Weekend Review: Bookies slightly up at Royal Ascot despite being “crushed” on Friday

Royal Ascot took centre stage on the sporting front as full crowds returned to the Berkshire track which was bathed in glorious sunshine for most of the five days. Saturday, the final day, was one for the bookmakers as 33-1 short Naval Crown ridden by James Doyle and trained by Charlie Appleby took the Group 1 Jubilee Stakes by a neck from stablemate Creative Force. The tone had been set in the first race when Holloway Boy, which had been available at 100/1 in places, came from almost last to first to cosily win the Chesham Stakes at an SP of 40/1. The places were filled by Pearling Path at 80/1 and Lakota Sioux at 33/1, which meant the Tricast paid an eye-popping £66,051. What made the story even more remarkable was the fact the owner only entered the horse so he could get hold of admission tickets after being let down for a private box. He said he didn’t back his horse but still trousered £59,000 for winning the listed race. The first three home being big-priced outsiders was a real placepot-buster after just one leg. After that, order was restored as 4/1-shot Noble Truth took the Jersey Stakes, although he was matched at 130 on the machine in-running, while Broome (6/1) won the Hardwick Stakes. A masterful ride by Ryan Moore, who finished the week as the leading jockey, on Rohan at 18/1 landed him the Wokingham Stakes. Despite the favourite, Missed the Cut, winning the sixth race, the Golden Gates Stakes, the placepot paid a whopping dividend of £79,125 (£87,038 with Tote+) to a £1 stake. Unsurprisingly, there were just 5.25 winning units. “It was a tough week for the all the bookies at Royal Ascot,” said William Hill’s Tony Kenny. “However, Saturday was a positive day for the industry, and our racing traders were pleased with the results on the final day.”

NAVAL CROWN takes the win in the Platinum Jubilee Stakes at 33/1👑 pic.twitter.com/qaVi1ekBRo

— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) June 18, 2022

  Meanwhile, Janis Strauts, head of trading at Virgin Bet, said: “Friday produced customer-friendly results, however we were able to recover those losses on the Saturday, when 40/1 debutant Holloway Boy was a surprise winner in the Chesham Stakes. This provided our best result of the week, in a race that also saw the places go our way. “In contrast, our worse result of the week came through a win from Inspiral in the Coronation Stakes at 15/8 favourite, while Changingoftheguard’s King Edward Stakes win was also a bad result.” Indeed, Alan Firkins of Betfred said the bookmaker was “crushed” on the Friday but “overall we didn’t fare too badly, and business was brisk”. “There was something for everyone all week long, and it was a thrill just to be a tiny part of it all. “For once his beloved Ascot proved testing for Frankie [Dettori], but Ryan Moore showed all and sundry exactly how it’s done.” What’s more, William Hill’s tough Friday was compounded by one customer going through the seven-race card with a £2.50 each-way accumulator. The bet, placed in a shop in Watford, came in at odds of 122,889/1 after Latin Lover (backed from 9/1 into 5/1) ridden by Hayley Turner won the last, netting the lucky punter a juicy £307,464.

One for @Hayleyturner123! Latin Lover gives @H_Eustace his first #RoyalAscot winner! pic.twitter.com/SZS5mABSm6

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 17, 2022

“Many of our customers try going through the card at the bigger meetings like Royal Ascot or Cheltenham but few manage it,” Kenny said. “The £2.50 each-way bet on Meditate, Perfect Power, Candleford, Inspiral, Heredia, Changingoftheguard and Latin Lover won them £307,464.02, showing that with a bit of luck these huge-priced accumulators can come off.” Away from the turf, golfer Matthew Fitzpatrick won his first Major with victory by one stroke at the US Open. The Englishman, who was generally a 25/1-shot beforehand with the bookmakers and began the final round as 7/2 favourite, produced arguably the shot of the tournament on the 18^th hole to reach the green from a bunker before holding his nerve to take the title. The 27-year-old’s final score of six under par at Brookline Country Club was one stroke ahead of Americans Scottie Scheffler and Will Zalatoris.

Fitzpatrick beauty from the bunker https://t.co/jvgMiWZ06v

— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) June 19, 2022

Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took the chequered flag at the Canadian Grand Prix, thereby extending his lead in the drivers’ standings to 46 points. The Dutchman had been generally around the 4/11 mark to prevail in Montreal on pole after teammate Sergio Perez crashed out in qualifying while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc dropped to 19^th with engine troubles.