Nightmare for punters

[TheTinMan87]

Interesting piece on the Post https://www.racingpost.com/news/festivals/royal-ascot/nightmare-for-punters-as-stats-show-biggest-average-priced-set-of-royal-ascot-winners-in-last-decade-aV7sS3G8P4Zc/

I have my own ideas about some of this and why the SP’s were so high. Quite a few of the divisions are really open and lacking superstars who would normally win at odds on, that obviously brings the average down where you will always get massive priced winners too – both sprints, the stayers division, the Queen Anne. Appleby had a really bad week which has been quite well documented and he’d normally be good for a handful of winners. Haggas was quiet except for the winner for the King. Both trainers generally have well backed runners but Appleby only had 1 favourite all week in the end. Gosden and O’Brien seemed to be the only two ‘big name’ trainers who turned up.

I enjoyed the week anyway, didn’t back any winners, a couple placed but in some ways I preferred that type of puzzle to what tends to happen at Cheltenham these days where its fav or 2nd fav for most of the week even in the cavalry charge handicaps. The draw seemed to be pretty fair generally unlike most years. The clerk did a great job with the track.

Interested to hear others views on the week.

[IanDavies]

Wasn’t a nightmare for me, far from it, won on three (Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday) of the five days and ended the fixture in front.

Royal Ascot is a meeting where literally everything is trying – you can’t entirely write off anything.

It’s also a fixture where they often go too quick early on in races, especially on the straight course, so career-hold-up jockeys who look muppets most of the year sat out the back in slowly-run races and then leaving themselves too much to do can have their glory moments.

Oh and 4yos in the Royal Hunt Cup – as stated before the race, the stats are compelling.

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[Richard88]

Big priced winners are great for punters in my opinion. You don’t need much of a strike rate that those sort of odds. At level stakes, you won’t have given your 150/1 winnings back until partway through Royal Ascot 2028!

[Nathan Hughes]

Thommo wouldn’t have lost his voice with the saying “favourite backers, form an orderly queue” Like Ian said they were all trying and even the 150/1 winner had form behind him and the greatest young jockey on earth on board
Witch Hunter was a strange one as Hannon is useless but picked up the pieces off a suicidal pace from a master class Jamie Spencer ride.
Plenty of value about Desert Hero 18/1 SP was too good to miss *I missed it
Enjoyed the meeting.
Down overall but as they say on crime watch don’t have nightmares

Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026

[Cork All Star]

I managed to back winners at 25/1 and 12/1 and still only just finished ahead!

I have heard plenty of people saying they have done their brains and how they think Royal Ascot is too competitive for profitable punting nowadays. But I don’t believe too much can be read into one year. Next year lots of favourites might win and the same punters will be celebrating.

I enjoyed the week. There were lots of good stories. Maybe the 7 races on 5 days stretches it a little too far. The Golden Gates and Queen Alexandra will never be highlights. But overall it was a great showcase for racing.

[IanDavies]

Racing media reporting of betting has always been lazy and generalised.

Not all punters blindly back favourites and we are 20 years and counting into the advent of betting exchanges where punters can lay horses too.

I backed winners at 42, 40, 22/1, 18/1, 6/1 twice, 4/1, 5/2 and got stuck into Vauban at 2/1 but, due to the worst staking plan known to man (plus I backed TWELVE in one race!), wasn’t that much up on the week.

I thought it was a great meeting, so many learning points for the future and some really interesting times recorded too.

I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"

[Cork All Star]

“The worst staking plan known to man”.

That is my problem too. When will I ever learn that if you like one at a big price you should have a proper bet? I genuinely thought Desert Hero was way overpriced at 25/1 but did not have that much on.

[Purwell]

Bookies rarely get any of my pension at these big meetings, I like a wet Wednesday at Wolverhampton!

I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I've walked and I crawled on six crooked highways

[IanDavies]

“When will I ever learn that if you like one at a big price you should have a proper bet?”

I had the most derisory amount on Desert Hero at 18/1.

Purist value punters say: “the bigger the price, the bigger the bet,” so if you plan to have X on at 10/1 and it’s 20/1 double your stake, not reduce it.

But others will say the market is very efficient and by the OFF historically there is a direct correlation between odds and chances of winning plus in midweek low-grade racing if your horse drifts it’s often a bad sign and that’s what it’s easy to become universally conditioned into thinking.

But everything at Royal Ascot is trying – when a horse starts 488 midweek unless everything else falls or takes the wrong course it won’t be winning, but at Royal Ascot 488 doesn’t actually mean it’s not trying.

The purist value angle is probably best long-term at Royal Ascot IMO.

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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"

[Ghost of Rob V]

I’ll always remember this Royal Ascot when the majority of the form went back to front, upside-down and inside-out. It seemed to have an increasing suffocating effect from day to day.
As a result, there were times when I just stopped having bets. In the end, I was actually relieved when the meeting finished.

[Author]

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