October 4, 2008
Like last month, this month has started a little too shakily (spelling? word even?) for me although we did finish last month up £399 so perhaps the omens are good. After a good win on the snooker with Dave Harold beating Ding Junhui it’s all been down hill since. I went with Harold to bt Davis the next day and he managed to throw away a 4-1 lead and a 49-0 lead in the decider and lost 5-4. Unfortunately I went out while he assembled that lead so missed out on the opportunity to lay that off. I did however manage to lay the match when he went 49-0 up so I couldn’t lose. However, what confuses me is why didn’t I hedge the bet so that I would win on either outcome as it would have basically cost me £3 to guarantee a £90 profit. Bizarre and a bit dissapointed with myself for that clanger.
Then lost a bit on the Spurs game and a bit more on the Hartlepool game last night so must be a few hundred down now for the month.
Today have gone in with £250 on O’Sullivan to bt Maguire although the rocket could be about to fall 2-1 down. Have also had £175 at 5.2 on Cheltenham to bt Brighton – I think Cheltenham have turned the corner so see a bit of value here. Anyway must go and watch sport!
October 1, 2008
Mean’t to say in the last post that in the end September finished +£399 which is a decent result as I started the month around £600 down. Long may it continue!
October 1, 2008
Things were a bit more positive at the end of September. Sunday was ok beginning with a £190 loss on the Man City game, they were poor.
Had Kim in the golf and also laid Garcia prior to the final round. When Kim got in front again, after the expected collapse from Garcia, I was able to green the field a little and ended up winning about £220 on the eventual winner Villegas. Could have done without Garcia’s late comeback though! Also had a nervy bet in the afternoon on the European golf winning about £75 although it wasn’t a sensible bet.
Nicked £15 on the Rushden game on Monday, a Rushden win would have meant about £300 profit but lets not get greedy.
Tuesday was much better with the Arsenal/Man U double paying 2.09 with Ladbrokes so stuck £175 on it and watched the goals fly in. Lost about £50 on some snooker accas but profited to the tune of about £160 on Ricky Walden beating Stephen Hendry. The Racing Post tipped Neil Robertson to win on the basis that he’d done well in a 5-2 defeat earlier in the season (his only game) at 4/6. Robertson’s form as been iffy for a while now so I really can’t understand why you’d be tipping him at odds on. Anyway Robertson won but there were much better value bets out there than this one, strange choice.
Today I decided to lay Ding at 1.4 against the very in-form Dave Harold. Ding has been out of form for some time now and doesn’t usually play that well against gritty determined opposition like Harold. Anyway to cut a long story short Harold triumphed and I won £170 in the end after laying a little back during the game.
I’m not betting on the football tonight but have backed Harold again at 1.73 (£150) with Boylesports to bt Steve Davis. I don’t think Davis has been playing that well so far this season and has an inferior h2h against Harold. Ok, 1.73 isn’t great but i’m due another free £50 bet with Boyles so decided this made up for it. I’ll also be home tomorrow so may hedge a little during the game.
Going to have another chicken casserole now and put my feet up for the evening. Good luck if you’re having a punt.
September 28, 2008
Well the betting gods weren’t smiling on me yesterday, more probably laughing at me. It all started pretty well with a nicely secured profit of £160 on the Liverpool victory. This obviously put me in a positive mood for the afternoon but that was soon to change between 3pm and 5pm.
Cheltenham were my main hope at 2.8 to bt Stockport after some good signings. Well Cheltenham were leading 2-1 going into the 90th minute and I was sat at home waiting for the final score on Soccer Saturday. Well my heart sunk dramatically when news of a Stockport equaliser fed through the vidiprinter. Gutted was not the word as this was effectively a financial swing of £500+ to my betting balance (had £200 staked on the win). Last minute goals can be cruel – I just wish all games were in-running as if the liquidity had of been there I would have laid this one off.
Also did £140 on Oxford, they were also winning at one point but ended up on the wrong side of 2-1. Can’t believe that result, I think a management change could be called for there.
Finally the golf has taken a turn for the worse with Kim dropping three shots back. I think it will go close tonight as the tables will be reversed slightly. Garcia has a habit of getting a bit jittery near the line whereas Mickelson and Kim have the pressure lifted somewhat. We could do with a win now, having just lost a bit more on the Wigan – Man City game. Roll on the end of the month, I think I need a fresh start!
September 27, 2008
Saturday is the holy day for me as far as betting goes. In much the same way as couples dress in their best clothes in anticipation of heading to church for a Sunday morning service, I put on some pretty decent clothes and head over to the co-op for my copy of the Racing Post. I’d imagine we’re experiencing a similar mindset, except i’m religiously scanning pages of sports info while they’re hanging on every word in their hymn book. Sorry, i’m not sure where i’m going with this blog but to summarise Saturday is the Mecca of my betting week.
A full list of football fixtures is paramount in making this the special day. First up is Everton v Liverpool which I plan to trade in-running. Then we move on to a number of potentially good backs including Cheltenham at 2.8 (have just signed free-scoring Stuart Fleetwood on loan from Charlton Athletic) and Oxford at 1.8 against the weak Lewes team. They’re worth a flutter on their own but i’ve seen a number of other standout matches. So an acca is the order of the day along with a number of singles. Staking is always difficult when you’ve got a few betting options and if i’m honest it’s probably a little haphazard but hopefully pull through with a decent profit and finish the month on a high.
Then tonight it’s the 3rd Rd of the golf with Kim still just about in front. May go in again as i’ve got confidence in the lad. Not sure what happened to me sticking to football only but there has to be exceptions to the rule I guess. Anyway it’s a day of sport, fiancee is away with her mum so it’s a lazy tv day as I can’t be bothered to go and watch Cheltenham now. Follow my mantra and get some bets on!
September 26, 2008
I’ve had a number of near misses of decent sized payouts this year and last night was no exception. I backed Selby to bt Hendry as mentioned previously to win £120. I also went for the 6-0 scoreline in Selby’s favour at 25/1 with William Hill for a £40 stake. Well at 4-0 to Selby things were looking good. I had it in my head that at 5-0 i’d hedge a little to get a couple of hundred if Hendry did manage to sneak the last frame. Well as it happens I didn’t get the opportunity as Selby missed a few opportunities himself and Hendry put together a half decent run to get the score to 4-1. Ok, I made £80 on the night but it’s frustrating when you get so close to a big pay day and it doesn’t materialise.
One of my plans for the month is to open numerous betting accounts in my girlfriends name, as we’ve moved address, and take advantage of all these free bets. I started yesterday by opening a Boylesports account in my own name as I hadn’t previously had an account with them. Stuck £100 on Amy Connelly in X-Factor at 8/ – fancy this price to go a lot lower although having just checked see that she’s moved out to 10/1 so it might get a little bigger before it gets lower!
So now have my first free £50 bet which i’ve stuck on Anthony Kim at 2.5 to go along with another £150 i’ve had on him on Betfair at about 2.4. Normally back him at the start of tournaments but wasn’t very organised on Wednesday night so subsequently forgot about it. The frustrations of gambling!
Football tomorrow is full of delights and I plan to have some chunkyish bets on Cheltenham, Oxford and possibly Middlesboro tomorrow. Probably mix in a couple of accas as well for good measure.
First job tomorrow though will be a tidy of my office as starting the next edition of a mag I write for so need to get organised. I’ve been promising to do this for weeks now so early start with the cleaning so that I can go and watch Cheltenham against Stockport in the afternoon. Nothing like being at the match when you’ve got a decent sized figure on them. Good luck if you’re having a punt.
September 25, 2008
Newcastle were poorer than I had them down to be last night so I suffered a £125 loss. It was a very disjointed performance and they were the worse of two evils. I suppose I could sort of see it coming and when you get on a half decent betting run, as I had been experiencing, you can get caught in the headlights so to speak and start betting on things you shouldn’t. Having said that 2/1 at home wasn’t a terrible price but I suppose I didn’t forsee a 3/4 empty St James’ Park. Maybe if the atmosphere had been there they might have strung a few passes together.
My other bet yesterday was also a loser. Mark Davis lost on the black ball to Andrew Higginson 5-4 and therefore another £100 went down the pan. I’m still up about £320 for the month but those losses have stalled things somewhat.
Tonight is the Premier League Snooker and i’ve sided with the in-form Mark Selby, at least he is in the Premier League, against the now indifferent Stephen Hendry. For a win, Selby can be backed at 2.2 which is ok and I can’t see him losing more than two frames to Hendry. Had £100 on him and will hopefully lay a little in-running.
Away from the betting, spent the day on an interview panel. Amazing how tiring these things are so it’s going to be an early night tonight – won’t do that again in a hurry.
September 24, 2008
Good result for the betting balance last night as Oxford went some way to turning the corner with a 3-1 win against Cambridge. Ended up winning about £250 after backing Oxford again towards the end when the score was 1-1. I’d fancy Oxford to string some results together if that squad is available to them week in week out but administration is looming, or at least they say it is, and this could have an effect on things. Rushden must be in with a decent shout of the title with their strikeforce although I expect any decent prices have long gone.
My Jimmy White bet is over after he lost to Michael Holt as I said he might. Unfortunately I didn’t hedge the bet as I said I would so a £20 loss there. Have had a ton on Mark Davis to bt Andrew Higginson this afternoon, Davis leads 3-2 at the moment.
Also had £125 on Newcastle tonight. Possibly a little risky to say the least but Martins is back in the squad and this always fills me with confidence where Newcastle are concerned. Newcastle are 2/1 so if they do manage to grab a lead i’ll be able to trade out for a nice profit. Here’s hoping!
September 23, 2008
Have opted for Oxford at 2/1 to bt Cambridge. Oxford have a fairly strong team, apart from Billy Turley being injured, and are obviously at home. Yes, they’re not setting the world alight, however I think this is a game they have a decent chance of winning so it’s worth the risk of £75 to win £150. Might have a bet on the Swansea game in-play.
September 23, 2008
Spent the weekend down in Port Talbot with the inlaws while the other half ventured out with her mum to a wedding fair. The idea of missing Chelsea – Man Utd to go to a wedding fair was not even considered and, as far as i’m aware, wedding fairs are not designed for blokes in the slightest.
Going back to the start of the weekend and I decided to have smaller match bets on the Ryder Cup. Managed to get a £90 profit on the Kim/Mickelson pairing somehow and a little bit more when they paired up again in the afternoon. Lost on the Saturday when backing Harrington and Karlsson. Also lost backing Newcastle – price looked good on paper but I suppose they are in turmoil at the moment. So, over the course of Saturday, I was looking at a £320 deficit.
God must have been looking down on me on his holy day however as Sunday was a day of recouping losses and moving back in front. Backed Villa, early goals, £190 profit locked in – perfect. Backed Man Utd and also laid Chelsea, early goal, £175 profit locked in. Even had time to knock myself up a tasty fry-up to celebrate. Then had £95 on Poulter to win his singles match which he did in style.
Just checked my p+l for the month and we’re at +£340 and a winning month this month would mean 6 out of the last 7 have been profitable, or 9 out of the last 12 if we go back a bit further.
Have backed Jimmy White to qualifying for the Grand Prix in Scotland at 20/1 with £20 – he’s won two matches but potentially has his most difficult game tomorrow against Michael Holt so may hedge my bet a little. After that it’s Michael Judge and i’d have to fancy Jimmy in that one.
Carling Cup tonight after a nice chicken casserole, not sure of my bets yet as it will depend on who’s taking this competition seriously. Blue Square Prem might be a better bet.
