SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Glorious Goodwood Friday

It’s Friday at Glorious Goodwood already, the week has flown as fast as the horses.

I’ll tell you something that doesn’t fly, birds around Kennel Hill on the approach to the racecourse from Chichester direction. Go on, have a look the next time you are at Goodwood. Despite being heavily wooded, I challenge you to spot a bird, either in the trees or flying above. It was pointed out to me years ago and I have yet to spot a bird.

Talking of hills, Trundle looked very busy today, though you would be needing the factor 50 if you were up there all day.

Lofty’s team remained unchanged: the man himself at the helm with BHA graduate Dan and Chip Shop Steve on the shop front. Kyle was attending a funeral today so Hannah, resplendent in yellow, stepped into his shoes alongside Tony while Inlike Flynn tapped away on the computer.

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1:50 – Coral Goodwood Handicap (Class 2) (3YO plus) 2m 4½f

Lofty described the betting in the first race as more ‘blokey’ than previous days and by that he meant that the stakes were bigger. The Tatts team took more ‘notable’ bets than Flynn on the rails £2100 – £600 Super Superjack and £350 each-way Withhold.

Lofty was chuckling to himself about the last bet, it was called £2450 – £350 each-way because that’s what the punter asked for, had he just added the word ‘fractions’ he’d have backed the horse to win an extra £50 for absolutely nothing. Come racing. As it happened it was all academic, Master Milliner won the race at 14/1 for Emma Lavelle under Sean Levy, a great start for both books, copping £4500 between them.

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2:25 – Bonhams Thoroughbred Stakes (Group 3) (Class 1) (3YO only) 1m

The next was a lively one. Once again stakes were up despite the larger bets being less plentiful. The biggest bet on both pitches was at Flynn’s, £300 each-way Sonny Liston. Lofty and Flynn both had Bayside Boy their bogie, just due to the weight of money backed from 11/4 into 2/1. Geoff Banks betting on the rails told me before the race that he’d laid a bet of £40,000 – £1000 each-way The Wizard Of Eye. He’d explained to the punter that if he won he wouldn’t be able to pay him in readies, though I think more likely had thought just been gifted £2000.

That’s not the way it panned out, The Wizard Of Eye looked like winning for a few strides but had to settle for runner-up spot behind 11/2 Rocchigiani first past the post. He may well have won had he not been checked when making its run up the rail. There seemed to be a long time before the Steward’s Enquiry was called. The result stood, much to the relief of Geoff Banks and as it turned out, John Hooper, who’d also laid a monkey each-way at 40/1.

Luckily, those informed punters left Star Sports out, both joints won four-figures.

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3:00 – Coral Golden Mile Handicap (Class 2) (3YO plus) 1m

Next up and the punters were keen to back Noble Dynasty despite the big field, drawn nicely in stall three. Flynn laid bets of £4500 – £2000 and £1250 – £500, everything else was a winner in the book. Over in Tatts, Lofty said that he’d not been able to really get going on the race but that his bogie was Escobar. Orbaan winning at 20/1 also well-drawn in stall two evidently didn’t appeal to the punters despite at least one shrewdie putting him up.

Tony, wearing a ‘Make Bookmaking Great Again’ baseball hat of 2017 vintage, told me that the winner had been a great result. Happy days again for the firms basking in the sun and favourable results.

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3:35 – King George Qatar Stakes (Group 2) (Class 1) (3YO plus) 5f

Inlike’s partner and mother of his child, Esme, was here today with her friend, Jess. Esme had backed a winner so was in high spirits. Luckily, she had me to talk to because poor old Flynn and the team were under the cosh taking bets on the fourth. The biggest of the heat was a £3000 – £1000 Raasel but as was the trend of the day, big bets were down but average stakes were up and it was busy.

Once again the books got a result, not a ‘right result’ but a result nonetheless. Khaadem, an 8/1 middle pin, beat the 3/1 favourite and rails book bogie Raasel into second copping £1600. It wasn’t such great news over with Lofty, the winner took the book which sometimes happens.

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4:10 – L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate Glorious Stakes (Group 3) (Class 1) (4YO plus) 1m 4f

Going into the fifth, Lofty had worked up a sweat. Not hard in their pitch, not shaded I’ll grant you, but he’d been tapping away like a good-un, which of course he is. Poor old Dan was also learning the hard way not to dress like Johnny Cash when the forecast is hot, the poor lad must have felt like he’d been in a ring of fire. Lofty told me that this had been the best betting race of the day with the field money well up and the odds-on jolly Rebel’s Romance only losing a carpet in the book. That figure would depend on the places, he didn’t want either Global Storm or Regal Reality placed – unless either of them won – which would be a different story.

The biggest bet Flynn’s team had taken on the jolly was £200 so when the gelding justified his odds of 4/5 and beat stablemate and 12/1 chance Kemari, it wasn’t a great result. But, despite losing, it wasn’t that bad considering. Lofty was also happy to get both each-way bogies out of the frame, so both got off lightly with an odds-on banker going in. The money copped on the day so far had been hardly dented and looked like staying in the hods with two races to go.

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4:45 – Coral Beaten-By-A-Length Free Bet Nursery (Class 2) (2YO only) 6f

Next up and Lofty and co had been busy looking for a spare till roll. Luckily they found one before the one still in action ran out, always a good sign of a busy day. Considering it was a very competitive 16-runner Nursery the punters were still keen to get involved. Including Jess and Esme, though the latter was horrified when the former asked a bookmaker for a tenner each-way then gave him a tenner. ‘Oh my God, that’s the sort of thing you write about in your blogs’ she told me, apologetically. Not at all, this blog actively encourages ladies to bet with bookies, they certainly aren’t expected to know everything and mistakes like that are easily rectified. Don’t be put off, Jess!

All those novice bets add up, especially when a 22/1 chance like Rumstar wins. Both books copped, nicely. Flynn was a bit unlucky not to have bet on the whole race, I was dispatched to look for an RDT engineer when the rails light board expired, they think it was down to overheating so hopefully it was a feint rather than terminal. We’ll find out tomorrow.

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5:20 – Oliver Brown Handicap (Class 3) (3YO only) 1m 3f

A replacement was found for the lucky last and a fourth winning day on the bounce, this time a good one, looked 1.01. The board was one of the old-fashioned ones that don’t show up as well as the new, especially in the sun. That didn’t stop the rails pitch from taking over £2000 in just steady bets. Lofty had been taking the bigger wagers, he’d laid £2100 – £300 Knightswood, £3000 – £300 Paradias and £700 Omniscient saying ‘I’ve won on every race, I’m due a losing one’. I, of course, told him not to be so negative.

I was right to do so too. 5/1 winner Caius Chorister won, Paradias was second, but Lofty had laid it win only. The winner was a winner in both books ensuring a five-figure cop on the day and a four-day winning run. That’s great going for Glorious Goodwood.

Aye Aye, we’re back tomorrow hoping for a five-timer.

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SIMON NOTT

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Views of authors do not necessarily represent views of Star Sports Bookmakers.

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Simon Nott is author of: Skint Mob! Tales from the Betting Ring
available on Kindle CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS

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