Zombie Crowd Head to Betfred

So many times punters bet without really thinking what they are doing. 

A race card is pinned to the wall of the local bookmakers and a hoard of zombie bettors shuffle over to revel in the hubbub. Grunts, groans and the odd scream fall from the lips of grey faces in search of the next winner. They hear a voice from the box on the wall detailing the betting for the next greyhound race at Romford. The crowd drift toward the screen looking up with interest as if someone was waving a fresh carcass for them to devour.  

This sounds like a scene from Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead but it's Betfred, 107 Fenchurch Street, London. 

We all remember the old-style betting shops full of characters and smoke from an endless chain-smoking supply of Benson & Hedges, mixed with a dash of John Player Special and hint of Castella. Those days are gone but the zombies remain. Sure they are a bit different: tarted up in the designer training shoes and ripped jeans but they still remain. If you look closely - without thinking - you can see them betting with unending zeal. 

In ways zombie bettors fall into the category of betting without a niche. So what does that mean? They have no real logic when to bet or not. To many punters that is par for the course. They want to bet every few minutes so they are part of the conveyor belt of bettors who go from dog race, horse race, virtual horse race, dog race... That's all good and well to a point. But when betting can be a costly business, can anyone really afford to just lose money easily? Add up the loses over a week, month or year. How much? Decades. ''I could have bought a yearling sire by Frankel and called it Zombie.''

Betting with a specific knowledge is akin to chancing your luck on the lottery. You may win but the more you play the more you lose. Unless you strike it very lucky, you are losing to a point of ridicule. 

''It's my money, I'll bet as I please.''

Too true. But if you keep losing the term mug punter comes into play. A vulgar term if I have ever heard one. 

So why is betting with a niche a good idea?

Let's face it, there is only so much time in a day. We cannot know everything even if some people like to think they do. How can you be the jack of all trades and be better than the man, woman or child who specialise?

You can't. 

If you specialise it will guarantee that you don't bet on everything. You are selective. You take time, effort and even ''skill'' to pinpoint the best bet of the day. God knows, why not bet on one horse a day! 

Don't be part of the Zombie crowd.

Tic-Tac The Bookies Secret Code

It used to be a familiar practice at racecourses up and down the country. Tic-Tac, a non-verbal system to communicate betting around the racecourse, so bookmakers could keep up to date with betting moves, especially if a big bet had been placed. 

In 1999 there were only three practitioners left: Micky ''Hokey'' Stuart, Billie Brown & Rocky Roberts. 

These days of Tic-Tac have long gone. With the introduction of Betfair, a betting exchange, founded in 2000, the way people bet and how information was used changed dramatically. Not only did bookmakers use this platform to hedge their bets but the information made Tic-Tac obsolete. 

Who needed a man with white gloves and a secret code when the betting was in front of their eyes? However, the image of the Tic-Tac man (or woman) is a nostalgic reminder of times gone by and a sign that technology never stops. 

A Guide to Bookie Hand Signals: 

• Tic-Tac Odds of 9/4 ("top of the head") – both hands touching the top of the head. 
•  Odds of 10/1 ("cockle" or "net") – fists together with the right-hand thumb protruding upwards, to resemble the number 10. 
•  Odds of 11/10 ("tips") – hands together and touching all fingers on both hands together.
• Odds of 5/4 ("wrist") – the right hand is moved to touch the left wrist. 
• Odds of 33/1 ("double carpet") – arms crossed, hands flat against the chest