AMATEUR PUNTER

Ben Morgan dips a toe into the world of syndicates as well as having a few bets

Ben Morgan dips a toe into the world of horse ownership

Having recently set up a syndicate with a few close friends and family, my mindset changed temporarily at the start of the month as I headed to my first race day as an owner. After a lot of hassle of setting up the syndicate, Only Fools Own Horses, I was quite relieved to get to Chepstow for their first Flat meet of the season and just simply enjoy watching White Turf, trained by Alastair Ralph, perform. As a punter, I usually head to the races with the sole aim of making money but as an owner all I was really concerned about was cheering our horse on win, lose or draw.

Bought from the Andrew Balding stable in the early part of the year, our main intention is to go hurdling with him next season, but we thought we would be cheeky and try to steal a Flat race with him first. With some tidy form in the book, we were half hoping for a solid performance in a race which turned out far more competitive than our racing manager (me) had first envisaged. In the end, we had to settle for eighth as jockey Rob Hornby let him come home in his own time on ground which he found far too quick.

Our small each-way wagers went down the pan, but our hopes for next autumn still remain high and, for me personally, it has opened a few more doors and created further work as I am currently in the process of setting up a few more syndicates due to the interest I have received. The horse racing world

is changing, and with the news breaking that Gigginstown are winding down their operation, it is now the time for small syndicates, full of horse racing enthusiasts to step forward and keep moving our sport forward. If you’re interested in becoming part of a syndicate which offers a personal service with flexible, affordable shares, please get in touch and start living the dream.

Enough of the advertising now and back to the bread and butter, punting. The start of May is all about Guineas weekend and the first Classics of the season. An exciting time of the year but one where I’d rather watch than invest. I mustered up a few bets on the Saturday, one of which looks an absolute corker now. Just a couple of hours before the Palace House Stakes I took 5/1 (£15 e/w) about Mabs Cross, the Abbaye winner of last year, to beat a field of Group 2 horses at best.

Michael Dods’ Group 1 star drifted to 6/1 come the off and I couldn’t believe my luck as she thrusted late on to notch up another victory. I’m sure she is destined for a great season and looking back now I still can’t believe I was allowed to get 6/1. She is currently a similar sort of price for the King’s Stand at Royal Ascot, and I wouldn’t put anyone off taking that price.

The 2000 Guineas didn’t go the way I wanted, however, as both Royal Marine (£10 e/w) and Kick On (£10 e/w) never really got involved and both now have questions to answer moving forward.

Day two revolved around one horse and one horse only, Baghdad. A horse I have certainly got on the right side of after receiving big windfalls from previous investments.

Having been plenty keen enough early I was worried whether he had blown his chances, but he kept finding more late on to hold off some tidy handicappers. Although not very precocious, he has plenty of heart and I will be interested to see where it gets him this season.

The action continued to come thick and fast as the Chester May Festival became the centre of my attention. However, no sooner did I revolve my week around it, I was trying to blank it from my mind.

Top Breeze (£15 e/w) was the first disappointment in the 5f handicap on the opening day. Richard Hughes’ charge looked like an improver as he blitzed the field at Newmarket the time before and at 4/1, I thought he was a cert to hit the frame from a handy draw. The soft ground was a possible excuse for his below par run but still, I was gutted he couldn’t figure in the finish.

Day two’s flop was Copper Knight. Backed off the boards, it wasn’t just me who couldn’t see him getting beat. With good course form to his name, soft ground on offer and a plum draw, everything seemed to be in his favour. Turning in, he looked to have the race at his mercy but he wasn’t quickening like I thought he should be and approaching the final furlong something looked sure to come and get him. Merhoob did just that which left me and many other punters cursing our luck. To make things worse, Copper Knight bolted up at York just a week later.

I gave up on day three and instead focused on one at Ascot. Just The Man had some rock solid form in the book behind Fox Chairman and I couldn’t have him out of the frame. Bookmakers obviously focusing on Chester, hadn’t looked in the form book and priced him up at 10/1 the night before. I had £40 each-way pretty quick, before he came tumbling into 5/1.

As I flicked over to watch the race I noticed there was a non-runner which bought the field down to seven and I just knew exactly what was going to happen from that point. I hate being proven right in these instances but I was indeed correct and Just The Man trailed home in third.

York was ever so slightly kinder to me as a decent win on day one set me up for the week. I had a £1 each-way Yankee which involved Corgi, Intisaab, Invincible Army and Space Blues. The first two, Corgi and Intisaab were decent prices, 8/1 and 20/1 respectively, and both ran very well to finish in the places. However, if one of them had won, I would have been in the reddies big time. Invincible Army, a horse I have tipped to enjoy Group 1 success at some point this year, did the business in the Duke Of York Stakes in impressive fashion. A much improved horse this season who is sure to carry on improving.

The last leg was Derby entry, Space Blues, who had hinted at ability without delivering yet this season. Charlie Appleby had been trying different trips with him, but the step down to just short of a mile looked sure to suit. James Doyle explored every avenue before deciding to switch near side where the horse picked up in impressive fashion and bought home £200.

No for the Oaks, the Derby and Royal Ascot and I cannot wait as June is not only the most exciting month of the season, but also my most profitable.

The Genetics of Group 1 Class

We’re in the midst of the Classic season, where the best of the best three-year-olds pit their respective abilities against each other in a bid to be not just a champion racehorse but a potential superstar stallion of the future. And, as well as the Classics at Newmarket, Epsom and the Curragh, there is also the small matter of Royal Ascot and its glittering Group 1 pots.

With a small group of highly progressive and clearly classy racehorses, how does one go about sorting the kings and queens from the mere prince(sse)s? One approach is to define class in terms of genetics; specifically in terms of father and grandfather or, in the parlance, sire and damsire.

These two horses make up 75% of horse’s gene pool and, importantly, offer more comparative data than the mother (mare). Even the best mares can only bear a dozen or so foals whereas sires can cover 200+ mares in a single season!

Below is a table of the top sires of three-year-old Group 1 winners since 2009 (one mile-plus flat races in UK and Ireland only). Table 1

Galileo is the undisputed heavyweight of this group, responsible for 52 3yo Group 1 winners in the past decade in UK and Ireland alone. When one considers there were 181 races in the sample, he has fathered no fewer than 29% of all 3yo G1 winners at a mile and beyond in the study period!

But here’s where it gets even more incredible. A horse cannot have the same sire and damsire (maternal grandfather) for reasons of in-breeding. Galileo, whose own progeny are only just emerging from his giant shadow at the breeding sheds, has been the damsire of a further nine Group 1 winners from that 181 sample.

In other words, he appears in the family tree of no fewer than one-third of all three-year-old Group winners at a mile-plus in UK/Ireland in the past decade. Table 2

If it’s winners we’re after, we need look no further than Galileo. But, of course, this fact is lost on almost nobody and, thus, it is not a profitable betting strategy; though it is not the