gold Cup with this non-stayer.
4) Yahoo (Gold Cup 1989)
Times were hard for me in 1989 as I struggled to make ends meet as a betting shop manager. All my wages ended up in Ladbrokes or in the Parrot Pub and annual trips to Vegas were just a dream back then. Oh how it could have been all so different if the gallant handicapper Yahoo had managed to hold off the challenge from that other pesky grey horse, Desert Orchid in the Gold Cup. He had good form in heavy and a lot of the field, including Desert-flipping-Orchid weren’t certain to appreciate the ground conditions so I had, what amounted to back then, a fairly large bet on him. Oh how I hate those grey horses, oh how I hate backing seconds, oh how I hated not backing him at Aintree next time out
5) Champion Hurdle 2002
‘Held up, smooth progess from 4th, close 4th and going easily 3 out, cruised into the lead jumping the last, sprinted clear, impressive’ could easily have been the Racing Post write-up for the ‘winner’ of the 2002 Champion Hurdle were it not for a cruel twist of fate that saw Valiramix stumble and slip up between the 2nd and 3rd last hurdle. The money I lost was irrelevant. Connections lost the most promising hurdler of recent times and we lost the chance to see the easiest Champion Hurdle winner ever. A sad day which also saw three time Champion Hurdle winner Istabraaq pull up in his final career race.
———-
Cheltenham Festival
I had a look at the Top Jockey betting last week and made Ruby Walsh a good thing to win it which would seem to make Paul Nicholls a good bet to win the Trainers Title. Or does it? Let’s have a look….
Using a complicated formula involving the number of each trainers intended runners, the current odds available for each race and their respective % chances I came up with the following figures for how many winners each trainer may have….
P. Nicholls 3.5 (i.e. 3 or 4)
N. Henderson 1.5
W. Mullins 1
D. Pipe 0.5
JJ O’Neill 0.5
A. King 0.5
Again, it won’t be for everyone as the odds are pretty short but 1/2 does look a very good bet on Mr Nicholls being top trainer.
———-
The Imperial Cup
I’ve done a FREE Trends Guide for the big race this afternoon and you can download a copy by clicking below…….
There’s no sign-up required and no card details will be asked for. This is a direct link that takes you straight to the guide.
Our selection has a very strong trends profile and we’re very hopeful of a big run from him.
Good luck,
Gavin.
P.S. Should you wish to invest any winnings in this years 126 page Cheltenham Festival Trends Guide then it’s still up for sale at the incredibly generous price of just £19.95. Get your copy below….
>>>>Cheltenham Festival Trends Guide<<<<