"Race reading and form analysis is not enough!"
Information is Key
"Make your horse race betting financially worthwhile"
Don't be a 'Bookies Benefit'
We keep matters as simple as possible. If we have information worthy of an interest, we bet and so do our members - if not, we play another day. Don't be a 'Bookies Benefit' by betting in races where you haven't a clue, wait until there's something worthwhile to get involved in, that's the first consideration you'll need to adopt if you're going to make horse race betting financially worthwhile. Determining whether we have a betting day, depends on multiple factors. We collate information from many sources, such as ‘Race Readers’, ‘Form Analysts’, ‘On-Course Contacts’, 'Commission Agents' and Trade and Stable information’ and if it’s a betting day, we pass our advice(s) onto our members.
Services
We offer a variety of Pay-As-You-Go 'Members Odds2 Services', on an occasional basis. We certainly don't get involved everyday and when we do have a bet, it's because the information we have collated gives us a much higher risk reward ratio. Whilst providing these services, the provision of the content within the site is specifically aimed to enlighten you in the fundamentals and practices you will need to employ, if you are going to make your horse race betting financially worthwhile. If this service is of an interest to you, please sign up as an 'Associate Member' here to start reaping the benefit of a superlative 'Horse Racing Advisory Service' (not a tipping service!).
We do not engage in advertising, promoting bookies, promotional offers or anything else that detracts from our primary objective and that is, finding the winners for you to back!
Free service or a Paid service, which is better?
You will no doubt find that any advisory racing service is very much a 'suck-it-and-see' scenario and when the free ones don't deliver, your only option will be to embark upon a 'Paid for' service. In doing so you will need to very careful with your ‘investments’ so as to give yourself plenty of opportunity to research a number of services before you take the plunge! There’s no reason for you not to find a suitable service to meet your specific needs, but you will most likely have to try a good few before you settle on one (or two) that you are comfortable with. You will quickly identify with those with whom, you will not persist with, and hopefully without too much expense! With all such services you will need to be disciplined and patient so be prepared to change how you actually bet, which may come as a bit of a shock! We offer a superlative 'Odds2' service on an occasional basis, one whereby you are completely in control, choosing when to be involved or not as the case may be.
Investigate any service you choose with caution, note and be wary of those 'just tipping' (i.e: solely form selections). Some such services are very much ‘in your face‘. They can be very professional looking and/or look quite expensive, some look cheap and 'home made' but the majority all share one thing in common, all of them professing the ‘same old, same old‘ – ‘winners, winners and more winners‘, claims such as, ‘profit every month for the last six months’ and statements like:
BIG WINNERS LAST WEEK • 8/1 • 15/2 • 10/1 • 13/2 • 12/1
...and more of the same expected this week!
That’s when you swallow the hook and sign up, and at this point, most likely, they start their worst losing run they've ever had, whether it’s a free or paid for service. If you don’t believe it, try it then come back here when you've lost more money! However, there are a few good services to be found and 'The Inner Circle Club' is one of those, because here we do things, just differently from the rest? We keep matters simple and straightforward, which is no mean feat considering the complexity of our primary function, keeping you in profit and enjoying your betting, because as they say, when the fun’s gone, it’s time to stop!
Tabloids and the Racing Post
Where are you researching your information for the days racing? The likelihood is, that you are utilising information collated from tabloid newspapers, the Racing Post (the so-called bible) and in today's 'technological world', an 'app' on your mobile device, tablet or computer. If that's the case then consider this, are the views, reviews, reports and analysis subjective or objective? Does it matter if it's one or the other? Does the more information you acquire cloud or clarify your assessment of a particular race? Does this help or hinder your final choice on a selection? In addition, if newspapers lets say are deemed 'old hat' in consideration of the abundance of 'apps' for mobile devices and the multitude of websites for your computer, laptop etc. (we personally don't think they are, just maybe not so popular as they once were), then are we at information overload?
The inference here is that too much information can often or easily dissuade you from making the right decision or put you in a state of indecision. That said, whatever your opinion, the fact of the matter is, that we are all sharing the same information and coming to different conclusions, pretty much like the situation where in a football match a player goes down after a tackle, half the stadium believe it's a foul the other half are certain it isn't - well it most certainly is one or the other. They've all seem the same incident but have different opinions! The same can be said regarding information on a race (only far more complex) and you have to take on board that the information you are reading is someone else's opinion given the facts, which makes it subjective and based on their opinion. So what do you do when you have conflicting opinions? Our advice, leave well alone if you have conflicting information, and avoid newspaper tipsters altogether, they definitely do not make long term profit, end of argument! Just check out any of the 'Naps' tables that are available. We're not slating those professionals by any means, far from it, they do a good job when you consider how hard their job is, we're just merely pointing out that their task of trying to advise a winner in every race, at every meeting, every day come whatever, is impossible! Which is why within their selections you will find a good few favourites advised without any real substance behind the choice.
In conclusion, in our opinion and it is only our opinion, researching your own information just isn't enough, no matter how much research you do. Whether it's tabloid newspapers, publications or apps, you simply cannot know from these sources what is actually going on in any particular race, period! Using these sources can be defined as a form of 'race reading' or 'race analysis', which is 'form' and its interpretation and it is subjective, which ever way you cut it. Do you have the time to wade through the all the form for each and every horse in every race, no? You absorb snippets from a tabloid (app), check your favourite couple of tipsters, read the race review and then, when you finally make your choice after you've placed your bet, there's a steamer in your race and you get beaten by a gamble on the day, annoying or what! Or if not that, your selection drifts like the proverbial 'barge', runs nothing like its previous form (dropped in at the back and never in it, when in previous races it had raced up with the pace). Perhaps your selection wasn't even meant to be trying, in an effort to lower it's handicap mark maybe (it does go on, you're blind if you think otherwise). Maybe it was just in the race for a blow out (a prep race?). Dropped in distance, upped in distance, flat track, undulating track, pro jockey, apprentice, so many factors to consider and that's not even mentioning the type of going. If you are not using an information service, then you will continue to lose most days and if you are by some chance fortunate, maybe, just maybe you will have that occasional day where you do find a couple of winners, end up with a little profit, feel that euphoric buzz that you've beaten the bookies, treat the Mrs to a takeaway and carry on the same way the next day, well good luck with that scenario! If you want to become a winner, then you must get involved with a good information source, stick with it, and over a period you will make profit. We have mentioned this a number of times within the content of this site, gambling is not a sprint, more of a marathon and winning small amounts little and often, over time your BB will build up, period! You just have to be prepared to change and think and act like a professional gambler if you want take on the bookies.
Betting Bank (Staking Bank)
By definition a betting bank sometimes also referred to as a staking bank is an amount or 'pot' of money set aside for the exclusive use for gambling and if you are serious about your gambling, then you most definitely need to have a betting bank. Having determined what a betting bank is and the necessity to have one, how much should the 'pot' be £50, £100, £200, £500, £1,000 or more? This is a common question which is easily answered, it's basically what you can afford to lose! If you can only afford to lose £50.00 then that's your bank. That may sound harsh but that's reality because It's not the amount of the bank (the pot), it's how you use the bank. More money does not mean more success, in fact more often than not more money incites a disregard to be disciplined (because there's plenty in the bank!).
Generally the regular every day punter will bet using money they have in their pocket, which means that not only is their risk factor high but they can also never gauge how successful they are - the two scenarios are, lose - walk out of the betting shop and suffer the loss, win - go home and treat the Mrs to a take away? This method is not a strategy but a direct debit to the bookmaker every day, every week and every month!
Staking - points or %?
Our opinion on staking is to use a percentage of your Betting Bank and not use a point system, not everyone in the 'game' will agree with it but it is our preferred method of staking (we wouldn't mention it if we didn't think it was worth consideration). Level staking normally infers that you convert your bank into points, so for example a Betting Bank with a £100.00 staked would convert into a Betting Bank of say 100 points, each point representing £1.00 in value. You would then stake your bets to a number of points - 1pt to win, 2pts to win or 3pts to win and so on up to a maximum of 5pts, remember each way betting is 2pts per bet minimum, the win portion and the place portion (be very careful not to undervalue the actual worth of your points, as a volume number of small points will soon add up!). On face value our 100 point bank would appear to be sufficient enough to cover any long losing streak but in reality does it? Here's an example of how a points based betting system fails miserably. Theoretically you could back 20 losers and be 20 points down and in your very next bet back one 20-1 winner and be showing level stakes over the 21 bets - not for us! If you revert back to our statement about 'how much should the BB be', we said, it's what you can afford, that said if you were to stake a percentage of your BB (as opposed to points) then your loss liability reduces in losing runs and increases in winning runs, which definitely covers any losing runs. We recommend staking 1%-2% of your Betting Bank recalculated at the end of each day. 1%-2% is a reasonable percentage to base your staking on, aggressive staking would be 3% and above, not recommended! As your Betting Bank grows so will the percentage stake, therefore the amount of the bank becomes irrelevant as long as you stick to the strategy, have patience and stay disciplined - gambling is not a sprint more of a marathon. Admittedly, you will need to calculate the percentage to stake on the balance of the Betting Bank (and you will be staking some odd amounts) but rest assured it will be worth it in the long run. To increase your percentage to something like 5% and higher, would be regarded as 'extremely aggressive', and in a losing sequence, it will dramatically reduced the Betting Bank. Stay with the 1%-2% staking and persevere with it and prove that with patience you can build the Betting Bank in a positive way.
Strategy?
Once you have decided upon the level of your Betting Bank, you need to implement a proper strategy and that means dumping the interest bets (costing you money) and focusing on being far more selective than you ever have before. Refusing to punt in poor quality races and restricting the days interests to only those bets where you have an edge (us). Adopting such tactics will in time make you a more disciplined gambler and hopefully reduce your losses and increase your winning days.
The Greed Factor!
The greed factor is probably the most common pitfall of failed gamblers - seeking that big win and punting in a manner that will lose them all of their money in no time. You may hear of one lucky punter every so often who has nailed a big return with Super Yankee, a Heinz, a Super Heinz or even a Goliath bet (8 selections - all the multiples), perhaps even an accumulator (great advertising for the bookies by the way) but these are few and far between, sorry I'll say that again, but these are few and far between! Without doubt multiple bets have a high liability and can win large amounts but they also lose you large amounts, so a balance must be struck so as to reduce the liability of loss, this is mentioned latterly in interest bets, further down the page. You will hear this statement repeated on a number of occasions throughout the site, be patience stay disciplined and remain focused, they are the three things you must always stand by if you are to be successful.
Patience, Discipline and an Edge?
Above all else you need to be disciplined, without discipline you cannot take control of your betting. If you want to 'grow' your Betting Bank and make long term profits, then you must be disciplined. You must also learn to be patient. Patience will serve you best when things are not quite going according to plan. If you are not applying yourself to these aspects, then you will just be another 'Bookies Benefactor'. It is necessary to state the obvious here, rather than to assume that we are all 'singing from the same psalm sheet' - to make money gambling you need to be placing bets where you have an edge, 'Race Reading' or 'Form' alone is not enough! There are far too many variables in any one race to factor in selecting from just newspaper or media information. The variables listed below highlight how difficult it actually is to pick a winner based on form alone:
First and foremost there are the grades of a race to take on board, starting at the topmost the Classics, next is Class 1 or Conditions Races, Pattern races and Listed races, then Classes 2 down to 7. Some (not all) of the multitude of variables to factor in, are listed below, you could probably add a good few more yourself but we think we have mentioned a sufficient number for the purpose of this explaining this enigma:
Race variables when considering the possible outcome of a race
Upped in class
Dropped in Class
Maidens
Claimers
Handicaps
Different courses
Undulating courses
Flat courses
Left-handed courses
Right-handed courses
Sharp or tight tracks
Straight tracks
Uphill finishes
Short run ins (NH)
Long run ins (NH)
Changes in going
Different going
Upped in distance
Dropped in distance
Penalty weight
Less weight
Pro jockey
Apprentice jockey
Apprentice allowance
Back from a break
Turned out quick
Not run this season
Hooded
Cheekpieces
First time blinkers
Tongue strap
Recently gelded
Wind operation
Best when fresh
Been hurdling
First time chasing
AW regular
AW specialist
AW first time
Weight for age
Run on the flat
Course winner
Distance winner
Course & Distance winner
Trainer in/out of form
Jockey in/out of form
High draw
Low draw
By no means are all the variables mentioned above and serves only to highlight the depth and complexity of such a task when you actually start to consider the many factors that contribute to 'picking a winner', it's a wonder any winners can be 'picked', which is why you always lose so often. With the volume of variables there are, the percentage is even more in the bookmakers favour. It comes as no surprise that the 'Napsters/Pundits' fail to achieve a decent or high 'strike rate' and good 'level stakes' profits - almost 90%+ fail to achieve a profit. For you the punter, where else other than the Racing Post and the table of Napsters do you do research for your selection? An advisory service will give you an edge and is a serious option, not to be confused with a tipping service. Find one and stick with it and your success, inevitably will be determined by whether you can change your betting habits to those of a professional punter, that will enhance your chances of being successful - remember patience and discipline.
Here is an typical example highlighting a bookies dream race (and a punting nightmare), a Handicap Chase at Taunton in 2017, where none of the eight participants had run over the race distance of 2m 2f before - the actual Race Overview read:
"This looks tricky but we’re inclined to take a chance on DREAM BOLT with James Bowen taking off a valuable 5lb. He won twice in the summer, stays further and wasn’t disgraced on his reappearance at Newbury. Notarfbad and Workbench are both recent winners but are 6lb and 7lb higher respectively. Coeur Tantre has been raised a pound since his second at Wincanton but that was his first run over fences so there should be more to come. Blandfords Gunner was second in first-time cheekpieces at Doncaster and has place claims if the headgear works a second time.".....
With information like that to go on, you may well do better by sticking a pin in the racecard! With so many variables to factor in and so many 'ifs' and 'unknowns' based on this particular race review, how would you ever come to a decisive conclusion sufficient enough to part with your hard earned cash! The answer is you can't and you should leave well alone. It's hard enough when the form book is standing up and there's no weight or age differential let alone a few curved ones thrown in. But unfortunately, this type of race review (or very similar) is quite common and pretty much an every race-day occurrence, which to a greater degree makes a mockery of the form book. For the bookmakers it's heaven, more confusion the better but for punters it's a nightmare race. Horses penalised for recent wins with weight increases, dropping or upping in grade, changing distances, having wind ops, being gelded etc., etc., all these 'factors' make it very difficult to predict/forecast the likely outcome of a race on form alone (and let's not forget this also applies to the so called experts/napsters as well - just check out their Naps tables), which is why you need more that just a strong cup of coffee and three or four hours of study of your Racing Post - you need to be in the know! We've outlined above how difficult it is to 'pick' winners, don't let 'The Greed Factor', get the better of you, build your Betting Bank up slowly and carefully, bet in the right races and the right meetings with information of substance and this will prove successful over time.
Interest Bets
Fancy a £5 treble or acca on the football? How about a crafty £10 or £20 on the next favorite at Sedgefield or Pontefract maybe, why not pinch a few quid you might think. So you have a punt, then comes the shock last minute goal to dash your acca (always one lets you down) or the well fancied favourite you backed finishes second beaten by the one you were going to back but the price put you off! Fivers here, tenners there and before you know it, you're a good few quid down and thinking of what you can back to recover your losses.... sound familiar? Well the alarm bells should be ringing, big time!
Interest bets should be avoided at all times because they only fritter away your betting bank! For those of you who persist in continuing to punt interest bets, we suggest that you keep the stakes very small and by that we mean very small indeed - absolute minimum stakes (the thrill will still be the same), until you learn the true value of the word discipline! If you can't keep the stakes small then do not get involved! Instead of punting interest bets, keep a log of what you would have done and note your profit and loss (and be honest with yourself). Refer back to it to see that nothing changes and how much you would have lost. Be respectful of your betting bank, if you've missed a good thing then you've missed it, there's always another day tomorrow. Betting is not a sprint, more of a marathon and small profit regularly can soon build into decent profit providing you stay disciplined. Trying to bust the bookies with big bets you can't afford and punting interest bets, will only end up in total disaster.
Bookmakers accounts
We do not advertise any bookmakers nor do we recommend or promote any. We do however, recommend that you open several online bookmaker accounts so as to spread any sizable investments across a number of accounts - in addition, this will also give you options in prices available and BOG (Best Odds Guaranteed).
Offers and Promotions
Be very careful if accepting offers or promotions! In doing so you may have to wager several times the amount of the offer in order to withdraw, if that's the case, then leave well alone. This is a typical tactic of sucking you in and forcing you to wager more than you had bargained for. You'll then start punting some 'interest bets' with no real substance and punt back all your winnings and more. By all means accept a bet credit if offered but again ensure prior to acceptance that you do not have to wager a volume amount to be able to withdraw.
Be 'Patient', stay 'Disciplined'....remain 'Focused'!
