As more and more nonsense swills around social media about on course/land based betting "getting away with it" and the "place to be for lumping on" I thought it might be useful to give you a pretty forensic break down of our day on course. This will include figures, which we don't usually do, to dispel the myths and rubbish that is being spouted by people who know little about what is actually happening.
I appreciate that it appears that I am on a crusade at the moment and, in truth, to some extent I am. This is a pivotal time for the gambling industry with new gambling regulation and, therefore, by extension to the horse racing world. I have a business that I, along with Steve, have worked hard on and invested into for 10 years. I am damned if I am going to allow misconceptions and falsehoods to potentially affect future regulatory policy which will affect me, my family, my hard work and my future and I'm sure the other 400 or so small bookmaking firms who ply their trade on course feel exactly the same.
We start a couple of days in advance. Midweeks are tough calls for us and even a Friday is still really a "midweek" albeit one with a slightly higher chance of being workable. We base our decision on weather and card plus the pick number we have (more on that later). Steve has a day job and it simply makes no sense for him to book time off his work to be on course when we have no idea whether we will even attend. Midweeks mean we then need a worker which is about £100 or so. Betting badge for this meeting was £190 plus a tenner for use of the on course bookmaking software so £300 before we get a wage. Field sizes between 6 and 10 runners. On course you're probably looking at an overround of 1.5% per runner so around 110%. A quick glance at the SP in the first race revealed an off course overround of 118% For those of you who think there is better value on the high street we were around 111%. Forecast was set fair- more on that later too.
On course bookmakers have a pick number and, when it comes time to select your pitch, the choice is done based on your number- pick 1 has first choice, pick 2 second etc. It's a bit like picking those football teams at school. Pick 1 gets the kid who's already signed semi professional forms for Marine and is getting trials at a couple of 4th division teams. Pick 80 is the kid who's been down to Co-op for the 8 for 5 doughnut special for his lunch. He ends up in goal. When you buy a pitch, you buy off another bookmaker who is selling. It was fairly widely reported that pick 1 at Cheltenham went for over £200,000 a couple of years ago. Pick 80 at a track which attracts 500 punters and has one Saturday a year can be bought for a tenner. You won't win though.
We have pick 5 at Musselburgh and for various reasons we knew we would get 3rd pick this particular meeting. The two picks in front of us picked the positions either side of the tunnel under the stand where punters from the back bars and paddock will usually make their way to the track via. We went to the end of the stand where the Pinkie Bar empties out and we can also service the picnic tables on the lawn and the folk picking up their fish and chips/burger. Looked a reasonable call as the weather was set fair...
I am now going to give you figures for the 7 races at Musselburgh. Next time you read nonsense about on course bookmaking in relation to regulation please feel free to refer the perpetrator of such nonsense to this blog. I don't ask for retweets but, in this case, I may make an exception. These figures are to provide the reality of the situation regarding problem gambling risk and regulatory requirements on course- no other reason and I probably won't be as forensic again.
1) We took 60 bets for 424 quid. That's 7 quid a bet. Our biggest bet was 35 quid, our smallest a quid each way. 7 quid. That's slightly less than the cost of an on course burger. Or just over a pint of beer. Or 1 1/2 Racing Posts. Our margin is around 10-11% max on a 7 runner race and you still need the results to go for you. Our costs for this meeting were 43 quid a race (not including petrol). We hedged a quid on Ana Emaraaty and that was it. Lady Pascha was losing is £104, Daley losing us £38 and Ana was losing us £90. We won £152 on Whisky McGonagall and 25 quid in places. This was our 2nd best winner in the book. At the risk of repeating myself this is the reality of on course bookmaking during the week. We won a tenner in the forecast.
2) 7 runners again and we took 64 bets for £642. I'm not working out the average for you. This figure included a 200 quid bet from connections on Gunnerside so the rest of the book was around the 7 quid a bet mark again. Gunnerside went out to a massive uncontested lead and won, more or less, on the bridle. The 200 quid bet wasn't from a problem gambler, it was from an owner who pays an awful lot more than that to keep his horse in training. In truth he may not have been able to get on off course, not because he is a problem gambler, but, if he's only betting horses that get a soft lead and win whilst the jockey remains motionless, he's unlikely to keep his accounts. But I am speculating. Either way we didn't fancy standing Gunnerside for loads when the only bet of any note was from connections so we only lost 142 quid and won £18 back in the places plus 20 quid in the forecasts. The most we could have won was £318 in theory but, watching the race, the most we could've won was minus £142... again this is the reality of on course bookmaking midweek. I won't say this again and the rest will be shorter.
3) 5 runners, 55 bets, £498, 108% overround. We stood Kiss My Face for 90 quid and Idilico for £104. We won £151 on the favourite and £11 in the places. Reality, not fantasy.
4) 5 runners, 68 bets, £518, 109% overround, no hedging. We stood Riversway for £76 and the winner, Havagomecca for £49- we also lost 15 quid in the places but won a tenner in the forecast.
5) 9 runners, 74 bets, £481, 114% overround, hedged 20 quid. Stood Scottish Wind for £116 plus a procession of weak jokes (from both sides in fairness) and Lednikov for £136. We won £142 on Simple Star and lost £2 in the places.
6) 6 runners. Rain. 55 bets, £447, won a quid on the favourite Purple Martini, 10 quid in the places and £10 in the forecast.
7) 49 bets as the crowd disappeared into the grey and damp ether. £420, lost £75 on favourite plus 8 quid in places. Won a tenner in the forecast.
Overall we won £288.88 with expenses of £300 so a loss of £11.12. We took about £3300 at an average overround which would give us about what we won. This is reality. We probably won't do this one again, though the late rain didn't help and it is a new meeting so may improve over the years.
So what's the (betting) frequency available to punters and how will on course be an option for problem gamblers? Simply, it won't. On Friday, assuming you don't live in Musselburgh, Cheltenham, Goodwood, Newmarket or Newcastle (that'll be in excess of 99.9% of the population) firstly you have to travel to get there and pay for that travel. You then have to pay an average of 25 quid to get in, a tenner if you want to eat there and 6 quid a pint if you want a beer. You can then bet on something every 35 minutes. This is simply not what problem gamblers do. They just don't. As an experiment we put up a few races from Newmarket and Goodwood. We didn't take a bet. We didn't expect to take a bet either because the people who go racing have a bet on what they've paid an entrance fee to come and see live. They're not hassling us to price up the next horse race in a different country or a dog race in a different town because that's not why they're here.
Please don't lose focus that the gambling reforms are, supposedly, there to help problem gambling. Not to tar everyone with the same brush and not to destroy the pastimes of, in this case, approximately 1000 people enjoying a few hours of sunshine on a Friday afternoon at the start of a long weekend. Don't throw the baby out with the bath water. Don't confuse £2.50 each way, or even a one off £200 from an owner who has invested in the sport, once every half an hour with someone with a real, genuine problem who is hitting red/black for 20 quid every 30 seconds cos that's like comparing me with Mo Salah because we both kick a football occasionally.
Thanks for reading. Please share to those who don't see the difference or, even worse, do see the difference but still think we're a future risk for problem gambling. It's not the case. This is the reality.
Possibly Kelso on Wednesday if the monsoon misses, if not Ladies Day at Perth. Until then...
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