Author: Online Betting Pro

I am a punter that loves to follow the horse both in Australia and the United Kingdom. I enjoy writing about sports betting and also casino, poker and bingo. In my spare time I like to keep fit by playing football and going for long bike rides. I also like to travel the world and see amazing place s and meet wonderful people along the way.

Gold Lies At The End Of The Festival Rainbow

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Four days of festivities and elite jumps racing culminates on day 4 at The Festival with the running of the £575,000 Grade 1 Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup. Run over a distance of 3 miles, 2½ furlongs (5331m), the field faces 22 obstacles on the way to joining one of the most prestigious clubs in global racing. The most valuable non-handicap chase in Great Britain, the Gold Cup has been won by the likes of Arkle (1964-66), his great rival Mill House (1963), Best Mate (2002-04), Golden Miller (a five-time winner from 1932-36) and Kauto Star (2007 & 2009) since it was first run over the jumps in 1924 (although the history of a Gold Cup race on this site dates back to 1819).

After the victory of novice Coneygree in 2015 at just his fourth start over the obstacles, the 2016 Cheltenham Gold Cup was won stylishly by the Gordon Elliott-trained 9/4 favourite Don Cossack, ridden by Bryan Cooper. Pushed into the lead as they approached the last, he powered up the hill to win by 4 ½ lengths ahead of the gallant Djakadam. That would be Don Cossack’s final career run as he was retired from racing in January 2017 following a recurrence of a tendon injury after his Gold Cup win.

Bookies can’t split leading trio

There’s an intriguing market for this year’s Gold Cup, with Djakadam, Native River and Cue Card equal favourites at 7-2 across most the major books, while the next seven among the 14-horse field are rated at 20-1 or better to upset the leading trio. History shows that the winner will most probably come from the three runners at the head of the market with 14 of the past 15 winners in the top three of the betting, only Lord Windermere bucking that trend in 2014. All of the past 16 champions of the race had previously won a Grade 1 contest, while 11 of the past 15 winners had all won or finished second on a previous trip to The Festival.

Lizzie Kelly becomes the first woman to ride in the race for 33 years when she partners outsider Tea For Two. Kelly became the only woman to win a Grade 1 race over jumps when she rode the horse to success in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase in December 2015. But there’s a trend we’re prepared to take on this year with just one of the past 21 winners aged ten or older (Cool Dawn in 1998), with 20 of the past 22 Gold Cup victors were aged seven, eight or nine.

Winning script for Cue Card

The 11-year-old Cue Card (pictured) is a familiar presence at The Festival. He won the Weatherbys Champion Bumper (a first Festival victory for his trainer Colin Tizzard) in 2010 and has run at the meeting four times since. He finished fourth in the 2011 Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, won the Ryanair Chase in 2013 and finished second to Sprinter Sacre in the Racing Post Arkle Novices’ Chase in 2012. In 2016, he fell three fences from home in the Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup when disputing the lead, losing out on the chance of a £1 million bonus.

This season, Cue Card has won both the Grade 1 Betfair Chase at Haydock and the Grade 1 Betfair Ascot Chase. He will once again be ridden by Paddy Brennan. Perhaps it’s fate that Thistlecrack was ruled out of the Gold Cup on February 21 due to a tendon injury as Cue Card’s stablemate would almost certainly have started favourite. Shortest-priced of the five Irish-trained runners is Willie Mullins’ Djakadam at 4/1, runner-up for the past two years. He looms as the main danger to our top pick. Bizarrely, Mullins has never won the Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup but has saddled the runner-up six times.

March Madness: Rhode Island can spring an upset against Creighton

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The First Round of March Madness concludes on Friday with 15 games that feature some of the leading contenders to win the NCAA Championship. There is plenty of value to be had, and here we pick out some of the most intriguing games:

Michigan v Oklahoma State

This is one of the most eagerly anticipated matches of the tournament as it comes less than 10 games after the Michigan team escaped unscathed from a plane crash. They were evacuated from the runway and ended the week as Big 10 champions. Michigan was seeded eighth and had to beat top seed Purdue, then fourth-seeded Minnesota and finally second-seeded Wisconsin to win the automatic bid for March Madness. The Wolverines pulled it off in style and go into the NCAA Tournament full of belief and heart. Confidence pride is on the line as this pits the Big Ten against the Big 12, and Michigan can win it. Oklahoma State has had a turbulent season and is 0-7 in March, while Michigan has won five straight against top notch opposition, so the 8/11 that 888Sport has on Michigan looks great.

Creighton v Rhode Island

The Creighton Bluejays go into this game as slight favourites (10/11 with William Hill), while Rhode Island is the underdog at 19/20 with BetVictor. Creighton is the sixth seed, while Rhode Island is 11, but Rhode Island looks to have been under-seeded here. The Rams are a very good team and can harbour realistic hopes of not only beating Creighton but going as far as the Sweet Sixteen or even the Elite Eight. They would be unlikely to get past Kansas, but they can really go on a run in this bracket. These two teams come into March Madness as polar opposites. Creighton started the season sensationally as it raced to an 18-1 record. Then they lost star player Maurice Watson and have since gone 7-8. The Rams have momentum, having finished the regular season with eight straight wins and then earned three victories in a row to claim the A-10 Championship. That 19/20 on Rhode Island at BetVictor looks great value.

Seton Hall v Arkansas

This is a classic 8/9 game featuring an eighth and ninth seed that are virtually impossible to split, such are the similarities between the two teams. It is an interesting game as the winner will surely go on to face tournament favourites North Carolina in the next round, where they are overwhelmingly likely to be knocked out. But they will give this game all they have got and it is likely to be ferociously competitive. Arkansas plays with intensity and energy and has the better record, but Seton Hall has more impressive wins under its belt and loves to slow the game down. The two styles contrast and we could be in for a low-scoring game here, so the best bet could well be the under 146.5 total points at 10/11 with Bet365.

Rory the Favourite at Special Arnold Palmer Invitational

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The Arnold Palmer Invitational takes on special meaning this year without the King to preside over his beloved tournament. The King, Arnold Palmer, passed away in September, and the undeniable mark he left on the game of golf and this tournament will be sorely felt this year. Lots of players have returned to Bay Hill to pay their tributes this week adding to a high-quality field.

The Course

Bay Hill Club & Lodge is a 7,419 yard, par 72 rustic course in Orlando, Florida. It’s been a regular stop on the PGA Tour since 1979 and over time has changed drastically since Palmer took over the ownership of it and made it his own. Widely known for its closing stretch of three holes and hole number 6 where John Daly once recorded an 18. The closing three holes should bring the bulk of the drama, though pure ball strikers should come to the fore.

The Defending Champion

Australian Jason Day battled his swing all day in the final round here last year but still did enough to beat Kevin Chappell down the last. It took a sensational up and down from the green side bunker and a final round 70 to win by one. Day was out of the blocks early with a 66-65 opening two rounds but slowed over the weekend with matching 70s.

The Contenders*

Rory McIlroy $8

McIlroy’s been short of golf this season, choosing his tournaments carefully, but he’s always supported this event. Returned from an injury in Mexico and finished tied for 7th. Strong chance.

Jason Day $15

The defending champion has also been out of action recently with illness and injury. It shouldn’t affect him too much as he’s always bounced back strongly when returning to competition. Won’t repeat wire to wire, but might come into his own during the weekend.

Henrik Stenson $9

An amazingly consistent player that is in form and awesome at Bay Hill (T8-T5-2nd-T3 since 2013). Ran out of steam when he looked a chance last week, but leading ball striking stats all over the show.

Tommy Fleetwood $51

Solo second at the WGC in Mexico (his first start on TOUR this year) followed a win in Dubai earlier in the year. A good chance here on account of his tremendous scrambling ability.

Francesco Molinari $46

We tipped him a couple of weeks ago and he let us down but has an amazing Bay Hill record that we can’t ignore. Top 20s in seven of his last eight starts (since October) and in each of the last three editions of the API.

Thomas Pieters $34

The Ryder Cup star has shown promise this year as he dedicates more time to the US. Was last here in 2016 (of those that made the cut). A concern over his putting on Bermuda, but was tied for second at the Honda Classic a while back.

*Odds from Sportsbet.

The Winner

Fleetwood, Francisco and Fowler (who we didn’t feature but is obviously an option) are all chances, but we like Rory to win.

NHL Betting Gets Interesting as Divisional Leaders All Falter

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Someone has clearly lit the blue touch paper in Calgary as the Flames are burning brighter than ever and look invincible at present. They have become the fourth team this season to go on a 10-game winning run and have set a franchise record in the process. That recent 10-0 record has sent them second in the Pacific, and they are now hot on the heels of San Jose in the running for the division and looking like an interesting long-shot for the Stanley Cup.

Pacific Division

The Sharks have led the way all season and Calgary have simply been battling to stay in playoff contention. But a 10-game winning streak has seen the Flames move to within three wins of San Jose, with 13 games to go before the end of the regular season. The Sharks are 7-2-1 and it is now game on. The Sharks are best priced at a meagre 1/9 with BetVictor and should be good for it, but a speculative flutter on the Flames at 9/1 looks intriguing. Goaltender Brian Elliott has impressed and if they can keep it going, the 33/1 on offer at SkyBet for them winning the Stanley Cup might be worth a go too. But San Jose is very strong and Brent Burns, Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton are in fine form, so they look like the biggest threat from this division.

Central Division

The Chicago Blackhawks have hit form at the perfect time of the season and are 8-2 in their last 10, while Minnesota has slumped and is 4-6. Chicago has now won three of its four games against Minnesota this season and established itself as the leading franchise in the west. The 3/1 on offer at SkyBet, PaddyPower and BoyleSports on Chicago winning the west looks great, and the evens BetVictor has on the Blackhawks winning the Central Division looks good as they are one win ahead of Minnesota, with one game extra played but in better form.

Metropolitan Division

Just like the Minnesota Wild, the Washington Capitals looked like running away with their division, but a poor patch has coincided with the Pittsburgh Penguins going on a great run. Pittsburgh has injury problems in defence but has moved to within two wins of the Caps, with a game in hand, thanks to a superb offence. The Caps endured a four-game losing streak for the first time since November 2014, and that has opened the door for Pittsburgh, which now looks a good bet at 6/4 with PaddyPower for the division.

Atlantic Division

A three-way fight is playing out between the Canadiens, Senators and Bruins. All three are in similar form and picking a winner here looks like a nightmare; so, it is perhaps best to leave this one alone. The winner of the east is highly likely to come from the Metropolitan Division, as three teams – the Caps, Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets – head the betting before you get to the Canadiens, who are 6/1 outsiders.

Upcoming Games

The Flames have home advantage as they bid to make it 11 wins in a row against the Boston Bruins, and the 10/11 at SkyBet on them doing just that looks a great bet. The Bruins, led by Brad Marchand, are in fine form too (11-3 in their last 14) and have consolidated their playoff position, but the Flames have serious momentum right now. The Blackhawks face the Senators in another tough game on Thursday but should prevail at odds of 17/20. The St Louis Blues visit San Jose to face the Sharks on Friday and that should be a win for the Sharks at odds of around 5/7.

The Festival Embraces Luck Of The Irish On Day 3

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Saint Patrick may have rid Ireland of all the snakes, but he’d have his hands full eradicating Cheltenham of all the Guinness-swilling Irish celebrating St Patrick’s Day as part of day 3 at The Festival. Amid the festivities and proud displays of green, white and orange (well, mostly green), the keener punters will be closely following the markets ahead of the day’s two big races, £300,000 Grade 1 The Sun Bets Stayers’ Hurdle and the Ryanair Chase.

In 2016, Thistlecrack justified banker status as he bounded away from Irish challenger Alpha Des Obeaux to take The Sun Bets Stayers’ Hurdle in breath-taking fashion and confirmed his domination of the staying hurdle division. Formerly known as the World Hurdle, this race’s short history dates back to just 2000. In that period, there’ve been three multiple winners – Big Buck’s (four in a row from 2009-2012 for Ruby Walsh and Paul Nicholls), Inglis Drever (2005, 2007-08) and Baracouda (2002-03).

Go with Harry, Know What I Mean?

After 21 runners accepted for the Sun Bets Stayers’ Hurdle, a field of 16 is set to line-up for the fourth on the card of day 3. Unowhatimeanharry ($2.25 favourite with Sun Bets) is unbeaten in eight starts for trainer Harry Fry and signed off last season with victory in the G1 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at The Festival, after which he was bought privately by J.P. McManus. The nine-year-old was impressive in beating Ballyoptic (Nigel Twiston-Davies, 16/1) on his return in a G2 contest at Newbury in November before a four and a half-length victory over Lil Rockerfeller in the G1 Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot the following month. Jessica Harrington plans to run 2014 Stan James Champion Hurdle victor Jezki ($8 with Paddy Power) after two good comeback runs this season. The JP McManus-owned gelding Yanworth ($7 with Coral), who will be ridden for the first time by Mark Walsh, has won each of his three starts this season, the most recent in the Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton. The favourite looks close enough to a good thing.

Mullins Strong Hand in Ryanair Chase

The day’s other feature – the £300,000 Ryanair Chase (Grade 1 over 2m 5f) – is the third on the card. There’s value galore with five of the eight runners rated at 10-1 or better. Willie Mullins sent out the 1-2 in the 2016 Ryanair Chase as Vautour beat Valseur Lido. This year, the trainer is responsible for saddling the favourite in the championship contest this year. Un De Sceaux ($3.25 thanks to William Hill) has been victorious on two of his three previous appearances at Cheltenham. The nine-year-old stormed to six-length victory in the Racing Post Arkle Novices’ Chase at The Festival in 2015 and returned last year to chase home Sprinter Sacre in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase. He also triumphed at the course on his latest start, beating the 2015 Ryanair Chase winner Uxizandre (Alan King) by five lengths in the re-scheduled G1 Clarence House Chase on Festival Trials Day (January 28). The British challenge includes Josses Hill (Nicky Henderson), an impressive winner of the G2 Betfred Peterborough Chase at Huntingdon in December and the best of the next at $8 (Betway).

Black Caps, Proteas Need Ambition to Break Series Deadlock

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New Zealand and South Africa head to the Basin Reserve in Wellington with the opportunity to take hold of the test series. With a win here in game two, they’ll make it impossible for their opponents to win and have an excellent chance of taking out the series given the torrential wet weather that’s blanketing most of New Zealand and could threaten game three. They must be positive though to advance a result.

The Series So Far

Dunedin’s series opener was ruined by final day rain just as things were getting tense. With a small lead of just 140 and 4 wickets in hand, the South Africans would’ve needed some decent rearguard action to set New Zealand a challenging total. It wasn’t to be, and a draw was betting of a game that neither team dominated or took by the scruff of the neck – the Black Caps had their chances but grassed two many catches and used DRS poorly.

New Zealand looked to have a better batting unit (Dean Elgar aside), whereas, South Africa looked more threatening with the ball, which could point to another close one in Wellington.

The Teams

New Zealand (probable):

1 Tom Latham, 2 Jeet Raval, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Neil Broom, 5 Henry Nicholls, 6 BJ Watling (wk), 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 James Neesham, 9 Neil Wagner, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Trent Boult

I don’t think Jeetan Patel will play again this series, even though he’s guaranteed to get at least two wickets in the match (de Kock x2). Instead, Santner will be preferred and Tim Southee will return to strengthen the pace bowling stocks. Neil Broom will replace the injured Ross Taylor, and Trent Boult is still under an injury cloud.

South Africa (probable):

1 Stephen Cook, 2 Dean Elgar, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Faf du Plessis (capt), 5 JP Duminy, 6 Temba Bavuma, 7 Quinton de Kock (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Kagiso Rabada

Unlikely to make changes, as spinner Dane Piedt is still awaiting a visa. He’s a chance to play in Hamilton where the pitch is expected to offer help to the slow bowlers.

The Key Players

New Zealand

Without his other senior contributor Ross Taylor, and not being able to rely on the woefully out of form, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson will be required to do exactly what he did in game one. The captain scored a quality century in trying conditions to lead the way. He’s a great chance of repeating given his record in Wellington – at the Basin, he averages 79.9 with 3 hundreds and 3 fifties.

South Africa

Dean Elgar’s monumental effort in Dunedin is reflective of his renewed confidence at test level. After a pair on debut (at the hands of Mitchell Johnson), Elgar has come of age of late and now has more test centuries than half centuries – a fantastic effort from an opener. His double of 140 and 89 was exactly what his side required when they found themselves in trouble early in both innings in Dunedin.

The Match Odds*

New Zealand – $3.40

Draw – $4.25

South Africa – $1.90

*All odds from Bet365.

The Prediction

The weather forecast is again looking okay despite some horror weather in NZ of late. That said, the flat surface may mean another draw is on the cards. In order for it to happen Elgar needs to bat forever again and the Black Caps will need to show some mettle without Ross Taylor.

The Best Bets

Henry Nicholls has had some success against South Africa and looks at crazy money for a specialist batsman to top score. He’s worth the $8 being offered at Bet365.

Philander will enjoy the conditions at the Basin Reserve and performed well last time he played there. Strongly consider him to be top bowl at $3.40.