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SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Ascot Saturday

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SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Ascot Saturday

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November 2, 2024February 12, 2023
SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Ascot Saturday

We’re back jumping at Ascot and it’s great to be here. The team betting on pick one in the second row were Kaan, Kieran and Tony. They were up and betting on the first early and hoping for some big punters to come crashing in. Eyes got peeled for known faces and bagmen from the start. There was a new pitches layout, just two rows of bookmakers rather than three, the layers were keen to see how that panned out too, writes SIMON NOTT.

Betting on the opener a punter with a big bet, in fact a fairly lumpy bet by most people’s standards came in, but it wasn’t on the racing, it was £52,000 – £20,000 on Luke Humphries – ‘Cool Hand’ to his fans- of whom I assume the punter is one of that number, good luck to him, he was of course on. Come racing and still get a bet on the darts.

The next decent bet was for a horse over at Del Mar £12,000 – £3000 on Jayarebe, come racing and bet on the Breeder’s Cup. Meanwhile, there was very little of interest in the first here. There was no need to get worried though, that’s often the way, it was firework night tonight at Ascot so plenty of people would have been here for the first time or just having a look around before the first.

12:55 – Grundon Waste Management Conditional Jockeys’ Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (GBB Race) (Class 4) (3YO plus) 2m 3½f

Sadly, the first race really didn’t come to life at all, field money was less than a grand with the biggest bet £150 on Star Of Affinity at 9/2. Star of Affinity, aka the runner-up. The race went to 7/1 Ballytechno who battled on after the last to win nicely. You’d have thought it would have been a good result for the book, but no, the name of the winner caught many an eye and those modest recreational bets at 17/2 added up to a £480 loss on the race.

1:30 – Ascot Underwriting Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (GBB Race) (Class 3) (4YO plus) 2m 3f

Things picked up for the next race, the field money from the floor was 50% up but the big news was a £10,000 bet on Bad at 13/8. There was no way the team could bet up to it of course, those size bets rarely come in pairs, so at the off he was losing £15,000 in the Star Sports book. The intrepid punter must have been counting his money as they jumped the second last, his investment looked all over the winner. However Bhaloo the flip-flopped 6/4 second-in had other ideas and rallied to spoil the party. Let’s hope there weren’t any premature Aye Ayes over the runner-up. Bad returned 5/4 so his backers got consolation of the sort of value of the variety that you sadly can’t eat.

2:05 – Byrne Group Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap) (Class 1) (4YO plus) 2m 1f

Next up and they bet 10/3 the field with Master Chewy installed as jolly. A punter was up and had a monkey each-way the jolly, Kieran spun the money and found that the punter had given up £1100. In a flash Star’s man was bounding up the stairs after him with the speed and agility of greased Orangutang’s gravy (a toned down old army phrase care of basic training’s corporal Hassell ) and returned the erroneous century. The guy was chuffed, even more so as he’d just drawn it from another bookmaker as a grand. Yes, I’m wondering the same dear reader, did he or didn’t he?

Meanwhile, a grand from the rails found its way into the hod care of a bet of that size on Saint Segal at 11/2. There is a fraction for 11/2, 100/18 but he didn’t ask for it, maybe given the value he was already getting he didn’t like to ask. Always ask. The next decent bet was on Master Chewy again, this time £2200 – £800. At the off, the book held £5400 and had the jolly losing around that plus the places and Saint Segal doing £2260.

2:35 – GL Events Novices’ Hurdle (GBB Race) (Class 3) (4YO plus) 1m 7½f

Next up and before Kieran, Kaan and Tony got to work properly a punter waded in with £3000 to have on the 4/5 Kateira over at Wetherby. That one got beaten. Then the fun started here at Ascot, firstly a punter’s £5000 – £4000 followed by a flurry of hedge money on the rails for the jolly Clap Of Thunder, £1500 at 5/4 the £2000 and £1200 at 6/5. That was followed by a £7000 – £2000 Illegal D’ainay to balance things a bit, but not much. At the eventual off, the jolly was the only loser in the book, a bogie for £8269. It’s nasty watching a race where the one that’s red in the book for plenty never comes off the bit. It would be churlish and very unsporting to hope for an act of God to save you, nobody did and one wasn’t forthcoming. Clap Of Thunder won pretty much head in chest, cobblers were done.

3:15 – Lavazza Handicap Hurdle (GBB Race) (Class 2) (3YO plus) 1m 7½f

The race before the penultimate bore some man-sized punting action. Firstly a bet of £2000 – £400 Fiercely Proud softened the Star Sports team before £27,000 – £6000 the same horse pummelled them. You’ve heard of the old one-two? You have, well the second wallop was £26,000 – £4000 Break My Soul. Those bets in quick succession left the book looking precarious with two horses losing around £24,000 and £20,000 respectively but with a real fighting chance, on paper at least, of getting them both chinned. Next in was £2000 – £600 Secret Squirrell, followed by £260 the same horse, hopefully to shrewdies of course. That was the last of the chunks so they set off with a make or break the day sort of red figure over the bogies.

It was desperate, very desperate, a nose desperate, the machine bet 1.01 Our Champ, the Star team weren’t so sure. As Johnny Lights once said to Andy Henderson as a leant at a 45’ angle watching a race ‘The race looks different when you’ve had a lump on son’. Needless to say, when you are working with a firm you think of the money as your own, so it was much the same. The machine was right, how do they know? The master trainer Chris Gordon jockey Freddie won the firm £11,000 a £30,000 turnaround of the flared nostril had been the other way. We all regretted the naked eye, Aye Aye as they passed the post but thankful to have got away with it.

3:45 – Sodexo Live! Gold Cup Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap) (GBB Race) (Class 1) (4YO plus) 3m

Next up, the penultimate and a social media tipster waded in, recorded by his entourage and bet £5500 – £2000 Chianti Classico. No, he didn’t call anyone mush or have a beauty on each arm, no not that one. This one knew though, Chianti Classico verily hosed in, let’s hope all his subscribers were on, but not with Star Sports!

4:20 – Ascot Round Table Open NH Flat Race (GBB Race) (Class 2) (4YO to 5YO) 1m 7½f

In the blink of an eye we were at the lucky last, and despite the last race setback the team, Kaan, Tony and Kieran were still £13,000 up. The real possibility was that there could be big hitting punters still lurking to have it on and ruin the day. Of course, professionally the firm would want them to wade in but I’m sure the on-course team would be easily just as happy to snap the elastic bands around the winnings, bet tidy in the last and ensure a winning day. From experience with Star, that was unlikely to happen.

Considering that last weekend at Cheltenham the racing was plagued by low sun, it was getting dimpsey – that’s Devonshire for a bit dark. At 4.15, that was ideal for fireworks but not so great for seeing keyboards when tapping in bets but as far as the racing went, this being a bumper there were no hurdles or fences to omit or not see in the dark. Sadly there was no sign of the ballsy backers as the horses went to post, maybe they’d already made sure of a good vantage point for the display or more likely headed for the carpark.

The book held just public money at the off but it was a respectable figure of £1600, much better than the opener and a winning day assured whatever happened. What did happen was Kajikia won the race for Paul Nicholls which I’m sure pleased him. He was a 17/2 chance but only copped the book a round of drinks in a back street boozer, but the firm would take that. A winning day in the dark, Aye Aye!

Thanks for reading.

Views of authors do not necessarily represent views of Star Sports Bookmakers.

Simon Nott is author of: Skint Mob! Tales from the Betting Ring
available on Kindle CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS

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