- Does the cost of your shoes match your staking?
- Don’t Drink & Bet/Trade!
Quirky sub headings I know, but they do have an important moral behind them.
You see many years ago in my betting shop days I had casual and informative chats with a rather smart punter in his late 50’s called ‘Samuel’. A sharp dresser who could slice cheese with the crease in his trousers.
Now Samuel used to give me guidance that even to this day still holds true when I reflect on some of his statements.
It was over what I call my ‘Black Bank holiday’ when I blew my entire previous winnings as a result of chasing losses that Samuel gave me some valuable advice.
You see, back then I had no proper money management in place. Like many I would simply take an amount to the betting shop and win or lose I would just come home.
It was well known among betting shop regulars & staff that Samuel was making a few bob from his betting, and in the days when 10% tax was payable by the punter this was no easy task. So when Samuel spoke I listened!
After I’d wiped out my bank we got talking and he asked me what my maximum stake was? I said I don’t really have one, I just bet varying amounts depending on my previous results.
Big mistake he said!
Samuel’s father who was also a successful punter would tell him to always have a bank reserve of at least 50 x the cost of a pair of average shoes of the day.
What’s more, never stake more than the cost of one single pair on any bet.
Rightly enough the cost of a pair of average shoes back then was £20 and that day I had £50 on one single bet in a frenzied panic to recover previous losses. His logic was, if I had split that £50 into 5 x £10 bets I would have given myself five chances of building my bank back up instead of just having the whole £50 on one single bet. Pretty sound logic if you ask me!
Sure enough Samuel would have a maximum of £20 on any selection and told me he had 50 x that in reserve (£1,000).
So even in Samuel & his father’s day some astute punters still had a betting bank in place despite the unconventional way in which they arrived at the amount.
It’s true to say most punters don’t have a betting bank even though good service providers clearly advise such from the outset. We all expect to hit the ground running and if we don’t we are in trouble. The maths dictate we won’t hit the ground running as alluded to in last week’s eletter unless we are very lucky.
So get that recommended bank in place before following any system or service. Once set aside see it as gone forever. Ignore those that say this is a negative approach, it’s not, it’s quite the opposite. This game is all about confidence and if you have a big emotional attachment to your betting money you will never gain the mental edge to carry on.
Betting without emotion injects the necessary discipline needed to ‘carry on’ when encountering a losing run and if you have the recommended betting bank in place that will take care of these runs if followed correctly.
Your only requirement to succeed once you have faith in your service/system is to place your bets in robot like fashion. So get mentally divorced from this start up money and quick!
Don’t Drink & Bet/Trade!
I think we’ve all had the odd bet whilst under the influence especially on a jolly up at the races, and that’s fine if you bring an amount you’re prepared to lose.
However I’ve heard some real horror stories lately about betting or trading whilst under the influence…
One of my friend’s brothers had a very big hangover as a result of his after work drinking session with his work chums one Friday evening.
On his arrival home he decided to deposit £2,000 into his Befair account in time for the 9.20 race at Wolverhampton. He proceeded to Lay £20 (in running) at 2.0. Unfortunately whilst under the influence he accidently Layed the selection for £2,000 via his Fairbot application – I kid you not!
The selection quickly went clear a furlong out and this £2,000 was quickly snapped up by the in-play sharks before he realised his mistake. The selection went onto to win meaning he LOST his full £2,000 in less than a few seconds – Ouch!! Proving drinking and Betting/Trading really don’t mix.
Your cautious side and awareness are severely disabled meaning irrational choices and mistakes abound. It’s one thing having a few carefree bets over a few Guinness’s at Cheltenham but that’s as far as it should go if you want to make money from this game.
You would never see any sharp, on course bookies taking bets whilst under the influence and for very good reason, it’s their business and we the punter on the other side of the fence should be no different.
Finally next time you walk down your local high street take a look at how many Bookmakers are situated within very close proximity to Pubs?
Call me a cynic, but I think this is more down to strategic planning than coincidence – don’t you?
Next Week! – Smoothie makers & Value Betting – What do they have in common?