DOUBLE HANDFUL

THEY say a golf match is a test of your skill against your opponents’ luck.

It’s pretty much the same thing when a punter takes on a bookie, except the bookie has pretty much all the odds in their favour.

When you look at a race as competitive as the £100,000 Betway Handicap Chase at Kempton you begin to wonder why we bet in the first place.

It’s more open than 24-hour banking or a goal tended by Jordan Pickford.

You could run this race 10 times and get 10 different results, although the horses would be pretty exhausted by the end of the day.

Three novices have won this race in the last nine years, which just underlines the unpredictability of the race.

Paul Nicholls is sure to have a big say in the business end of the race as he fires four strong darts at the pot.

He has likely favourite Adrien Du Pont as well as Sametegal, who will probably go off third in the betting. Then there’s Black Corton, a winner over course and distance, while his other runner, Romain De Senam, has finished in the frame on three of his last four outings.

I really like the chances of Adrien Du Pont and Black Corton given that both have won at the course. Kempton is unique in that the fences aren’t hugely demanding but the obstacles are spaced out in such a way that they come thick and fast, which is why experience is so invaluable.

Of the two I’d slightly favour Black Corton at the more generous odds.

The one I’m backing to finish in front of Paul Nicholls’ string is JUST A STING.

He’s another horse who has won at the course, last time out in fact.

He even finished runner-up in his only other start at Kempton, so the surroundings clearly hold no fears for Harry Fry’s game eight-year-old.

With three wins in seven starts I expect him to put in a bold display.