Betting Stig takes on the bookies

About a year ago I came into contact with someone who calls himself the Betting Stig. For those who don’t know, the Stig is a character in the British television show, Top Gear.

The character wears a helmet at all times and the concept of the show is that no one would know the true identity of the Stig.

Well, the Betting Stig works the same way and while a few of us may know his identity, the betting public with whom he shares his information does not.

The Betting Stig has over the past few years developed an algorithm that helps him to handicap rugby games in leagues around the world. This algorithm is a work in progress and he is always refining it. He uses inputs such as home ground advantage, team selection, current form and more.

After feeding in his inputs, the algorithm spits out a favourite and a winning margin and the Betting Stig then waits for the bookmakers to price up their lines.

And if, for example, the Golden Lions are playing the Blue Bulls and the Stig Line, as he calls it, is (-11) Lions and the handicap opens (-7) Lions then his selection would be the Lions on the handicap.

He does not claim his system is foolproof, but he is striking around 58%, which is well above the average punter. He encourages those who follow him on Twitter or read his blog on Goodforthegame to use his Stig Lines in conjunction with their research.

I have experimented with many methods to try and get on top of the bookmakers, some successful and some less so, and I am certainly watching the Betting Stig’s progress with a lot of interest. He has appeared on my Thursday night rugby betting show, The Handicap, but don’t think you will identify him as he wears a helmet throughout the entire show.

If you are looking for a different angle, check out the Betting Stig’s blog.

Brent Graham is a sports betting blogger at

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