Matched betting – A way out for racing punters

The bookmaker always wins in the experience of most gamblers but matched betting is a way out for racing punters tired of chasing their losses.

Matched betting is generally promoted as a way to earn extra income from home on a part-time basis and it is now widely acknowledged that it works. You’d think it would be of immediate interest to gamblers, after all, what are they trying to win?

Yet, I’d almost given up attempts to convert my gambling mates to making a regular profit from betting instead of throwing their money away most weekends. They just couldn’t lift their heads from the Racing Post long enough to allow it to sink in.

But it all changed when I bumped into one of the lads on the concourse at the match recently, where I’d nipped away to place the risk free bet I’d won on a Channel 4 race. Peeking a look on my mobile, he expressed a patronising shock that Mr Careful was betting £50 on a 7/1 shot at Ascot, had I suddenly turned into a problem gambler?

I let him watch as I switched tabs to my betting exchange account and bet just over £40 on the same horse to lose. Walking back towards our seats, I explained, “Hardly problem gambling, I’ve just made sure I make £40, it took me less than two minutes and I don’t have to worry about the result.”

At last, he was interested and in the pub after the post-match ‘debates’, he and a couple of the gang asked for more details about matched betting and how it is done. Now they take matched betting as seriously as studying the form.

Something I was keen to point out, because of their background of betting, was the various strategies that could be applied to some offers. One of the concepts they grasped quickly was how they could use the calculator to set up a risk-free bet as an alternative to making a small profit on either result. They don’t win every time with such offers but they can never lose. The method is just as good for making money in the long run and of course, it gives then something to cheer on when watching the event.

Matched betting won’t stop this bunch of lads from gambling and why should it when they derive a lot of pleasure from trips to the races and having a punt on their fancies. The big difference it has made, is their gambling hobby will now be now paid from the proceeds of matched betting and trips to Cheltenham Festival, Royal Ascot, the Derby and other big race days can be looked upon as freebies.