Horse racing is one of the oldest sports and has millions of fans all over the world. It is an equestrian performance sport that allows men and women to compete together. There are many horse racing tournament formats, including steeplechasing, jump racing, endurance racing, and flat racing. Gamblers can stake their cash on the final placement of the participating horses and win millions in accumulators.
Betting on the outcome of these formal horse races is a fun and lucrative activity, and you can potentially beat the odds if you know what you’re doing. There are many things you need to pay attention to when placing a wager, but you can easily find tools that will help you get a better understanding of the betting mechanics. As the saying goes, “The more you learn, the more you earn”. If you’re looking for more gambling-related content, Casinobonusca is a reliable source where you can find the greatest tailor-made casino deals available.
Now that we’ve established that horse race betting is a common gambling activity enjoyed by millions, you should know that some gamblers are wagering thousands of dollars at once in an attempt to make a living off it. Probably hard to believe, but some payouts were so high and unexpected that are worth mentioning.
- Darren Yeats – $830.000
The 1996 Britain’s Ascot Festival was a sad moment for the bookmakers after Italian jockey Frankie Dettori defied the 25000 to 1 odds of winning all seven races during the event.
This world record-breaking winning streak of the Italian rider was made with his three-year-old colt, Wall Street.
One of the participating punters, Darren Yeats placed an $89 accumulator bet on all of Dettori’s races, even though his wife was against it. Even though it was nearly impossible for a jockey to win 7 rounds in a row, Yeats left the racetrack with $830,000 in his pocket.
After the event was over, Nick Smith, head of PR at Ascot told CNN: “We actually had champagne for him after the sixth win, and after the seventh, the whole place just erupted.”
In honor of this historic win, Ascort built a life-size statue of the jockey made from bronze at the entrance of the racecourse.
- JP McManus – $1.3 million
Despite having a net worth of over $1billion, the property mogul and horse owner JP McManus is a surprisingly reserved man. He started his career as a humble bookmaker and has earned his reputation as a lionhearted man on the track who isn’t afraid to take on any wager, no matter how great.
Also known as “the Olympics of jumps racing”, over $820 million are wagered during the four day Cheltenham Festival, with many bettors taking their lead from the legendary McManus, who was also nicknamed “the Sundance Kid” for his bold betting strategy.
During the 2006 edition of the festival, the real estate mogul won a staggering $1.3 million in a single day in a series of bets with the daring bookie “Fearless” Freddie William. David Williams, the Ladbrokes bookmaker said: “McManus is a legendary figure because of how brave he is. He is one of those faces that when he walks in a betting ring, everyone is wondering what he is going to do. But you would never believe he is such a great, brazen better – very polite, very unassuming, a real gentleman”.
- Conor Murphy – $1.5 million
Back in 2012, a 29-year-old Conor Murphy was just a stable boy. But a lucky bet would forever change his life. He was working at the Cheltenham racetrack and he decided to place a $75 bet on his boss’s five horses. While many would say that he let his heart rule his head, he managed to scoop a whopping 1.5 million dollars in an accumulator, which essentially is a bet that relies on all horses winning.
The wager was placed online three months in advance, increasing his odds and outcome potential. According to The Telegraph, the fresh millionaire used some of the earnings to finance his greatest ambition – to work as a trainer in Louiseville, the home of the prestigious Kentucky Derby.
Of course, not everyone is as lucky as these guys. Back in the ‘80s, Kerry Packer aka “The Big Fella” was a popular gambler who remains famous for betting odds with his million-dollar wagers. Packer was a billionaire and a legendary figure on the horse track. He was struggling to find individual bookmakers with enough money to accept his bets. In the late 80s, a consortium of bookmakers from Sydney joined forces to take on Packer’s impressive bets, which could even be $5 million on a single race. During the Sydney Golden Slipper Stakes in 1987, The Big Fella lost around 7 million dollars in a single day, including 2 million on his horse, the Christmas Tree.
As you can see, horse racing is a serious business with millions of dollars involved. However, this doesn’t stop amateurs to place small wagers that might seem against the odds and change their lives forever.
