Listen up, kids: Sports betting can be a cruel thing sometimes. Very cruel indeed. Done irresponsibly, and it can be a downright disaster.
Which brings us to the case of one pundit on the ground at the England's Cheltenham Festival this week. On Tuesday, he collected just north of $120,000 in winnings via a more than $490,000 bet on horse named Altior to win the Racing Post Arkle Challenge Trophy, who was a massive 1-4 favorite to win the race.
That's where it all went wrong.
The next day, as both The Telegraph and the BBC reported, the same punter placed a comparable bet on another big favorite - Douvan - to win Day Two's Champion Chase. Douvan came into the festival as the most feared horse in the competition, but after that major upset at the hands of "Special Tiara," his winnings from the day before evaporated.
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BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport
Yesterday this bookie paid out on a £400,000 bet on Altior...
Today they've had a £500,000 bet from the same punter on Douvan!
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-03-15T13:16:21+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 15 Mar 2017, 13:16:21 (UTC)">9:16 AM - 15 Mar 2017</time>
As you can see from above, the initial report pegged the wager at about $600,000, but The Telegraph subsequently reported the bet was closer to $460,000. Either way, the loss wiped out his $120,000 winnings from the day before (and then some).
Ouch.
BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport
Yesterday this bookie paid out on a £400,000 bet on Altior...
Today they've had a £500,000 bet from the same punter on Douvan!
pic.twitter.com/AvI4wJ2eVq
BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport 'We're going to do a conga around the betting ring and have a party!'
Douvan's loss means one bookie is £500,000 richer. pic.twitter.com/G6qp0THnrg
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-03-15T15:38:54+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 15 Mar 2017, 15:38:54 (UTC)">11:38 AM - 15 Mar 2017</time>
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Which brings us to the case of one pundit on the ground at the England's Cheltenham Festival this week. On Tuesday, he collected just north of $120,000 in winnings via a more than $490,000 bet on horse named Altior to win the Racing Post Arkle Challenge Trophy, who was a massive 1-4 favorite to win the race.
That's where it all went wrong.
The next day, as both The Telegraph and the BBC reported, the same punter placed a comparable bet on another big favorite - Douvan - to win Day Two's Champion Chase. Douvan came into the festival as the most feared horse in the competition, but after that major upset at the hands of "Special Tiara," his winnings from the day before evaporated.
<article class="MediaCard MediaCard--mediaForward customisable-border" data-scribe="component:card" dir="ltr"> View image on Twitter
</article> Follow
BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport Yesterday this bookie paid out on a £400,000 bet on Altior...
Today they've had a £500,000 bet from the same punter on Douvan!
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-03-15T13:16:21+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 15 Mar 2017, 13:16:21 (UTC)">9:16 AM - 15 Mar 2017</time>
As you can see from above, the initial report pegged the wager at about $600,000, but The Telegraph subsequently reported the bet was closer to $460,000. Either way, the loss wiped out his $120,000 winnings from the day before (and then some).
Ouch.
BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport
Yesterday this bookie paid out on a £400,000 bet on Altior...
Today they've had a £500,000 bet from the same punter on Douvan!
BBC 5 live Sport ✔ @5liveSport 'We're going to do a conga around the betting ring and have a party!'
Douvan's loss means one bookie is £500,000 richer. pic.twitter.com/G6qp0THnrg
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-03-15T15:38:54+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 15 Mar 2017, 15:38:54 (UTC)">11:38 AM - 15 Mar 2017</time>
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