Fighting back.

It's all very well and good wondering and hypothesising about the whys and wherefores behind bookmaker restrictions, but all the theorising in the world isn't going to actually get our bets on, is it?

How can we fight back?

Well, the first thing I think we need to do is educate ourselves as much as we can. Mike of The Secret Betting Club had this to say:

"Great blog Rowan, such a shame you have been targeted by Bet365 like this. As Skeeve says they do seem to have a scattergun approach to restrictions as some very profitable punters are seemingly able to bet without problem. Unfortunately there seems a good number of punters who show a modicum of profit and whom Bet365 refuse to do business with. They are not the only ones either - not sure if you have seen this link http://www.pjmracing.co.uk/wallofshame.html

It is something we have explored via SBC in the past and as I know you are an active member, do check out the 8 articles we have about bookmakers and betting exchanges available in the betting guide section.

In particular I would recommend the know your enemy articles by Kodagira which explore the use of VPS or proxy servers. You mentioned using your wife's account and this is certainly one way of tackling the problem. Before you do so however, I would strongly recommend you consider 'different' ways of logging in and placing bets with them. When I was a bit more green around the ears I tried accessing a 2nd Bet365 account (after my first was restricted) without following some of the help Kodagira outlined and it was linked within days."

Now I have read the articles that Mike refers to, but I must confess it was some time ago and my homework for the weekend is to refresh my memory. I do remember reading Kodagira's superb piece on the use of proxy servers. At the time I didn't have any problems at all getting bets on and as someone who is not exactly IT savvy, I mentally stored his article in the part of my brain labelled 'To Come Back To When I Need It'. Well, now is the time to go back to it, because I do now need to read it!

It's an interesting point upon which to ponder though, isn't it? We've spent the last couple of days or so talking about how the bookmakers utilise IT to their advantage. Well, shouldn't we punters be doing exactly the same? I think so.

Now look chaps, it wouldn't be right of me to go into detail about what Kodagira has written, or into the detail contained in the SBC articles, but what I will do is explain exactly what I do over the days and weeks ahead.

The message to take away from this post though, is that there are ways and means to stay functional as a successful gambler. I do feel, as stated previously, that ultimately a shift in emphasis to weight operations more towards football betting is likely to be necessary, especially if we are still focused on growing our betting as opposed to keeping it at a certain level, which I am.

In the meantime, we need to box clever, adapt and persevere. I'm not giving up yet, that's for sure.


Today's Betting

Before I go through today's results, a quick word about the figures recorded on Winning Racing Tips' selections yesterday. When I got today's email from Paul, which stated that yesterday had been a break-even day, I wondered if I'd done something wrong. I then got an email from a friend who reads the blog and who is also a WRT member, saying that I had made a mistake with yesterday's figures. So I checked, and indeed I had made a mistake. Not with the recording of the results though, but rather with the placing of the bets. I had mistakenly placed the same double twice, and it happened to be the double that held one winner and a non-runner. Therefore I was paid out twice on a winning bet, and avoided placing the double that produced a small loss. Makes a nice change for an error to lead to increased profits as opposed to a heavier loss. Sod's Law must have taken the day off.

On to today, and a poor day it has been too.

Only three racing services in action today and blanks all round; On The Nose (0/2) and Chasemaster (0/2), and The Market Examiner (0/5).

So could On The Oche save me with their one bet tonight? No.

On The Nose: Staked 1pt, -1pt.
Chasemaster: Staked 0.5pts, -0.5pts.
The Market Examiner: Staked 3pts, -3pts.

On The Oche: Staked 1pt, -1pt.


Month to Date

Racing
Northern Monkey: Staked 19.75pts, -7.55pts, roi -38.23%
4PA: Staked 43.5pts, -3.312pts, roi -7.61%
Chasemaster: Staked 6.875pts, +1.378pts, roi 20.04%
WRT: Staked 9.1pts, +1.945pts, roi 21.38%
The Sportsman Racing: Staked 5.25pts, +1.363pts, roi 25.96%
On The Nose: Staked 22.25pts, +1.5pts, roi 6.74%
The Market Examiner: Staked 33pts, +2.755pts, roi 8.34%

Sports
TFA 7/22: Staked 14pts, +5.485pts, roi 39.17%
Skeeve: Staked 47pts, +8.369pts, roi 17.8%
Football Elite: Staked 11pts, +6.445pts, roi 58.59%
The Sportsman: Staked 0.5pts, 0pts, roi 0%
On The Oche: Staked 3pts, -0.75pts, roi -25%
Strike Zone (h): Staked 11pts, -3.3pts, -30%