Punting story
Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 1:32 pmCouple lose despite backing every greyhound
A married couple took almost £47,000 (approx $95,000 AU) in cash to back every dog at a greyhound track but what they thought to be a foolproof strategy turned out to have a crucial flaw.
The pair, in their 50s, were hoping to scoop a British record breaking greyhound jackpot of £101,110.39p at Sheffield's Owlerton Stadium.
They travelled hundreds of miles from the south coast of England with their stake money and what they believed to be a fail-safe plan.
The unnamed punters placed £46,656 in bets to cover every possible placing of six dogs in six races, using cash they brought in a Tesco carrier bag.
But the couple had not bargained on two other ticketholders backing all six winners and the jackpot being split three ways. It meant that their share of £33,703.46 left them with a net loss of around £13,000. (approx $26,500AU)
John Gilburn, Owlerton's managing director, said: "The couple arrived at the track before racing saying they wanted to play all the permutations on the jackpot and produced a Tesco carrier bag stuffed full of money.
"We took them into the cash room and it took us an hour to complete the count. I don't know if they were part of a syndicate or what, but when they came for their money they were very, very philosophical about the situation."
One of the jackpot winners was a local punter who also wished to remain anonymous and the other an internet gambler known as the Scoop6 Squirrel.
A married couple took almost £47,000 (approx $95,000 AU) in cash to back every dog at a greyhound track but what they thought to be a foolproof strategy turned out to have a crucial flaw.
The pair, in their 50s, were hoping to scoop a British record breaking greyhound jackpot of £101,110.39p at Sheffield's Owlerton Stadium.
They travelled hundreds of miles from the south coast of England with their stake money and what they believed to be a fail-safe plan.
The unnamed punters placed £46,656 in bets to cover every possible placing of six dogs in six races, using cash they brought in a Tesco carrier bag.
But the couple had not bargained on two other ticketholders backing all six winners and the jackpot being split three ways. It meant that their share of £33,703.46 left them with a net loss of around £13,000. (approx $26,500AU)
John Gilburn, Owlerton's managing director, said: "The couple arrived at the track before racing saying they wanted to play all the permutations on the jackpot and produced a Tesco carrier bag stuffed full of money.
"We took them into the cash room and it took us an hour to complete the count. I don't know if they were part of a syndicate or what, but when they came for their money they were very, very philosophical about the situation."
One of the jackpot winners was a local punter who also wished to remain anonymous and the other an internet gambler known as the Scoop6 Squirrel.
